Chocolate holidays




Chocolate is the definitive holiday ingredient. I love chocolate in everything – cakes, cookies, pies, tarts, wrapped in foil or from a box – and the holidays are the perfect excuse to binge without guilt. These cookies are rich and chocolatey without being cloyingly sweet; creamy white chocolate chips and crunchy pecans add an interesting texture and make the cookies attractively cobbled and cracked. Don’t be deterred by the chili powder – just a touch of spice brings out the deepest dark chocolate flavor!

Merry Christmas, and happy eating!

Spicy double chocolate cookies
Adapted from AK’s recipe

Ingredients
-       1/3 cup flour
-       ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
-       1 tsp baking powder
-       ¼ tsp salt
-       6 squares (6 oz) semisweet chocolate, chopped
-       ½ cup of butter
-       2 large eggs, room temperature
-       ½ cup sugar
-       1 ½ tsp vanilla
-       2 cups pecans, chopped
-       6 oz (1 cup) white chocolate chips
-       ¼ tsp cinnamon
-       ½ tsp chili powder
-       ¼ tsp ground pepper

1.     Preheat oven to 325F, and grease or line a large baking tray with parchment paper.

2.     Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, chili powder and ground pepper.

3.     In a double boiler, melt semisweet chocolate and butter and mix till smooth. Remove from heat and cool.

4.     In a large bowl with a mixture at medium speed, beat together eggs and sugar until light and lemon-colored, around 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add the chocolate mixture, flour mixture and vanilla. Beat until just blended. Increase speed to medium and beat for an additional 2 minutes. Stir in white chocolate chips and pecans.

5.     Drop batter by teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking trays and bake for 13 minutes, or until tops of cookies are shiny and cracked.

6.     Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes on the tray, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

Makes about 30 3” cookies.

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