Double chocolate cookies

I revel in February and Valentine's Day because it gives special meaning and purpose to all the chocolate baking and eating that I readily do.

I think that if there's one thing I've established, it's how much I love chocolate. Chocolate treats are commonplace here.  However, Valentine's Day puts a special light on it.  Yes, I'm a sucker for the frills, the ribbons, the heart-shaped boxes...how can I possibly not love a holiday that's synonymous with chocolate!

So I took the occasion to try out a cookie recipe I've had my eye on for a while. Of course, they're chocolate.  In fact, they are very chocolaty, made for full-on chocolate lovers like myself.

This recipe comes from the Flour Bakery cookbook.  As I've mentioned before, this bakery based in Boston is special; they offer a lot of classic baked goods but there's some element or twist in what they do that makes the food just really good. In the case of these cookies, I think the special element, what makes them truly chocolaty, is the use of unsweetened chocolate.

There's really no shortage of chocolate in these cookies - both unsweetened as well as bittersweet chocolate.  The two get melted as part of the cookie base while more unsweetened chocolate is finely grated and folded in with chunks of bittersweet chocolate to make the final cookie dough.  

What you end up with is a cookie that my husband describes as a mix between brownie and flourless chocolate cake.  I think he's pretty spot on.  You've really got to take a big bite and get into the center of these cookies.  It's a bonus when you hit a chunk of bittersweet chocolate and overall, the moist center is brownie-like and full of a deep chocolate flavor that comes from the unsweetened chocolate as well as the bittersweet component.  

As a serious chocolate lover, I heartedly approve of this recipe.  It's good enough for Valentine's Day!  And I think sharing a couple of homemade cookies with your sweetie is a very good plan for a simple V-Day celebration.


Chocolate is the prominent ingredient in these double chocolate cookies.  Since there's not much flour in the recipe, the dough will be very soft, almost liquid, right after mixing and needs to chill (a few hours at least, or overnight) and firm up before baking.  Once chilled, it still has the texture resembling chocolate truffles!

From my experience, keep the dough cold and scoop it right before baking, or consider popping the baking sheets with the cookie dough into the fridge, or even freezer, for a bit before placing it into the hot oven.  Try to scoop and shape the dough balls into tight mounds so it bakes up nice and round, as it tends to spread in the oven. 

I made smaller cookies than the recipe suggested - about 2 tablespoons of cookie dough per cookie (vs. 1/4 cup) - and divided the recipe in half.  You'll end up with approximately 15 cookies if you do what I did.  

Bake the cookies until they're puffed and still soft in the center since you want them to be moist and they will continue to set up out of oven.  

You'll see the shiny, crackly tops that remind you of brownies.  My favorite part is the center, with its intense chocolate flavor and occasional chunks of bittersweet chocolate here and there that feels like some sort of bonus. 

This is one of the chocolate treats I'm making for my family this Valentine's Day.  So far, the month is going right according to plan...

And as you know with small batch baking, 15 cookies go quickly even for a family of three so it's time to move on to other treats...

Recipe:

Double Chocolate Cookies
Adapted from the Flour cookbook by Joanne Chang

These cookies are for true chocolate lovers.  The combination of bittersweet as well as unsweetened chocolate, melted and stirred in as chunks and in grated form, makes for a truly chocolate experience.  These cookies are something like a cross between brownies and flourless chocolate cake.  The recipe below is half the original and I baked them about half the size than intended but they still pack a big punch of chocolate in each bite.

- Makes approximately 15 cookies - 

Unsweetened chocolate: 2 oz. chopped; 1 oz. finely shaved (I used a box grater)
Bittersweet chocolate (62-70% cacao): 2.5 oz. coarsely chopped; 2 oz. chopped into 1/4 to 1/2-inch chunks
4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup (150g) sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup (35g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon instant espresso powder or instant coffee powder

Place the 2 oz. of chopped unsweetened chocolate, the 2.5 oz. of chopped bittersweet chocolate, and butter into a heatproof bowl.  Set on top of a pan of just simmering water and stir together until melted and smooth.  Remove bowl from the heat and stir in the vanilla.  Let mixture sit until thoroughly cooled, or place in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes or so (I found it tricky to set the mixture in the refrigerator without it setting into a truffle-like texture so I recommend letting it sit at room temp and stirring occasionally).

Using the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the sugar and eggs together on medium-speed until pale yellow and thick, about 3-4 minutes.  On low speed, add the cooled chocolate mixture and mix for just 15 seconds.  The mixture will not be fully mixed at this point but you will continue to stir everything together by hand next.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, and instant espresso/coffee powder.  Stir in the finely shaved unsweetened chocolate and 2 oz. of bittersweet chocolate chunks.  Add this to the dough and fold together with a rubber spatula until evenly combined.  Transfer dough to an airtight container and let chill for at least 3-4 hours, preferably overnight, before baking. The dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicon baking mat.  Drop about 2-tablespoon mounds of dough onto the baking sheet, spaced about 2-inches apart (I find it best to keep the dough mounds cold and shaped tightly, as it tends to spread right away in the oven). 

Bake until cookies puff, are cracked on top and still soft (though not liquidy) in the middle (they will continue to set up as they cool), about 13-15 minutes.  Let cookies cool on a cooling rack for 10-15 minutes before transferring the cookies onto the rack to cool completely.  

The baked and cooled cookies can be stored in an airtight container, for up to 3 days.