The Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie Limerick
by Marni
There once was a double chocolate cookie
With more flavor than Jersey Shore's Snooki.
Don't make the mistake
To think you can wait.
Lock them up or be exposed as a rookie!
The texture of these cookies could not be more perfect. And I've had plenty of cookies in my lifetime. Hundreds, for sure. Thousands? They are incredibly chewy, and have a glossy surface that makes them look special. If you read the list of ingredients, you might be going "whoa" to the quantity of chocolate. Nobody said Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies would be light on the chocolate. These really take that name to heart. 20 ounces of chocolate is a lot, no doubt. But please, don't skimp or think you can manage without an ounce or two. You're just not doing the cookie justice, then. Go for it. All the way!
It's funny how sometimes I make really gourmet, exotic, fancy shmancy treats that require more skill and more ingredients and serve them to friends and not everyone eats them. Then I make these simple Carole Walter cookies with simple flavor - chocolate chocolate, and it yields 80 little cookies, and magically, all 80 cookies disappear with just 12 people in the room. True story. I remember that afternoon well. Hmmmmm. Must be a great cookie!
Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from a recipe by Carole Walter in Great Cookies
Makes approximately 4 dozen 3-inch cookies (but I like to make them smaller, yielding about 80)
8 ounces fine-quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, such as Lindt Bittersweet, coarsely chopped
1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned in and leveled
2 tablespoons strained Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, slightly firm
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup lightly packed very fresh dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons hot water
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
12 ounces fine-quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, such as Lindt Bittersweet, cut into 1/4 to 1/2-inch chunks, or 2 cups (a 12-ounce bag) semisweet chocolate chips
To make the dough
Melt the 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler (or in the microwave, though be careful not to burn the chocolate). Keep warm.
Sift the dry ingredients in a bowl (flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt), and set aside.
In an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium-low speed until smooth and creamy. Should only take about a minute. Mix in the granulated sugar, then add the brown sugar. Blend until light in color, about 2 or 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs until well-combined. Blend in the melted chocolate (that's still warm), then add the hot water and vanilla.
Set the mixer speed to low and blend in the dry ingredients, adding half at a time, but just until combined. Do not overmix! Take the bowl out of the mixer and gently fold in the chocolate chunks. Cover the bowl and chill in the fridge for about an hour.
To bake the cookies
Position the shelves in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the cookie sheets or line with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
Drop spoonfuls of dough, about 1 1/2-inches in size, onto the cookie sheets, and space them out about 3 inches apart since they will spread a fair amount during baking. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes. I prefer chewy and slightly undercooked so I check for doneness even before 10 minutes are up. Even so, at 10 minutes, the cookies will look underdone and you just have to have faith and take them out and let them firm up as they cool. Also, since you have two cookie sheets baking at once, you should swap the two sheets halfway through baking and turn them around so they will bake evenly. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let stand on a trivet for just 2 minutes, then use a thin metal spatula to loosen from the cookie sheets. About 10 minutes later, transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely. You are going to die and go to heaven when you taste these!
To store, place in an airtight container between layers of wax paper. They'll taste yummy for about 5 days. If you know up front that you can't eat the whole batch in 5 days, store in an airtight container in the freezer immediately after they've cooled.
Nutty Note: Carole Walter advises that if you want to add walnuts, reduce the amount of bittersweet chocolate chunks to 8 ounces or 1 1/3 cups chocolate chips and use 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts.
Step-by-Step in Pictures
Sift together the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt) and set aside...
Beat the butter until smooth, then add the two sugars...
Beat in the eggs...
Add the melted chocolate...
Then add the hot water and vanilla...
Mix in the flour in two parts, then fold in the chocolate chips...
Chill for about an hour...
Then drop spoonfuls of dough onto the prepared cookie sheets...
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes, then let cool completely...
Enjoy!
