As I’m sure I’ve covered during my written navel gazing a time or two, I put a lot of thought into what gets included in each year’s holiday baking. My hope is that there is a little something for everyone. So, always sugar cookies (kids), something fruity, something nutty and something chocolate (that doesn’t also include nuts).
Last year’s chocolate crinkles while popular, were not the wisest choice from a baking perspective. With oil rather than butter as the fat source, I found myself having to roll and reroll hundreds of chocolate balls again and again (with butter, the dough stiffens up and holds its shape). And though world peace cookies are a favorite of mine personally, I’m afraid their simplicity gets lost in all of the other flashier offerings.
So, this year I was on the hunt for a new chocolatey cookie. After trying a few candidates (I know, it’s tough eating all that chocolate), I finally landed on Sarah Kieffer’s double chocolate espresso cookies. They are simple enough that kids like them, but fancy and complex enough thanks to the addition of cacao nibs, to be holiday-worthy.
Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies
Sarah Kieffer
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 C (213g) AP flour
- 1/2 C (50g) Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 2 tsps ground espresso
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 14 TBS (198g) unsalted butter, room temp.
- 3/4 C (150g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 C (150g) golden brown sugar
- 1 TBS vanilla extract
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 large egg plus 1 large yolk
- 5 ounces (142g) semisweet chocolate chopped into bite-sized pieces (I like using mini chocolate chips)
- 2 TBS cacao nibs. I found mine on Amazon: cacao nibs.
Directions
- Adjust oven rack to the middle of the oven, preheat to 350 degrees. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, espresso and baking soda.
- Set aside 4 TBS (57g) butter in a medium bowl.
- Melt remaining 10 TBS butter (142g) in a medium saucepan. Brown the butter until it is dark, golden brown and gives off a nutty aroma (2-3 minutes).
- Pour browned butter (and any bits) into the bowl with the set aside butter. Stir until all butter is melted and combined. Stir in the granulated and brown sugars, vanilla and salt.
- Whisk-in the egg and egg yolk until fully combined and the batter is smooth and glossy. Let the mixture sit for 2-3 minutes, then whisk again for another 45 seconds.
- Add-in the flour mixture and fold to combine. Fold-in the chocolate and nibs.
- Form the dough into 2 TBS balls (or scoop). Please 8 balls on each sheet.
- Bake cookies, one pan at a time until the centers are puffed, about 8-9 minutes.
- Transfer pan to wire rack and allow to cool completely. Sore in an air-time container.
As a note–I like to refrigerate the dough balls over night to develop the flavor and texture. If you do as well, just add on a minute extra to bake the cold dough.