A Guy's Gotta Eat

Ultimate Double Chocolate Cookies

I recently had occasion to look for a chocolate cookie recipe, and I found 41 of them right off the bat with a basic "chocolate cookie" query at www.cookierecipe.com. Had that not been sufficient I could have narrowed my search to bar cookies or drop cookies or three variations on brownies. But I found exactly what I was looking for wedged in between Spiced Soft Chocolate Cookies and Waffle Iron Chocolate Cookies. It was probably the Ultimate that caught my attention, that and the notion of doubling the chocolate. If a little is good, a lot must be better. Such is the nature of chocolate logic.

I am no great fan of chocolate. I get it -- the passion, the drool, the crumbling self-discipline. But chocolate disagrees with me. I'll eat it now and then, in one form or another, and then I'll belch its stale residue for the next few days. I swear. Peanuts have the same effect. Sometimes the world isn't fair. If I could eat peanuts without putting myself in hock to the manufacturer of Tums I would fill garbage bags with shells in a week. But such is not the case. At least not anymore.

I baked the cookies one evening after dinner, long enough after dinner that I worked alone in the kitchen, in the quiet house, and the majority of the cookies were able to cool. I carefully stacked them inside a terracotta casserole before going to bed, adjusting the lid just so. These were dangerous cookies, after all. I had tasted my wares and with even my reservations about devouring chocolate, it was difficult to not consume one and then another. It wasn't just the deep, deep chocolate flavor with the lascivious bitter edge of coffee buried inside. It was the texture that lured me in, egged me on, that weighty, chewy, fudgy texture that just ached to be chewed and chewed, and chewed some more. Have another, each last cookie said. Have another. And so, I adjusted the lid with care and took myself to bed, swearing I would mail the cookies in the morning.

The recipe that follows is from the kitchen of Carol P. This is a name that could come from the writings of Madam Blavatsky, though she would refer to Carol as "C.P." or "the Master C.P.". I have no idea who Carol P might be, but the recipe comes from her through www.allrecipe.com, the umbrella beneath which www.cookierecipe.com may be found. Of her cookies, Carol P writes, "This cookie has an intense chocolate fudge flavor. Thick and chewy, this cookie is the best!! " And she's absolutely right. A tip of the hat to AllRecipes.com for their kind permission to run this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup dutch process cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons butter or margarine, unsalted
1 ½ cups packed brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons instant coffee crystals
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 pound semi-sweet chocolate, melted

Directions:

Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt, set aside. In a medium bowl, cream the butter with the white sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each. Stir in the coffee crystals and vanilla until well blended. Stir in the melted chocolate, scrape down the sides of the bowl to be sure everything is evenly mixed. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the dry ingredients just until everything comes together. Cover your bowl of dough and let stand for 35 to 45 minutes so the chocolate can set up.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Roll dough into walnut sized balls or drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets, leaving 2 inches between cookies. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, cookies will be set, but the centers will still be very soft because of the chocolate. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on wire racks.

Makes 3½ dozen

Recipe Road Test: Contents

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