Double Chocolate Cookies
I first tasted these cookies when I was visiting my sister who lives in San Francisco. We spent the morning wandering the ferry plaza farmer’s market, eating chilaquiles and sampling fresh fruits. We took a respite from the action outside to get a dose of caffeine from the Blue Bottle Coffee shop inside the ferry building. As I ordered my latte, I gave my usual glance to the pastry case, and I knew I could not walk away without one of those giant, crinkly chocolate cookies. My mind was blown! I went home and immediately ordered The Blue Bottle Craft of Coffee, so I could get to know this recipe and the genius behind these cookies.
You can imagine my surprise when I opened the book to the recipe and Caitlin Freeman, the founding pastry chef at Blue Bottle, begins the recipe by making the blasphemous admission that she doesn’t even really like chocolate! How could such a brilliant cookie come from such a one?! Then she goes on to compare these cookies to “stale brownies.” Freeman is without a doubt a phenomenal chef, but my friends, “stale brownies” does not do these cookies justice.
Let me sell them a little better. Thick, chewy, rich, full-bodied, addictive, decadent, and crackly are all good words for double chocolate cookies. If a brownie married a cookie and had a baby, these cookies would be that baby. They have all the beautiful flavors and the chewy mouth feel of a brownie, but with the shape, thickness, and durability of a cookie. So of course they’re perfect for dunking. And my favorite part is the salt. Freeman recommends Maldon flaky sea salt in the dough, which results in heavenly little pops of salinity that periodically surprise you as you much your way through the giant thing. If you’re looking for the best chocolate cookie in the world, look no further.
Equipment:
Stand mixer (optional)
2 baking sheets
Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
5 TBS unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. Maldon flaky sea salt* + more for sprinkling (optional)
1 egg, at room temperature
1 TBS. vanilla extract
3.5oz good quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa), roughly chopped
Method:
Measure the flour, cocoa, and baking soda into a medium sized bowl and use a fork to stir well.
Cream the butter and sugar together by hand or in a stand mixer. Mix on medium speed for 5-6 minutes or until the mixture lightens in color and the sugar is completely incorporated into the butter. The mixture is more sandy and less fluffy in texture than in other recipes because of the lower ratio of butter to sugar.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg and vanilla extract until well blended. Add this to the butter and sugar and mix on low speed until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
Add the flour mixture and mix again until just combined. Finally add the chocolate chunks, and mix to evenly distribute them throughout the dough. Cover the dough, and chill it in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours or for as many as 5 days.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Divide the dough into 9 equal portions, about 1/4 cup each, and roll into balls. Space the balls evenly over the two baking sheets. The cookies spread a lot while baking so leave plenty of room. Gently smoosh the cookies down into thick, even disks.
Bake for 6 minutes, rotate the pan, and then bake another 5-6 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven, top them immediately with a very light sprinkling flaky salt if desired (the cookies are already seasoned well, so they don’t need the extra salt, but it makes for a nice aesthetic), and then allow them to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet.
*If you do not have Maldon sea salt flakes, substitute 1/2 tsp. of kosher salt, or 1/4 tsp. fine-grained table salt. Do not substitute equal portions, or you will end up with an overly salty cookie.
Recipe from The Blue Bottle Craft of Coffee: Growing, Roasting, and Drinking, with Recipes