No anchovies this week. No avocados. But, unfortunately for my waistline, lots of baking, from breads, cakes and buns to the odd little tart or two.
Being the new girl in the office it’s been a good way to win over the editors. Ahem. So this week I thought I’d really try and impress with my triple chocolate ‘killer’ cookies (because, let’s face it, one type of chocolate is never enough). These cookies are very naughty, delightfully gooey and everso more-ish with a nice cup of coffee. Which we all drink like fishes here at KTHQ.
The recipe I use is adapted from my all time favourite book, The Hummingbird Bakery, but I’ve substituted the dark chocolate chips for a mixture of white and milk to give the cookies a sweeter, milkier taste – not so rich but totally indulgent. The use of melted chocolate in the batter rather than cocoa powder creates a gooey, soft result as opposed to some of the dry results I’ve had before.
Killer Cookies (Makes 12)
85g plain flour
50g unsalted butter
2 free range eggs
170g soft light brown sugar (you could also use light muscovado sugar)
¼ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
225g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
225g mix of milk and white chocolate, roughly chopped
2 baking trays, lined with greaseproof paper
Preheat your oven to 170oC (325oF) Gas 3
1. Begin by melting 225g of the dark chocolate with the butter. The traditional way is to put a glass bowl over a simmering pan of water and heat slowly until melted and smooth (make sure you don’t let the bowl touch the water). Personally I find it quicker to put the butter and chocolate in a microwave proof bowl and blast it in the microwave 10 seconds at a time, stirring to avoid burning.
2. In a separate bowl, put the sugar, vanilla extract and the eggs and beat until well mixed (I use a hand held mixer on a medium speed, but a whisk and some good old elbow grease would work too). Pour in the chocolate mix and continue beating on a slow speed until well combined.
3. In your final bowl, sift in the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the chocolate mixture bit by bit, stirring well with a wooden spoon, making sure to scrape any unmixed ingredients from around the bowl. Now break up your remaining 225g of white, dark and milk chocolate into chocolate chip size and stir evenly into your cookie mix.
4. Dollop 6 spoonfuls of cookie mix onto your prepared baking trays, 6 on each and evenly dispersed to allow the cookies to spread. Bake on the middle shelf for 10-15 minutes (check after 10 minutes to make sure they do not burn) the cookies will be ready when the tops start to crack and they look lovely and glossy. Top tip: after 10 minutes I use the back of a large spoon to squash the cookies slightly, I do this so they look more like cookies and less like boulders.
5. Leave the cookies to cool on the tray slightly, then using a spatular, lift the cookies onto a plate to cool (be careful as they may stick to the parchment).
Go on, treat yourself, have a couple: they’re always best eaten in private – and whilst still warm.
Words & Pics: Czaralee Anderson
