Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Whether it was her crazy love for chocolate or her determined intent to not leave my side as a baby which made her spend hours with me in the kitchen, that sprouted her love for cooking, I do not know. But the butterfly loves being in and around the kitchen. So whether she is by my side cutting broccoli florets, while chomping on a few or engrossed in her Harry Potter book (her recent favorite) and unknowingly sniffing away grated cheese I set aside for quesadillas, she is in there with me unless I shoo her out. It makes my heart swell watching her love the transformation of ingredients into something delicious and sometimes magical as much as I do. Her eyes widen every time the roti she rolled puffs like a balloon and heart skips a beat when her favorite bar of chocolate melts into a creamy rich delight, in a double boiler. She makes me proud and her company makes me cook more because it’s more fun. A messy, things-all-around-my-kitchen fun but hey, aren’t mess and kids part of the same package?

She loves baking more than stirring a pot of soup (or curry in our case) but I think that’s mostly because she’s afraid of the stovetop. Or let me correct that, I am afraid of her being too close to the stove top. So baking is an easier bet and if you see her in there you will tell that baking comes naturally to her. Cracking eggs one after the other, softening butter in the microwave, ten seconds at a time, sifting flour and whisking away like no man’s business. She loves it and she’s good at it too.

She has, by now mastered a few recipes. Chocolate brownies with nutella swirll, chocolate surprise cookies and these chocolate crinkle cookies. Well, of course all of them involve loads of chocolate and that’s probably the reason they are on top of her list! The chocolate crinkle cookie recipe I am sharing with you today was initially taken from the America’s Test Kitchen. We must have made these at least 3-4 times in the past month and this is what’s been bringing a twinkle to her eyes lately. So it was only right for a proud and shamelessly bragging Mama like me to share it with some of my favorite people, YOU!

Ingredients:(Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated)

1 cup (5oz) all- purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

3 large eggs

4 teaspoons instant espresso powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped (I used chocolate chips)

4 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar (I used brown sugar with bigger grains that gave a nice crunch to my cookies after being baked)

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar

Method:

Preheat the oven to 325 deg.F Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

Mix chocolate and butter in a microwavable bowl. 30 seconds at a time microwave until its all melted but doesn’t bubble. Whisk the two to combine into a smooth paste. Set aside to come to room temperature.

In the mean time, in another large bowl whisk together brown sugar, eggs, vanilla extract and coffee. Now add the butter, chocolate mixture. Whisk to combine well. Add the dry ingredients, little at a time. Fold and mix until all the wet and dry ingredients are combined well to a smooth batter.

This will look like a flowy batter, not very easy to handle. Place it in the refrigerator 10-15 mins. for the batter chill a little and easier to scoop with a spoon or scoop.

Get the granulate sugar and confectioners sugar ready in separate shallow dishes. Now 1 tablespoon at a time pick batter, make a ball rolling gently between your palms. Drop in dough balls in the granulated sugar and roll to coat. Transfer to the confectioners sugar. roll to coat. Line on baking sheets spaced out.

Bake for 12 minutes, rotating sheets once halfway. Well you pull it out the cookies should look puffed and raw between the cracks.