No worries, this isn’t turning into a cooking blog or anything (because, really, my cooking skills are limited to like two dishes, so that would be a mighty boring blog). BUT I do love to bake, and these are my absolute favorite cookies. I’ve had a few requests for the recipe, so I’m just going to post it here. K?
Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies
(Chocolate + chili powder = cookie gold)
There are several recipes for these cookies out there. Most are of the Martha Stewart variety— thin, flat, fairly hard cookies that, while no doubt delicious, don’t quite do it for me. I like my cookies thick and mushy because otherwise what’s the point? I found these in the holiday issue of Cuisine at Home and tweaked them a little to my own personal taste.
You will need:
1 stick of melted butter
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/4 tsp. espresso powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
heaping 1 tsp. ground cinnamon*
heaping 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup of powdered sugar to be placed in a small bowl and set aside for later
* A word about cinnamon. I’m kind of a cinnamon snob. I know, it’s a weird thing to be snobbish about, but certain brands of grocery store cinnamons are … not very good. Bland and boring, that’s a nice way of putting it. It’s really worth it to spend a smidge more on a good cinnamon because it makes all the difference. My favorite is Penzeys. It’s fragrant and flavorful and really pops in these cookies.
Directions:
1. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder, cinnamon, chili powder and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, beat together the butter and the granulated sugar on low. When fully combined, add the eggs and vanilla, continue beating until combined.
3. SLOWLY (cannot emphasize that word enough), add in 1/3 of the dry ingredient mix. Beat on low until fully combined, then add another 1/3 of the dry mix. Continue beating on low until fully combined, then add the final 1/3 of dry mix and beat until all combined.
4. Cover dough and refrigerate for at least an hour.
NOTE: Dough will be very thick and fudgy, like this.
5. Preheat oven to 350 (or 325 if you’re using a convection oven). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
6. Shape dough into balls roughly an inch-and-a-half in diameter. Roll balls in powdered sugar, then arrange on baking sheet. Leave about two inches between them.
7. Bake 10 minutes.
8. Enjoy the gooey deliciousness and try not to eat like 12 at once.
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