Chocolate Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I’m not doing so well with my  New Year's resolutions. Oh, I'm doing okay with # 2 - eating chocolate every day.  But that wasn’t so much a resolution as it was a declaration.

Resolution # 5 (cook every recipe in Deborah Madison's "Vegetarian Suppers" cookbook) came to a grinding halt last week when I served the beet ragu with twice baked goat cheese souffles.  Without going into too much detail I will say that Scott ate 6 bites before he politely informed me that he likes beets, but only in moderation – one bite every ten years or so.  It will be another 60 years before he is willing to try again.  It is a tragedy.  The beet ragu was stunning.  The goat cheese soufflés were divine.  I am crushed. 

Thank goodness I have another recipe for chocolate!  Nothing lifts my broken semi-vegetarian heart like chocolate.  This cookie recipe is all about chocolate-chocolate dough studded with big chunks of dark chocolate.  No distractions. Just chocolate. (And lots of butter.)

Chocolate Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

1/3 cup sugar, plus more for coating

1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7.5 ounces)

3/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

scant ½ teaspoon salt

½ cup dark corn syrup

1 large egg white

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar (2 ½ ounces)

4 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2 –inch pieces

Whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl.  In another small bowl whisk corn syrup, egg white, and vanilla together.

In a stand mixer, beat butter, brown sugar, and 1/3 cup sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Slowly add corn syrup mixture and beat until incorporated, about 20 seconds.  Scrape bowl as necessary.  Add flour mixture and chopped chocolate; mix just until incorporated.  Chill dough 30 minutes to firm slightly.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place ½ cup sugar into a small bowl.  Divide dough into 16 equal portions, about ¼ cup each.  Roll each portion into a ball and toss liberally in sugar.  Place 8 balls on each cookie sheet.  Bake cookies, one sheet at a time until cookies are puffed and cracked and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, about 10 minutes.  Cookies might seem raw but don’t overbake.

Remove cookies from oven, let rest on cookie sheet for 2 or 3 minutes.  Transfer cookies to countertop and cool until you can’t resist eating them. 

Notes on recipe:


Since this recipe is all about chocolate, good chocolate is important.  I love Penzy's Dutch-process cocoa powder.  I have my doubts about natural cocoa powder like Hershey's or Nestle, but I wonder if "Hershey's Special" dark cocoa powder will work.  Let me know if you try it.


If you want to notice the chocolate chunks in these cookies it is important to chop the chocolate into big chunks.  Little shards or chocolate chips will disappear into the dough.  If you have your heart set on using chocolate chips you might try melting them into a block, chilling until firm, then chopping into chunks.  I recently discovered that Stop and Shop sells chunks of really good Callebaut chocolate near the salad bar/deli counter.  I used to think these chunks were too expensive until I realized that the Ghirardelli semi-sweet baking bars (that I adore and buy without flinching) are almost double in price per pound.


I had great luck freezing the balls of dough first then rolling in sugar and baking.