Insanely Chocolate Cookies...

I was craving chocolate yesterday and the kids were asking for cookies so.......  They were awful.  I should know better.  Really.  Why, in my predominately whole foods kitchen, would I ever try to make a cookie in which one of the main ingredients was instant chocolate pudding?  Gah, shudder, ick! They didn't even end up tasting like chocolate.  I'm telling you, it was a travesty.

Fast forward to this morning...  pitiful cookies still sitting on the counter....  Me still craving chocolate...

Those bad (not good) cookies hit the garbage disposal and I was cracking open my Cooks Illustrated faster than you can say, "good riddance".

"Thick and Chewy Double Chocolate Cookies"

Now that sounds better, doesn't it?

I rarely make a full batch of cookies anymore - like em, love em, but don't want to be mocked by quite that many lonely tasty bits while the kids are off at school if you know what I mean.  Here is the adapted version.  Chocolate fix?  Totally taken care of now. ❈  These are seriously rich and chocolatey  cookies.  Great on their own, with a cup of tea or would be perfect with a bowl of ice cream.  They are bad (dangerously good), bad cookies. Now... where did I put that windex?

Double Chocolate Cookies - ½ Batch
(From Cooks Illustrated, pg. 629)

Preheat your oven to 350º.

Put a cup of semi-sweet chocolate (chips or chopped) in a microwave safe bowl until allllllmost melted and set aside.

In a bowl, combine: 1 cup flour, ¼ cup cocoa powder, 1 tsp. baking powder, and ¼ tsp. salt.  Set aside.

In another bowl add: 2 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla extract.  Mix well.  (Optional - sprinkle 1 tsp. instant coffee on top of mixture.) Set aside.

Get your big mixer out and beat until combined: 5 tbsp. of softened butter with ¾ cup of brown sugar and ¼ white sugar.

Add egg mixture and beat until combined.

Add melted chocolate (should be all the way melted but cooled by now) and combine.

Add flour mixture and mix until just combined.

Using a small spring loaded scoop (mine holds about 1 tbsp.), place "balls" of dough onto parchment lined cookie sheets.

Bake for 9-10 minutes.

1 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. instant coffee (optional)
5 tbsp butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar