Hi guys - sorry for the long wait, blogging's been put on hold over Christmas and the return to Canterbury last week! Not done too much baking lately as Christmas has meant eating far too much (delicious) rubbish, and snow has put my running on hold, but today I needed a pick-me-up, and after watching my sister make these ultimate chocolate cookies a fortnight ago for her boyfriend's birthday, I decided to give them a go this afternoon. I definitely wasn't disappointed.
This is, unsurprisingly, a recipe of Nigella* - one of my favourite TV chefs as her recipes are très indulgent and incredibly sweet - but I have tried to make it a little more suited to the student budget. I've replaced posh choc for Sainsburys' basics, and cut Nigella's enormous proportions of chocolate down just a teeny tiny bit (not that you'll notice). Anyway, I think these are gorgeous, they seem to work every time, and I know you'll love them if you're as big a fan of chocolate as me! Enjoy, but try not to eat all at once...
*Makes 14 Cookies*
100g dark chocolate (to melt)
175g chopped/chips white chocolate - I used a mix of a basics bar & white choc buttons
150g plain flour
50g white granulated sugar
75g brown sugar
125g butter/marge
30g dark Bournville cocoa powder
1 small tsp baking powder
1/2tsp salt
1 egg (straight from the fridge, unusually!)
1tsp vanilla extract
1. Preheat oven to 170' - or 175' if, like me, you've got a temperamental student oven - and line two baking trays with greaseproof paper
2. Break up your dark choc, place in a microwave-safe bowl, and microwave for 1min, stir, then microwave again for 1min until almost entirely melted
3. Place flour/cocoa/salt/baking powder in a bowl (or measuring jug if it's easier) and give a quick mix-up, so that it is ready to throw in after the next stage. If, like me, you are using a bar of white chocolate as chips for your cookies, place your bar onto a chopping board and cut up into tiny pieces now too
4. Cream your butter and sugar until well mixed, before pouring in your melted dark chocolate - once mixed in, the batter looks so gorgeous that I could very easily have eaten it all at this point...
5. Mix your vanilla into the batter. Removing your egg from the fridge, beat well into the mix. I will warn you that you have quite a stiff batter at this point, so this will give your arms a work-out! But persevere until your egg is entirely beaten in, before sifting in all your dry ingredients and stirring well (again, it may take a few mins to mix thoroughly). Now add your chocolate chunks, mix once more, and you're finally ready to dollop tbsp-size mounds onto the lined baking trays*
*PS: These cookies are so indulgent, I froze six cookie-batter mounds before baking (leaving Robbie and I "only" eight to eat). Pictured below. Just stick them on a baking tray, cover with clingfilm, and leave, flat, in the freezer for 1-2hrs. Then simply throw the frozen batter 'cookies' into a freezer bag. When you want more cookies, there's no need to defrost - just stick them in the oven, 175', for 18-20mins
6. Bake the cookies in preheated oven for 15-18mins (cookies baked in the bottom half of the oven may need an extra 2-3mins than the cookies baking on the highest shelf in the oven). Now, the cookies will come out fairly squidgy (because of all the chocolate in the mix) - don't worry about it. Just let them rest on their baking trays for 3-4mins - honestly, you'll be amazed how much they firm up in this time - then remove and place on a wire rack so that the cookies get nice and crisp
7. Now eat the cookies (and once more, thank you very much Nigella). Thanks for reading!
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