Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

CHOCOLATE CRINKLE COOKIES

Crinkle cookies always remind me of Christmas. Every Christmas Eve, we visit our families back in Niagara and dig in to the endless supply of baked goodies. These crinkle cookies are inspired by those times.

We use a shredded, or ground chocolate for these. If you have one of our Drinking Chocolate tins on hand, that chocolate works perfect. Plus, if you want to jazz it up, you can try it with the peppermint of mayan!

STEP ONE:
MELT BUTTER

Weigh out your butter and add to the saucepan. Place on medium heat and allow the butter to melt fully. Once melted, turn off the burner and set aside to cool slightly.

STEP TWO:
MIX DRY INGREDIENTS

Grab a medium sized mixing bowl and add all of the dry ingredients (except the powdered sugar). Mix together with a whisk. Next, form a well in the centre and set aside.

STEP THREE:
WHISK EGGS & VANILLA

In a small mixing bowl, crack your eggs and add the vanilla. Whisk well, ensuring it is fully mixed. Your wrist should feel the heat from this, as it takes a bit of work to emulsify the egg whites and yolks.

STEP FOUR:
ADD BUTTER TO EGG MIXTURE

Now that the butter has cooled to the touch (and is still liquid), whisk it into the egg mixture. Once again, whisk well. I find it best to add the butter slowly as you mix away. 

STEP FIVE:
MIX WET & DRY INGREDIENTS

Add the nicely whisked wet ingredients to the dry. Grab a fork and mix together. Pay attention to the dough and only mix until there are no dry pockets. Do not over mix, as this will cause problems with your final cookies.

STEP SIX:
LET DOUGH CHILL

Grab a clean dish towel and cover the dough mixture. Find a place in the fridge and set a timer for 30 minutes. This step is crucial for the crinkle effect. We tested with varying chill times and found 30 minutes to provide the best results.

STEP SEVEN:
PREHEAT OVEN

STEP EIGHT:
PORTION DOUGH

Once your timer goes off, grab the dough and a small spoon. Portion the dough into small 20 gram pieces. Roll until round. By weighing the dough, all cookies will bake evenly. It's a simple step that provides consistent results.

STEP NINE:
COAT IN SUGAR

STEP TEN:
SET UP YOUR BAKING PANS

Now that the dough balls have been coated, it's time to align them on your baking pans. Leave room for them to spread.

STEP ELEVEN:
IT'S TIME TO BAKE

We are now ready to get these in the oven. Ensure your oven has reached temperature and slide in the soon to be cookies. Set your timer for 10 minutes. Once the timer goes off, pull the cookies and allow to cool. Use a scraper or fork or whatever you may have on hand to unstick them from the pan & enjoy!

TIPS & TRICKS

1. Keep an eye on the butter and stir often. Remove from heat once melted (not boiling). I like to do the 'finger test', and will dip my pinky in the butter to see what the temperature is like. If it is quite hot, set a timer for 10 minutes and test again. You do not want to add the butter to eggs if it is too hot.
2. When mixing the wet and dry ingredients, do not over mix. 
3. Cool the dough for at least 15 minutes. We suggest 30 as it provides the best results.
4. Allow the cookies to cool before removing from pan. We tested when they were warm, and the bottoms remained stuck.
5. If you do not have powdered sugar, you can get away with using cocoa powder (although more bitter), or white sugar. We found the fineness of the powdered sugar to work best, but if in a pinch you can swap it out.

THE RECIPE

You will need:

• 2x small mixing bowls
• medium sized mixing bowl
• small saucepan
• whisk
• fork for mixing & spoon for portioning
• measuring cups and spoons
• baking pans
• dish towel
• scale

Ingredients:

• 160g fresh milled, all purpose flour
• 105g cane sugar
• 75g coconut sugar
• 70g ground dark chocolate (or finely chopped)
• 40g natural cocoa powder
• 5g baking powder
• 1g salt
• enough powdered sugar to coat
• 55g unsalted butter
• 4g pure vanilla extract
• 2 large farm fresh eggs

Method: