These rich and delicious dark chocolate brownie cookies feature a crispy edge and a fudgy center.
Brownies were one of the first things I made in the kitchen. Think elementary school. My mom would buy brownie mix in a box and I would make them. I’ve been making them ever since. Today I make a simple brownie from scratch with pantry staples that’s ready in a half hour, plus a few versions with a little more effort and high-quality baking ingredients.
Brownies range from being gooey to chewy, fudgy to cake like.
Brownie cookies are a twist on brownies. They tend to have a crispy edge, a chewy center, the same flavor, similar texture, and the same crinkly top that brownies possess.
The rich and chewy brownie cookie I’m sharing today contains two types of chocolate, unsweetened cocoa powder and dark bar chocolate. For these cookies, I always reach for high-quality ingredients, especially the cocoa powder, the dark chocolate, and the vanilla paste. A superior cookie is the result.
Ingredient Notes –
Cocoa Powder – Cocoa nibs are ground into cocoa liquor, a solid at room temperature. The cocoa liquor is squeezed to remove the butter leaving blocks that are ground into cocoa powder. The powder contains very little cocoa butter. Cocoa powder requires sugar to offset the flavorful, but bitter chocolate notes. You can purchase all-purpose cocoa powder at the supermarket. Some high quality cocoa powder can be found locally; many superior cocoa powders can be ordered online.
Dark Chocolate – In this recipe I’m using a 70.5% cocoa bittersweet Belgian chocolate from Callebaut. Your favorite semisweet or bittersweet bar chocolate or chocolate chips will work perfectly.
Sugar – While the dark chocolate contains sugar, the cocoa powder does not. Many cookie recipes use a combination of white and brown sugar. The sugars are equally sweet. Granulated or white sugar adds crispiness to cookies. The addition of brown sugar, which contains molasses and has a finer consistency than white sugar, adds moisture to these cookies along with a darker color, softer texture, and a rich caramel flavor.
The cookie batter for this recipe is chilled to firm the batter before baking. Often I will bake these cookies as soon as I make the batter, resulting in a thinner cookie. The thinner version of these cookies are crispier and sturdier and perfect for making ice cream or buttercream frosting sandwich cookies (pictured above). Chocolate pairs well with so many flavors, here the cookies hold peanut butter frosting.
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Brownie Cookies
Ingredients
- 100 grams all-purpose flour (3/4 cup)
- 30 grams unsweetened cocoa powder (1/4 cup)
- 3 grams baking powder (1/2 teaspoon)
- 1 gram fine sea salt (1/4 teaspoon)
- 340 grams dark chocolate chunks (12 ounces)
- 113 grams unsalted butter (1/2 cup)
- 150 grams granulated sugar (3/4 cup)
- 100 grams brown sugar (1/2 cup)
- 150 grams eggs (3 large)
- 5 grams vanilla bean paste or extract (1 teaspoon)
Instructions
- Add all-purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking powder and fine sea salt to small mixing bowl. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Add dark chocolate chunks and unsalted butter to small saucepan, and melt over low heat, stirring constantly until both have melted completely and are well combined.
- Remove from heat and cool slightly.
- While chocolate is cooling, beat granulated sugar, brown sugar, and eggs for 4 minutes on medium speed. Add vanilla bean paste and mix until combined.
- Add melted chocolate mixture to stand mixing bowl and beat on low for 1 minute or until well combined.
- Add flour cocoa mixture to stand mixing bowl. Using a spatula, fold in flour until batter is thick and smooth.
- Cover batter and chill 30 to 45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Line cookie sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Using a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop, drop cold batter onto prepared pans, leaving several inches between cookies as the dough will spread during baking.
- Bake 10 minutes, or until cookies have set on the edges and are still slightly undone in the center. Do not over bake.
- Remove cookie sheets from oven and place on wire racks. Cool cookies completely on cookie sheets.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. Baked cookies will keep in an airtight contianer in freezer for several weeks.
