Better Than Brownie Cookies

I know you're already thinking - can these cookies really be better than brownies? And I'm going to tell you right now, they are pretty darn close. My sister doubted me when I brought these over for her and her boyfriend to try, but they ate them up fast and even asked for more. My mom tried to only eat half of her cookie and ended up eating the whole thing. My dad said they were the best cookie he had (maybe he was just saying that to be nice) and were way better than brownies. I gave a whole bunch of them to Ryan too. He thought they were made with pudding because of the dense and most texture. Nope. No pudding here. Although, pudding in cookies - hmm, I may have to experiment with this. I've seen, but never tried, pudding in cakes. But pudding in cookies. You may be on to something here, dear. I even added a little special touch to these that really brings out the chocolaty flavor. Can you guess what it is? Sorry, I'm not going to tell you right now. You'll just have to keep reading to find out what it is!

The whole reason I decided to do this recipe is because I had a TON of bittersweet chocolate chips left over from all my holiday baking. You think I'd be able to resist the 5 pound bag sitting in the pantry and use it for my baking, but nope. I'd take a small handful here and there for dessert. Maybe even eat them with a blob of peanut butter. Ya, I know, bad. But it's so good. Needless to say, I needed to find a way to get rid of those chips and FAST.  I can't resist them. I may have a problem.

maybe I should have removed the kitchen wipes from this photo. oops!

here is my double boiler. you don't need anything fancy, just use what you have in your kitchen. If you use a metal bowl like me, use a pot holder. it gets HOT!

 wet & dry

melted chocolate and the secret ingredient!

adding the dry

baked and cooling. the recipe said it made 24 large cookies, but somehow mine made 28. and that was after eating some of the batter (don't tell!)

close up of the cookies. yum!

Better-than-Brownies Chocolate Cookies (slightly adapted from browneyedbaker.com)

Makes 28 large cookies

2 2/3 cups (about 16 ounces) bittersweet chocolate, chopped ( I used chips, so no need to chop)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 eggs
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips ( I needed to get rid of my chips, so I used more bittersweet here. Ryan mentioned it was a bit bitter, so I will be trying semisweet here next time)

1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper of a silicone baking mat.

2. Put the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set it over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally, until completely melted and smooth.

3. In the meantime, stir together the eggs, vanilla, sugar and espresso powder (optional) in a medium bowl. Set aside.

4. In a small bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder.

5. Add the melted chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and stir to combine well. Slowly add the dry ingredients, folding them into the batter. Once all of the flour is incorporated, stir in the chocolate chips.

6. Scoop 1½ tablespoons of dough (a medium cookie scoop’s worth) onto prepared baking sheets. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until they are firm on the outside. Like brownies, do not over bake! Leave to cool completely on the baking sheets.

These cookies are super easy to make and taste amazingly delicious. If you do not have the tools to make a double boiler (in step 2), you can slowly microwave the butte and chocolate until melted and smooth. Just make sure to use a microwave proof bowl and that you heat it in increments - 2 minutes on power 3 or 4 (stir after every time to ensure that all the chocolate is melting evenly). Every microwave is different, so just keep an eye on the chocolate. If you burn it, you will have to start over again. And no body likes burnt chocolate!