Hot Chocolate Cookies

I found these on pinterest probably sometime last winter and wanted to make them for my hot chocolate loving daughter. Never did it last year, but I saw that Friday was National Hot Chocolate Day so decided to make them for her. They're very chocolatey and yummy. I actually had two hot chocolate pins, one for a recipe on Stepable and the other was a link to Rachel Ray's magazine. After reading the comments on Rachel Ray's recipe, I made a few with the extra chocolate and a few without. Basically you make the cookies, bake them, take them out of the oven, top them with a piece of chocolate and a marshmallow half then stick them back in the oven to melt the toppings. The issue is that when they cool, the chocolate on top gets hard and it just isn't quite as good. Two solutions are to eat the cookies warm out of the oven or to stick them in the microwave for about 5 seconds if you're eating them later, that's just long enough to soften the chocolate again. Either way, they're good; they're also good if you don't add that extra piece of chocolate. I did find that less is more in this case; that extra piece of chocolate should be small or I found it was just too much chocolate but that's more of a personal preference thing. So on to the recipe.


Hot Chocolate Cookies with Marshmallows
makes 36 cookies

1/2 c butter
12 oz. package of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/4 c brown sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
8 oz. semi-sweet baking chocolate, cut into small pieces
18 large marshmallows, cut in half

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and chocolate chips, stirring constantly just until melted. Remove from the heat and let cool 5 minutes.

In a mixer bowl, combine the brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Beat until blended; add the cooled chocolate and beat until just combined. Add the cocoa powder, flour, baking powder, and salt and mix on low until combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 325* and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Scoop and drop the cookies by the tablespoon onto the cookie sheets. Leave about 2 inches between cookies; you should be able to get 12 cookies per sheet. Bake the cookies for 12 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven, place a piece of chocolate, then a marshmallow on top of each, then put them back in the oven for 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and let the cookies cool 5 minutes then move them to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Thick, Chewy Oatmeal Cookies

We needed to make cookies for something recently and went for oatmeal. The containers of oatmeal that I had didn't have a recipe on them for cookies so we had to hit the web to find something. We came across these and they were really good. They didn't last long enough for a picture! I guess that just means that we'll have to make more and remember a picture before they're gone again.

Thick, Chewy Oatmeal Cookies

1 c butter, softened (2 sticks)
1 1/2 c brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
3 c rolled oats
1 1/2 c raisins
1 c walnuts, chopped (optional)

Cream butter, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. In a separate bowl whisk flour, baking soda, cnnamon, and salt together. Stir this into the butter/sugar mixture. Stir in oats, raisins, and walnuts.

Chill the dough for a bit (this makes for a thicker, chewier cookie) then scoop onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. You could also scoop the dough, put it into a freezer container and just bake as needed.

When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350* for 10-12 minutes (perhaps slightly longer if you bake them from frozen). Take them out when they are golden on the edges but still a little undercooked-looking on top. Let them sit on the cookie sheet 5 minutes, then put on a rack to cool.

Recipe from (and ever so slightly modified) smitten kitchen.

Christmas cookies!!

I love this time of year when I can make lots of cookies.  We have plenty of family favorites.  Today I needed cookies for a cookie exchange at MOPS and was planning on making Chocolate Walnut Puffs.  Since it's been pouring out since yesterday making meringue cookies wasn't really a good idea.  Went to plan B which also included chocolate and walnuts and made Chocolate Walnut Jumbos. Both are really good, the Jumbos are chewy chocolate and walnut goodness and the Puffs just melt in your mouth.  Here's both recipes.

Chocolate Walnut Puffs
makes 3 dozen

1 6 oz. package (1 cup) chocolate chips
2 egg whites
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 c sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp vinegar
3/4 c chopped walnuts

Melt chocolate.  Beat egg whites with salt until foamy.  Gradually add sugar, beat until stiff peaks form.  Beat in vanilla and vinegar.  Fold in chocolate and walnuts.  Drop on greased cookie sheets.  Bake at 350* for 10 minutes.  Remove immediately to cooling racks.


Chocolate Walnut Jumbos
makes 30

1/4 c soft butter
1/2 c sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
1/2 c flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 c coarsely chopped walnuts

Stir butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla together; beat with a spoon until just smooth.  Add chocolate.  Sift dry ingredients and add.  Stir in walnuts.  Drop on greased cookie sheets.  Bake at 350* only 10 minutes.  Should be soft.  Cool on rack.

I doubled the Jumbo recipe today (except the salt, I left that at 1/2 tsp) and it works out fine.  I think you only get 30 cookies if you make really small ones.