PURE BLISS

I'm enjoying the Good Friday weekend immensely. There weren't urgent emails to be answered and there weren’t any phone call either. I caught up on my sleep, and baked Thomas Keller’s simple Chocolate Chip Cookies. The recipe uses molasses sugar. No nuts. No vanilla. Just absolute chocolate enjoyment.

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Adapted from this recipe in Ad Hoc At Home by Thomas Keller

Makes 30

340 grams all-purpose flour

¾ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

140 grams 55% chocolate, cut into chip-sized pieces

140 grams 70% chocolate, cut into chip-sized pieces

227 grams unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

200 grams molasses sugar

100 grams caster sugar

2 large eggs

Preheat your oven at 180 degrees C. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift the flour and baking soda into a medium-bowl. Stir in the salt.

Put the chips in a fine-mesh strainer and shake to remove any chocolate “dust”.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat half the butter on medium speed until fairly smooth. Add both sugars and the remaining butter and beat until well combined, then beat for a few minutes until the mixture is light and creamy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until the first one is incorporated before adding the next and scraping the bowl as necessary. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed to combine. Mix in the chocolate.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold the dough with a spatula to be sure the chocolate is evenly incorporated. The dough or shaped cookies can be refrigerated, well wrapped, for up to 5 days or frozen for 2 weeks. Freeze shaped cookies on the baking sheets until firm, then transfer to freezer containers. Defrost frozen cookies overnight in the refrigerator before baking.

Using about 2 level tablespoons per cookie, shape the dough into balls. Arrange 8 cookies on each pan, leaving about 2 inches between them, because the dough will spread.

Bake for 12 minutes, or until the tops are no longer shiny, switching the position and rotating the pans halfway through baking.

Leave the cookies in the baking sheets for about 2 minutes to firm up a bit, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

I've never used molasses sugar in my baking before so this is a first. It not only tints the cookie a nice honey brown, it also gives a rich caramel flavour. I could tell that my mother enjoyed the cookie very much because she said, “This cookie is different! You should consider setting up shop.” She then proceeded to pack a dozen for a friend.

This is definitely one Wow Cookie so Thomas Keller gets two thumps on the back from me.