Créme Fraîche Brownie Cookies
chewy, fudgy, dark chocolate cookies
A few weeks ago, one of my good friends had a baby. When her family had left town and her meal train sign-ups began to dwindle, I made a little care package to drop at her doorstep. A hot dinner with salad and a jar of homemade dressing to last them through the week, a quart of bolognese sauce to keep in their freezer, banana bread frozen in individual slices for easy breakfasts or afternoon snacks, and a batch of these cookies—some baked warm for them that evening and another dozen frozen with instructions for baking whenever a cookie craving strikes.
I really do love writing recipes, but my real joy lies in sharing food with people. Every year or so, I get a little itch to return to a restaurant kitchen not because I want to spend late nights on my feet in a hot kitchen, but because I miss cooking memorable food for people. I absolutely love visiting my grandparents and leaving them a freezer of cookies or a few batches of focaccia or dropping treats off with my neighbor after her shoulder surgery. I toy around with business ideas that would allow me to cook for people on a more regular basis and I hope there’s some of that in store for me in the future again, but for now, I’ll take extra joy in making sure my friends have a supply of warm cookies.
on the recipe
These chewy,chocolate-ridden cookies are sticky and gooey with crackly exteriors just like your favorite brownie. In the spirit of last week’s foray into cultured dairy products, they incorporate a bit of créme fraîche giving them an extra tender crumb and a round balance for the dark chocolate. If you don’t have créme fraîche, you can sub another thick dairy product like sour cream or mascarpone in its place.
Because the batter incorporate both melted chocolate and melted butter, it does need a short (30-ish minute) chill time BEFORE scooping. If you try to scoop the cookies right away, they will turn into little dough puddles so pop it in the fridge for a bit before scooping and baking. This recipe also freezes really beautifully, so any extra, freeze in dough balls and bake off whenever you’re craving a warm, gooey cookie.
créme fraîche brownie cookies
makes 18-20 cookies
Ingredients:
12 oz dark chocolate, chopped
113 g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cubed
250 g (2 cups) all purpose flour
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3 large eggs
300 g (1 1/2 cup) granulated sugar
45 g (3 tbsp) créme fraîche
2 tsp vanilla extract
Procedure:
Set aside about 2 ounces of the chopped chocolate. Melt the rest of the chocolate and butter together over a double boiler. Set aside and let cool to almost room temperature.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.
In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip sugar with eggs on medium-high speed until the mixture is lightened in color and slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. (You should be able to pull the whisk out of the bowl and it should leave a ribbon-like mark in the mixture. If you aren’t using an electric mixer, just whisk vigorously!) Add the créme fraîche and vanilla and whip again for a minute until well-combined.
Switch to the paddle attachment on the mixer and gradually add dry ingredients, scraping down the sides to make sure that no dry streaks remain.
With the mixer on low speed, stream in the chocolate mixture and mix until completely combined and batter is all one color (ie, no pale streaks remain). Fold in the reserved chopped chocolate. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using either a medium or large cookie scoop, portion cookies onto tray, leaving space between them because they will spread a little.
Bake for 6-8 minutes for smaller cookies, 8-10 minutes for larger cookies. Cookies are done when the edges are set and the tops are dry to the touch. Let cookies cool at least 5 minutes on the pan before transferring to a cooling rack.