Chewy Chocolate Raspberry Cookies
I LOVE the combination of raspberry and chocolate and by the rate at which these cookies disappeared so do the rest of my family! These are somewhat brownie-like in both their texture and chocolate intenseness, but tempered with the sweet tartness of raspberries. And not only are they easy to make, but you also use frozen raspberries, which means you can make them whenever you get the yen!!
Not that I don't like to use fresh raspberries when possible, (take a look at the very fruity salad I posted about last week, http://www.unwrittenrecipes.com/blog/2015/curtis-sesame-chicken-salad-with-mango-raspberries-and-cherry-tomatoes-famous-fridays) but when you're baking, it's often better to use the frozen variety because of the mushiness factor. Plus there's the expense and short shelf life to factor in. Basically, I try to save my fresh raspberries for when I'm eating them raw or when they're the star of the dish, like in a pie or tart. What I do try to do so that my frozen ones are of the best quality, is to go berry picking during the summer if I can swing it, and then freeze as many as I can to use the whole year long. But for here, your favorite supermarket brand will do just fine!
These come together pretty traditionally--you mix together the dry ingredients, mix together the wet ingredients, combine them and then fold in the chocolate chips and frozen berries. Freezing the trays for about 15 minutes before you bake them also helps to keep the raspberries from gushing out the sides of the cookies.
If you slightly under bake them, the cookies will be soft in the centers while the edges will be chewy.
While warm, each bite is a combination of gooey dark chocolate and liquid raspberry flavor. Perfect! When fully cooled, each bite is a chewy combination of chunks of firm bittersweet chocolate and chewy sweet raspberry. Also perfect! Neither way can you go wrong. In fact, the only wrong thing you can do, is to not make these cookies!!
Chewy Chocolate Raspberry Cookies
Makes about 18 cookies
Prep Time: 15 minutes (plus another 15 to chill the dough); Bake Time: 10-12 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt (I used sea salt)
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons, Dutch-processed cocoa
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup frozen raspberries (don't thaw)
The Recipe
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa and set aside.
3. In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and both sugars until creamy and smooth. Add in the egg and beat well to combine. Add in the vanilla extract and mix well. Slowly add the flour mixture in on low speed and beat only until just mixed. Fold in chocolate chips. Then, very gently, fold in frozen raspberries, trying not to smash them as much as possible.
4. Scoop rounded tablespoonfuls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. When raspberries seem to be falling out, try to cover them with a bit more dough. Chill sheets in freezer for about 15 minutes to prevent raspberries from falling out as the cookies bake.
5. Remove from freezer and bake for 10-12 minutes, reversing sheets top to bottom and front to back halfway through the process so that cookies bake evenly. When cookies seem set, but are still soft in the center, remove them from the oven to cooling racks. These are better when slightly under baked and will harden as they cool.
6. Cool cookies completely on the racks and serve. Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for 5-6 days (although I don't see how they can possibly not be eaten before then!!)
Enjoy!
Note: Recipe adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod. I left out the sea salt on top. http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/dark-chocolate-raspberry-cookies/
