MIYM Buttermilk Chocolate Cookies
I haven't baked or cooked anything in a while - well, besides the fettuccine two weeks ago - and it's been driving me insane. As a result, my mom finally gave me permission to bake something, even though she was muttering things beneath her breath every so often. Something about gaining weight. I also get to cook dinner on Thursday and Friday for everyone. ^^ Yay! It's different than cooking for just yourself, but it's an interesting experience. Anyway, when I saw this recipe online, I thought it sounded interesting because I've never made cookies with buttermilk before. While I was making the dough, it reminded me of my so-called crack cookies, which taste like brownies with a hint of peppermint.
Let's just say that after I finished making them, my mom ate one, commented on how sweet it was and when I looked at her again in order to give a retort, she had stuffed another cookie in her mouth. :) I take it that these cookies are a success.
Melt-in-Your-Mouth Buttermilk Chocolate Cookies
[adapted from original recipe]
Makes 40 - 50
INGREDIENTS
2 cups of All-Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp of Baking Soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) of Salted Butter
3/4 cup of Cocoa Powder
1 1/2 cups of Sugar
1 tsp of Vanilla Extract
2/3 cup of Buttermilk
2 cups of Semisweet Chocolate Chips
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, melt the butter in 10 to 15 second increments in the microwave; try not to over-melt it. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and slowly whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Whisk in the sugar, vanilla extract, baking soda, and buttermilk until homogeneous. Then slowly mix in the flour a little at a time until the dough is smooth and even. Gently stir in the chocolate chips into the batter.
Drop roughly 1-inch balls of dough on a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper or silpat about 1 1/2 inches apart.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in an oven preheated to 350 F degrees until the edges are set. Cool for several minutes before serving, or transfered to a cooling rack to cool completely.
NOTES/COMMENTS
(L) Cookies before baking; it took a while so the balls slowly flattened out (they also do the same in the oven).
(R) First batch of cookies (12-minute bake time) after baking... and after my mother and sister got to some of them.
Let's just say that after I finished making them, my mom ate one, commented on how sweet it was and when I looked at her again in order to give a retort, she had stuffed another cookie in her mouth. :) I take it that these cookies are a success.
Melt-in-Your-Mouth Buttermilk Chocolate Cookies
[adapted from original recipe]
Makes 40 - 50
INGREDIENTS
2 cups of All-Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp of Baking Soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) of Salted Butter
3/4 cup of Cocoa Powder
1 1/2 cups of Sugar
1 tsp of Vanilla Extract
2/3 cup of Buttermilk
2 cups of Semisweet Chocolate Chips
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, melt the butter in 10 to 15 second increments in the microwave; try not to over-melt it. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and slowly whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Whisk in the sugar, vanilla extract, baking soda, and buttermilk until homogeneous. Then slowly mix in the flour a little at a time until the dough is smooth and even. Gently stir in the chocolate chips into the batter.
Drop roughly 1-inch balls of dough on a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper or silpat about 1 1/2 inches apart.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in an oven preheated to 350 F degrees until the edges are set. Cool for several minutes before serving, or transfered to a cooling rack to cool completely.
NOTES/COMMENTS
- I only had salted butter for some reason, so I omitted the 1/2 tsp of Salt that was in the original recipe. Instead of using 2 cups of sugar, I cut it down to 1 1/2 cups of evaporated cane sugar; my mom still says it's a little too sweet. I think it's just right, unless you eat more than one - then I start feeling the need for a glass of milk, which is normal when eating cookies. I may have added slightly more buttermilk than it asked for when the dough was getting too hard to mix.
- As you add more ingredients to the dough, it gets sticky and really thick; it will take a little more arm power to mix the dough towards the end. I even considered sticking it in the freezer for easier handling like I did with the crack cookies, but I ended up just using two spoons to help me along and they worked pretty well. A 10-minute baking time results in softer, chewier cookies and a 12-minute baking time results in cookies with a crust and a faintly bread-like center.
- The batch of cookies with the 10-minute bake time definitely melted in your mouth. The batch with the slightly longer baking time was still chewy with a slightly crunchy shell; my mom and sister commented on how the inside texture/taste resembled bread and I have to agree. All in all, I liked it quite a bit - after all, who doesn't like chocolate? - but I still like those crack cookies the best. The original recipe yield was 40 cookies, but I ended up making 47.
(L) Cookies before baking; it took a while so the balls slowly flattened out (they also do the same in the oven).
(R) First batch of cookies (12-minute bake time) after baking... and after my mother and sister got to some of them.