Cookie Party: Chewy Cocoa Cookies with Chocolate Chips

Another successful cookie from my high school friends get-together came from Orangette. Molly posted about these Chewy Cocoa Cookies a couple of months ago, and she certainly has good reason to praise them - they were delicious, although much better with milk (the next morning) than with tea (what my friends had them with). As she correctly points out, they are also a breeze to make - the one cookie out of the three I made for this occasion that I could start making the day they were to be eaten. (I had to make the dough for the other two the day before so as not to spend all morning in the kitchen.)



Chewy Cocoa Cookies with Chocolate Chips
Adapted from Orangette

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
⅛ teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
⅔ cup granulated sugar
⅓ cup light brown sugar
7 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
⅓ cup plain yogurt, preferably not low- or nonfat
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup chocolate chips, preferably Ghirardelli brand, either semisweet or bittersweet

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

3. Place the butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl, and microwave briefly, until just melted. Add the sugars, and sift in the cocoa. Stir to blend well. The mixture will be somewhat thick and pasty, like wet sand. Add the yogurt and vanilla and stir to mix thoroughly. Add the dry flour mixture, and stir to just combine. Add the chocolate chips and stir to incorporate.

4. Drop the dough by generous tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies have crackled slightly and look set. Transfer the sheet pan to a wire rack, and cool the cookies on the pan for 10 minutes. Transfer them to the rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.

Makes about 20 cookies.