Christmas Contest

Marye at Baking Delights is having a contest! The winner gets a mega yummy chocolate cookbook...ok, the book isn't chocolate, but it is full of chocolate recipies! Go check her site out. She's an awesome cook, and I do mean awesome! The site is full of yummy things to eat, and I could gain 5 lbs just reading it.

Well, speaking of chocolate cooking, and Christmas. Here's a recipie I found in a baking catalog that came in the mail. The cataloge is called The Baker's Catalogue and dh and I just flip thru it and drool. Anyways, here's the recipie.

Coal Cookies
1/2 c unsalted butter
1 1/3 c brown sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp espresso powder
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
2/3 c Dutch process cocoa
1 1/2 c flour (whole wheat or all purpose is fine)
2 c semisweet chocolate chips (or a mixture of raisins, chips and nuts)

Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly grease two baking sheets, or line them with parchment, or lightly grease a mini-muffin pan.

In a medium bowl, cream together butter, sugar, bking powder, espresso powder, vanilla, and salt. Add the eggs, beating until smooth. Stir in the cocoa powder, then th flour; the dough will be stiff. Mix in the chocolate chips, or the chips/raisins/nuts.

Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls (about 1 1/2"balls) onto the prepared baking sheets, or into the mini-muffin cups; a tablespoon cookie scoop is the perfect tool for this. Bake the cookies for 12 minutes for the baking sheet, or 15 minutes for the mini-muffin pan. They'll look not quite done in the center. Remove them from the oven, and allow them to cool for 10 minutes, or the mini muffins to cool for about 20 minutes. Gently squeeze and shape the cookies into uneven balls, to resemble chunks of coal. Yield: 3 dozen cookies



When this recipie arrived in the mail, we just had to make it... LOL We didn't use the espresso powder ( I hate coffee), and used a mixture of chocolate chips, raisins, and slivered almonds, because that's what we had. YUM!!!!! They did not last the evening. I wish I had pictures, but I don't. LOL I think this recipe is going to end up a Christmas regular.