Dark Chocolate and Walnut Cookies

With the great response from my first blog post we continue on:). The post is dedicated to all those with a sweet tooth. I only found this recipe recently but, made it few times already per my mums request. I will be honest before I became a chef baking used to terrify me, even as simple as cookies would stress me out. With cooking you can be much more flexible however, baking is all down to science. With lots of trial and error and doing a pastry course I finally became comfortable with baking. The recipe is a nice balance between sweet and nutty texture, creating a luxurious taste. With the few simple ingredients you can impress your guests every time!

You also do not need a mixer and the recipe can be made very quickly by hand. As mentioned below the flavours can be changed for personal taste. I have also tried just nuts and lemon zest and of course dark chocolate and orange zest will make a great combination. The first time I made the cookies, I only had 80% dark chocolate in the house. Personally, I found them too rich and strong so I suggest between 60-70%, but its all down to which ever flavours you enjoy eating.

What I like most about this recipe is that the cookies are moist and soft. Lots of recipes I have tried before I found become like stone the next day. This is down to two factors, make sure to leave the dough to rest. If you bake them immediately the mixture will run and not holds its shape. The second being, to soften the butter correctly. I suggest leaving out the butter over night at room temperature. If you are short on time, the butter can be cut into cubes and soften slowly with heat. Don't over melt the butter either as it will create a runny dough and the final result will be dry.

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Ingredients: Makes 10-13 cookies

100g all purpose flour

3g baking powder

30g icing sugar

40g brown sugar

60g softened butter

1 egg

50g dark chocolate (60%) , roughly chopped (but any chocolate can be used)

40g walnuts, roughly chopped (pecans, hazelnuts, almonds work well too)

Method:

1. Sift the flour and baking powder together in a bowl

2. In a separate bowl place the softened butter, brown sugar and icing sugar. Mix with the silicon spatula until well combined

3. Add the egg and flour and mix again

4 Mix in the chopped nuts and dark chocolate

5. Once the mix is ready prepare the clingfilm

6. Place the cookie dough onto the film and roll into a sausage shape

7. The tighter the clingfilm more even will your form be

8. Place in the fridge for 2 hours or if you impatient like me place in the freezer until it hardens

10. Prepare the baking trays with parchment paper. When the dough is ready, cut into 1 cm discs. *note* The cookies should be baked one tray at a time for even cooking

11. Bake in preheated oven at 160 degrees for 10 min. The outside will start to brown and the middle will be still soft to touch.

12. Once ready take out of the oven and cool on a wire rack. Repeat the process with the rest of the cookies.

Hope you enjoyed todays recipe and comment below if you try them :)

Have a great day!