Photo by Brogan Wu
I have long dreamed of how to get the perfect crinkled chocolate chip cookie. I always thought it came down to the dough, that my cookies weren't getting the right texture because I wasn't using the right measurements.
When I stumbled across Sarah Kieffer's giant crinkled chocolate chip cookies I realized I had got it all wrong; it was all about the method. Sarah's secret to the perfectly flat and gooey cookie, with those plump little outer rings, all came down to how she was treating the baking sheet. More specifically how she was slamming it repeatedly on a hard surface mid bake.
This recipe follows my go-to chocolate chip cookie base, one that can be customized in many different ways, but in order for them to look as pinterest worthy as they do in these photos; you have to follow Sarah's method.
What inspired me to start The Kitchen Witch was my love for utilizing herbs and flowers in cooking. Natural kitchen magic has been practiced for hundreds of years before us, and I wanted to bring back the simplicity and raise the awareness for benefits that it has always had.
Cooking with certain ingredients does more than elevate its flavor; it has its own unique properties that affect so much more than our taste buds. For centuries lavender has been associated with harmony, love, and attraction. This is a great flower for meditation, self love, and the love of others. As far as it's taste goes; lavender is a very subtle but specific flavor.
I think it is something you love or you hate as far as direct consumption goes; I personally think it adds a mellow floral element that pairs nicely with such an intense dark chocolate, but I have friends who prefer these cookies without. If you are skeptical of if you'd like it or just want a good classic crinkle cookie, feel free to leave the lavender out, but I encourage you try it at least once… you just might fall in love.
Lavender and Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies
You Will Need:
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2 cups all purpose flour (APF)
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3/4 cup of white sugar
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3/4 cup of brown sugar
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2 sticks of unsalted butter, softened
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1/2 tsp baking soda
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1 tsp salt
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1 tsp vanilla extract
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2 large eggs
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6-8 ounces of dark chocolate, chopped
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1 tbsp dried lavender, finely chopped
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flaked sea salt for topping
Directions:
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In a large mixing bowl combine APF, baking soda, and salt.
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In a large kitchen stand mixer, cream together butter, sugars, and lavender "dust." The dough will look slightly speckled with lavender, but only if you are really looking for it.
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Add in an egg, one at time, followed by the vanilla extract.
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Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients, about a cup at a time, until all of your ingredients are combined and a dough is formed.
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Remove bowl from mixer, and using a wooden spoon or spatula begin to stir in the chopped chocolate.
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Using a 1/4 cup scoop, place cookie dough on a parchment paper covered baking sheet. About three on each side, 6 at a time. As Kieffer's method recommends; place the baking sheet in the freezer for 15 minutes before baking.
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Now, the trick to the crinkles as Kieffer explains, is pounding the cookies on a hard surface as they bake. Bake the cookies at 350 degrees, and about 8 minutes in grab the baking sheet (in oven mitts, of course) and either bang the sheet down on the oven rack or quickly take them out to use your kitchen counter. Place the cookies bake in, and repeat this process every two minutes, another 2-3 times, or until the cookies are golden brown and just slightly underbaked (about 15 minutes).
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Allow the cookies to cool slightly on the cookie sheet, and then move to a cooling rack, sprinkling each one lightly with flaked sea salt, allow to rest until ready to enjoy.
