If the holiday decorations in the local stores have not made your mind wander into The Holiday Zone, perhaps my next sentence will. My friends, we have about four weeks until Hanukkah and six weeks until Christmas hits.
Wowza.
Time to start making some homemade vanilla extract or lemoncello for holiday gifts. I always like to have a variety of cookie dough on hand so that I can bake a batch for a pretty gift box.
Today I am going to share with you one of my favorites that is a little different: Chocolate and Pine Nut, absolutely a delightful combination.
Often I like to add a different element to my chocolate cookies, a little surprise at the end, I have made different chocolate treats with wasabi, green tea, lavender, rosemary, and even chili pepper. It is fun to experiment, and this particular cookie really lends itself well to a chili flavor. Bake off a few cookies to enjoy and then start freezing some dough for the hustle and bustle of the holidays that are going to be here sooner than we think!
Chocolate Pine Nut cookies
Makes about 20-25, depending on desired size.
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped 1 stick of unsalted butter 2 eggs 3/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup flour 1/2 teaspoon chili powder (OPTIONAL) 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup toasted pine nutsPreheat oven to 350 degrees.
Sift the sugar,flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, melt chocolate and butter together, I use a double boiler, but feel free to use a microwave if you have one.
Remove from heat and cool for a few minutes. Whisk in the eggs.
Stir the flour mixture into the chocolate until combined. Toss in the pine nuts and mix.
Allow the cookie dough to rest for at least an hour in the refrigerator, this allows the flavors to marry and you will have a finer cookie.
On your prepared cookie sheet, either covered with parchment or a silicone mat, drop cookies into desired size. Place each cookie about 2 apart.
Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the cookies puff up and the tops crack.
Allow to cool. Sprinkle with powered sugar if you like.
Enjoy!
Andrea Charroin was a trained baker and pastry chef in San Francisco before she and her family moved to Redding 11 years ago. After falling in love with Redding’s downtown, Andrea and husband Westley opened a little pastry shop, Rene-Joule Patisserie, across from the Cascade Theatre. For the three years Rene-Joule was in business, it was renowned for making everything from scratch, using the best ingredients and keeping with a seasonal menu. To this day, Andrea is asked about her Marathon Bars, Orange Twists and sourdough bread.
Copyright 2009 Andrea R. Charroin. Visit her blog at bakerslove.typepad.com
