I fell in love with these cookies when I wanted to surprise one of my longest friends for her baby shower in North Carolina. Michelle and I have been friends since 7th grade (I think) and countless competitions and years. We met during junior high athletics and managed to remain great friends through high school, college, and now into our adult lives. After our undergraduate throwing careers at PSU (me) and Arkansas (her), I continued with my graduate degree at PSU and Michelle went to Duke to become a doctor of physical therapy. She finished her degree, got a good job and fell in love with a great guy named Carl. Their wedding on Halloween was the coolest wedding I have ever been too. They now live in Durham and are expecting their first baby girl, Ellie. After receiving an invitation to her shower, I decided I couldn't miss this huge life occasion and wanted to bring her a little surprise. I thought chocolate would be a perfect gift for Michelle and started looking for recipes that would make a new mother-to-be happy. This recipe, from Martha Stewart called Outrageous Chocolate Cookies are a beautiful cross between a brownie and a cookie. These cookies were a huge hit with Michelle and her family. I can't lie, every time I make these cookies, I fall a little more in love with them. The batter is a beautiful, rich, and fluffy chocolate that just makes me think of chocolate clouds. These cookies do spread quite a bit, so on a standard cookie tray I only put 8 cookies, evenly spaced apart. Do not overbake these cookies!!!!!! Start them at 8 minutes and then no more than 12 minutes. You want them to look crisp and flaky on top, but you want the inside to be ooey and gooey. If you overbake them, they still stay chewy, but they just lose that brownie texture. Martha's original recipe is in the link with the cookies, below are the few changes I made, they aren't big, but they make the cookies a little more chocolatey and deep.
INGREDIENTS
4 ounces semisweet chocolate (I used semisweet chocolate chips)
4 ounces dark chocolate (I used dark chocolate chips)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup packed dark-brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 package (12 ounces) dark chocolate chunks
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat the two chocolates and butter in a microwave-safe bowl in 20-second increments, stirring between each, until almost melted; do not overheat. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a mixing bowl, whip the eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla on high speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low; and stir in melted chocolate and butter mixture. Mix in flour mixture until just combined. Stir in dark chocolate chips.
Drop heaping tablespoons of dough 2 to 3 inches apart onto baking sheets. Bake (If your oven cooks unevenly, rotate sheets halfway through) until cookies are shiny and crackly yet soft in centers, 8 to 12 minutes. Cool on baking sheets 10 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
