EPISODE 104

A little while back I received a request for double chocolate cookies. I aim to please and therefore upped the ante to triple chocolate cookies! The salt really bring out the chocolate flavour of these cookies, please don’t skip it. These are crunchy on the outside, soft and full of melted deep chocolate flavour on the inside. The original variants of this recipe were made with rice flour and maple syrup, and should you be inclined to have a slightly healthier cookie I would encourage you to swap the regular flour for 3/4 cup of rice flour and the sugar for 1/4 cup of maple syrup. The texture will not be as wonderful, though the taste will still be great. Feel free to make the batter ahead of time and store it in your freezer, in a cling-wrapped log, for future slice-and-bake use.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1/3 cup water
• 2/3 cup flour
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder
• 1/3 cup softened margarine/coconut oil/vegan butter
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 oz dark chocolate, melted (a scant 1/3 cup chocolate chips)
• 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Combine the chia seeds and water in a small bowl and set aside for 10 minutes while you assemble the rest of the ingredients.

Combine all your dry ingredients; flour, cocoa, baking powder, table salt, and the instant espresso, in a medium sized bowl and whisk until there are no lumps. You can also sift them into the bowl if you prefer (but I’ve never met anyone who enjoys sifting).

In a separate bowl place your margarine/coconut oil, sugar, vanilla, melted dark chocolate, and thickened chia mix. Stir well to combine then add in the dry ingredients and mix, this is best done with an electric mixer, or your hands. Finish by stirring in the chocolate chips.

Use a mini ice cream scoop to make little balls on a lined baking sheet, flatten with your palm, then sprinkled with a teeny bit of sea salt, and bake for 15 minutes.

Enjoy!