What’d You Do Last Weekend?
Chicken and Waffles? Yes!
This recipe is part of Alice Medrich's Cookies and Brownies.
Chocolate Wafers
Chocolate Wafers. This is a dull name for a really exquisite little cookie. These thin, chewy cookies have a deep cocoa flavor and are a lot lighter than some of the other cookies in Cookies and Brownies. I would be proud to serve these cookies after dinner - especially with the Mexican variation which adds a spicy element.
A few notes about this recipe:
- Assumed 1 c flour = 4.5 oz
- Used Drost Dutch process cocoa
- If trying the Mexican variation, consider a different chile than cayenne. The cayenne added heat, but also a sour aftertaste. Something complementary (like ancho) might evoke something fascinating like chocolate mole.
- The log gets very soft when you take too long to slice it, so you may have to re-form the log midway through.
- These cookies puff up in the oven, but they settle and crack. After they cool they're chewy.
Chocolate Wafers
1 c AP flour
1/2 c + 1 T unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch process
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3 T unsalted butter, slightly softened
3 T stick margarine
1/2 c + 1 T (packed) brown sugar, lump free
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg white
Equipment
2 cookie sheets, lined with parchment paper or foil
- Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl and mix together thoroughly with a whisk or fork. Set aside.
- Beat the butter and margarine with an electric mixer for a few seconds just until blended.
- Add the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla and beat at high speed for about 1 minute.
- Beat in the egg white.
- Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed, just until incorporated.
- Gather the dough together with your hands and form it into a 9- to 10-inch log.
- Wrap the log in wax paper or foil. Fold or twist the ends of the paper without pinching or flattening the log
- Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes, or until needed.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.
- Use a sharp knife to cut the dough log into slices a scant 1/4" thick.
- Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheets and bake for 12 - 14 minutes, or until the cookies puff and crackle on top, then begin to settle down slightly.
- Rotate baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back about halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking.
- Slide the parchment or foil onto cooling racks and cool the cookies completely before storing or stacking.
Yield
Makes 40 to 45 cookies
Mexican Chocolate Wafer Variation
Add 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, a generous pinch of cayene, and a generous pinch of black pepper with the sugars.
Storage
May be stored, airtight, for up to 2 weeks
Source
This recipe comes from Alice Medrich's Cookies and Brownies, and is available on Purple House Dirt with permission from the author.
