Cookie conundrum, part 2: Dark chocolate and ginger crinkles.

First of all: Happy new year! We just woke up.

I was going to write about these cookies yesterday, but time got away from me (glitter waits for no blog!) and before I knew it, people showed up and then it was 2009 and there were fireworks and champagne. Years come and go so quickly here!

So! Cookies. I found these in an issue of Everyday with Rachael Ray that I read as we flew out to visit Bench's parents (I may not like her shows, but I will grudgingly admit that her magazine ain't half bad). I didn't stand a chance: Dark chocolate AND crystallized ginger, in cookie form? Sign me up! I could barely wait to get back from the windy city to give them a try.

This is the first cookie recipe I've used that requires baking chocolate; it does not, however, require a double boiler, so the fiddly quotient remains pretty low. In addition to the baking chocolate, it requires a half cup of good cocoa powder--enough to render the dough the driest I've seen. Fortunately, it stands up to a good manhandling (I ended up kneading the dough, more than stirring it), and comes together really well once you start rolling it into little balls. So, don't fret if your dough doesn't quite seem dough-like in the bowl. It meant to do that, really.



They're called crinkles because of the cracks and patterns that form as they bake; I think it's also an apt description of the cookies themselves, which manage to be both crispy and chewy at once. Also delicious. Never forget the delicious.

Dark chocolate and ginger crinkles
Adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray, January 2009

1 stick (4oz) butter
4 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped (about 1/2 c)
1 3/4 c granulated sugar
1 1/2 c flour
1/2c unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 large eggs, beaten
3/4 c crystallized ginger, finely chopped
1/2c mini chocolate chips
1c confectioners' sugar (for rolling)

1. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and unsweetened chocolate over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until smooth.
2. Meanwhile! Preheat the oven to 350F. Whisk together all the dry ingredients (except the ginger and chocolate chips) until well combined.
   
3. Whisk the eggs into the butter/chocolate mixture--be VERY CERTAIN that it's nice and cool (i.e., room temperature), otherwise you will end up with scrambled eggs. Then, add the wet mixture to the dry until incorporated. Like I said, it gets a bit dry, so don't be afraid to get in there with your hands and really mash things around.
4. Add the ginger and chocolate chips.
5. Place the confectioners' sugar into a wide, shallow bowl. Form the dough into 1-inch balls and then coat with confectioners' sugar. Bake on cookie sheets that have been lined with parchment for about 15 minutes, rotating the pans after ten minutes or so.
6. When they're done, let them rest on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to racks to cool all the way.