Double Chocolate Cookies

Ok, so I slacked on the Pumpernickel loaves from two weeks ago, but I could not pass up Double Chocolate cookies even it is nearing the crazy prep time of Thanksgiving.   I have been baking endlessly it feels like, just not on the Tuesdays with Dorie schedule as of late.   My freezer is full of pizza dough balls, galette rounds, pie crust rounds... all awaiting their Thanksgiving debut.

But onto Double Chocolate cookies.  These are pretty incredible cookies, definitely brownie-like in their crumb and filled with melty chunks of chocolate.  And not too much more difficult or time-intensive than a regular cookie recipe, especially with the use of a mixer to whip up the eggs and sugar.  The recipe calls for quite a bit of chocolate lending a richness to these, and the hint of coffee with instant espresso powder adds nice depth.

This may make it into my keeper book of recipes...  and that is hard to do.

the whipped sugar and eggs

the melted butter and chocolate

the end product prior to baking

To see other's bakers' renditions of this recipe, check out Tuesdays with Dorie for their links.

Rhiannon painting away.

X Cookies

So I am a little behind with the baking group, Tuesdays with Dorie, but not as behind as my blog shows.  I did do the X cookies from about a month ago but was too late in posting.  I did bail on the Pumpernickel; maybe I will do that one when I have a little bit of extra time.  The X cookies were enough of a challenge.

They required putting two recipes together- the dough and the filling.  Neither one is very difficult, and the dough is the same one we used for Pizza Rustica which I just loved.  It has this sweet flavor to it that is irresistible.  The filling I had to improvise a bit as I forgot the figs at the grocery store.  I put them in a bag, was weighing them and then had to scramble to stop my kids from sticking their hands into the bulk bins.  In that scramble, I forgot the figs.  I didn't have enough dates either, so I used cranberries and added lemon zest to make up for my lack of candied orange peel.  The filling was less than stellar the way I made it.  I would like to try these again with the proper filling as I absolutely love fig newtons and if these are anything like them....

The eldest wanted to help with this recipe; he added his own flare by making some of the cookies into candy canes.  He is getting ready for the holidays.

And the youngest, Rhiannon: