Tuesday 10 December 2013

Chocolate Crinkles

Tis the season to be jolly! The Holidays are upon us and Christmas is just around the corner. This can only mean one thing...

HOLIDAY BAKING!

Chocolate Crinkles is a cookie dear to our hearts because it's something we've grown up with. It's not a common type of cookie and not everyone knows what they are. But all you need to know about them are that they're delicious soft cake like cookies rolled in confectioners sugar. When they bake, the dough rises and little crinkles peak through, hence their name. Crinkles are a staple in our Holiday Baking because not only are they delicious... they're also low maintenance and are very easy to make.

Here is the recipe:

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

Steps:
  1. In a bowl mix together the cocoa powder, white sugar and vegetable oil until it forms a shiny and gritty black dough. 
  2. Add the eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla.
  3. In a separate bowl, mix together your dry ingredients.
  4. Mix the dry ingredients into the chocolate mixture until just combined. Do not overmix.
  5. Chill the dough for four hours or overnight.
  6. Preheat the oven to 350F and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.
  7. Scoop out the cookie dough and roll eahc piece into 1 inch (2.5cm) sized balls using your hands and roll them in the confectioners sugar and place on the cookie sheets.
  8. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool for a few minutes and then transfer to  wire rack or plate to cool completely.
Chocolate Crinkles
Note: You can be adventurous and mix other flavors in with the confectioners sugar to create a flavored crinkle.  We mixed the confectioners sugar with some cinnamon and green tea powder as well.

Cinnamon and Green Tea Chocolate Crinkles
The cinnamon crinkles turned out great. The cinnamon added a nice unsurprising kick to them. The green tea ones were alright, but the green tea made them a little bitter, so if you decide to try them we would suggest only mixing in a small amount of green tea. Other suggestions could be some coffee, or earl grey tea.

Give these holiday cookies and try, they're sure to be a crowd pleaser!