Chocolate Crinkles

 

Cookies and grandkids go together, don't they? Laz was here today and we decided to make cookies.  Chocolate Crinkle cookies. The coating of sugar on these cookies makes the most unique patterns when you bake them.  Laz named them Zebra Cookies...that's pretty descriptive! They were quite easy to make and were delicious- chewy and fudgy like brownies. The edges were just a tiny bit crunchy, giving way to a soft chewy center.

  

  

The recipe came from the book cookies, by Jill Snider. (Thank you Madie and John!) It's one I bookmarked before Christmas but never got the chance to make. The fact that the recipe uses oil in place of butter was one of the reasons it was on my "to try" list. For a more grown-up treat, try adding a little bit of instant espresso powder to the mixture.

Chocolate Crinkles (printable recipe here)

from the book cookies, by Jill Snider

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used light flavored olive oil)

2 squares (1 oz. each) unsweetened chocolate- chopped, melted, and cooled

2 eggs

1/2 tsp. vanilla (I used 1 tsp.)

3/4 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted

Directions:

• On a sheet of waxed paper or in a bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk together brown sugar, oil, melted chocolate, eggs and vanilla until smoothly blended. 
• Gradually stir in flour mixture, mixing until smooth. 
• Cover and freeze for 30 minutes or refrigerate for 2 hours for easy handling.
• Put confectioner's sugar in a small shallow dish. Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll balls in confectioner's sugar until evenly coated. 
• Place about 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. (I covered my cookie sheet with parchment.)
• Bake in preheated (350 degrees) oven for 8-12 minutes or until set and tops are cracked and dry. 
• Cool for 5 minutes on sheet, then transfer to a rack and cool completely. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.