Do you like chewy cookies? Do you love the chewy edge of a brownie? Then these cookies are your ultimate treat.
This is a curious recipe, based on the famous featherweight chocolate cookies at the (now defunct) Payard New York City patisserie. The cookies it produces are utterly chewy, studded with flecks of walnuts, and very, very chocolatey. They're rich without being too sweet, and so chewy you almost feel like you're eating a caramel. This, in our opinion, is a very good thing.
The recipe, it turns out, is really just a modified meringue, with barely-beaten egg whites, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar. There's no fat except for what's in the nuts. It's the strangest cookie recipe we know. The thick, goopy batter always looks very unpromising. But then it turns out these shiny, crackly cookies, with a minimum of work and an incredibly chewy texture and chocolate taste.
We learned the recipe from Orangette and haven't looked back. This is one of the first recipes we reach for when the weather gets cold and we want a cookie with our coffee. It's also a splendid treat for gluten-free folks, as long as the powdered sugar is gluten-free (some aren't certified GF).
Here are the recipes, one the original version from Payard, and the other from Orangette.
• François Payard’s Flourless Chocolate-Walnut Cookies at New York Magazine
• Chocolate Featherweight Cookies with Walnuts and Cocoa Nibs
A couple notes:
• If you make these, don't automatically add all the egg whites. You want the batter to be thick and goopy — not wet and runny. So if it's thick, goopy, and scoopable, stop there.
• The parchment is absolutely essential. Also, let the cookies cool for at least 10 minutes before trying to peel them off the parchment. Otherwise, they will stick. If you let them cool completely the paper will peel off without taking a crumb.
Have you ever made these delightfully chewy cookies?
More cookie recipes:
• Carrot Cakey Cookies
• Dark Chocolate Walnut Cookies
• Best Cut-Out Sugar Cookies
(Images: Faith Durand)
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I can haz cookies? You really don't know how much it makes my day when y'all post a Celiac-friendly recipe. Thank you. (And I will so be making these for the holidays.)
Hurrah! Chewy chocolate stuff I already have on hand! It's cookie time. Thanks for the idea, Faith!
I made these a couple weeks ago on my silpat and that worked just fine for me, they just needed to cool completely once they were out of the oven. So good!
http://www.paintedpeach.blogspot.com
What else could I put in these besides walnuts and cocoa nibs? I'm super allergic to nuts, and all nibs I've ever seen have been of the "processed with nuts" variety.
(Not that there's anything wrong with pure brownie-top goodness, of course...)
@erin in indy - this might sound a little weird, but have you ever had those chocolate bars that have toffee or caramel in the middle? I think they're called Symphone bars? You could cut those up and throw them in. I do that sometimes as a middle layer in brownies, and it turns out beautifuly!
I've made a similar recipe from the King Arthur Flour website, which doesn't include nuts or nibs at all. Their recipe suggests chocolate chips or just plain. So easy, yet so chocolatey delicious!
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/flourless-fudge-cookies-recipe
@erin in indy - I would try dried cherries, or maybe cranberries. Yum!
This sounds like a great way to use the leftover egg whites from my ice cream recipes! These look so good.
These are the perfect deep chocolate flavor. They are also safe for the IBS diet...just don't add the nuts, or any solid chocolate, to keep the fat content down. Good cookie texture is hard to come by without egg yolks, and these gems have good chewy crispy texture!
These seem similar to chocolate cookies from a bakery in Santa Cruz, CA, with mint chips in it- difficult to find in grocery stores, but so so good. I have more luck finding mint chips around Christmas time.
@lz- I've seen what seem to be high-quality mint chips at Cost Plus World Market recently. I haven't tried them yet (they also have butterscotch!), but they look really good and were made by a reputable company (that I, of course, can't remember now!)
I've been making these cookies since I found the Payard recipe in (embarrassingly) Shape magazine last Christmas season. They're delicious and satisfying, and they're one of the few cookies my boyfriend, who can't eat dairy, can munch on.
This recipe looks delicious but I have no idea how much of everything to put in, since being from the UK I don't have a clue what a cup is. Is there an easy way to convert the quantities? I tried Wikipedia but it's quite confusing!
heliotropia, a cup is about 120 g. Here's a good conversion site:
http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2006/09/conversions_equivalents.php
I love these as well! But I think I have to give Claudia Fleming’s chocolate brownies cookies the edge...
http://muchdependsondinner.blogspot.com/2009/10/chocolate-brownie-cookies.html
A cup is also about 245 ml (240-250, depending on who you ask).
Thanks so much! That conversion site was exactly what I've been looking for. I can't wait to make these cookies now!
ugh. I've never been more upset to be out of parchment paper in my life!
Made these last night (the NYM version) and YUM! Highly recommended. Matched them up with the browned butter ice cream and it was to die for.
These look amazing so I attempted them last night...and failed. Even with parchment paper they spread all over the place and once out of the oven flattened like crackers. Any suggestions? I'm not giving up on this cookie!
Well, they will definitely be thin; they won't be very puffy like more conventional cookies. But if they ran everywhere (this has happened to me too) you may have added too much of the egg whites. If you make them again try adding just enough to make a thick, scoopable batter, as per the note in the recipe.
@faith: Jeah, exactly the same happened to me, or more precise is still happening to me, as the second batch is still in the oven. I couldn't find cacao nibs, so I used 85% chocolate. Though the outside is rather crispy the ar still delicious!
You gotta let the dough rest up a bit (10 -15 min) until it firms up to a consistency where you can scoop a ball of dough and place on a baking sheet. Trying to scoop the dough when it is still somewhat runny will make for thinner cookies.
I've tried a similar recipe (from Cooking Light, I believe) and they're fantastic!
I'm going to try the Payard recipe right now!
I'm dying to make these, but I'm on a low-carbohydrate diet right now...do you think they would still work if using a sugar substitute? or in other words, how can i convert this recipe to also be sugar-free?
I just made these. I saw the recipe and couldn't resist. I did leave out the walnuts (we don't mix nuts and chocolate in this house). They're incredible! So fudgy and delicious. Thank you for sharing!
Dried Cherries are the best in this recipe.
Staceyann Dolenti
I'm making some cookies to send to a friend for Valentine's, and these seem perfect. That they are low-fat and gluten-free is a fabulous bonus. Perfect!
I made these for a co-worker for Christmas and she LOVED them!
Has anyone tried it with almonds instead of walnuts?
These are on my to-do list and this is another indication that I need to get on it!