Chocolate ginger cookies
A few years ago, in graduate school, I fell in love with a bar of chocolate from Whole Foods that contained little bits of crystallized ginger. My Mom would come visit me in California, and I would always buy this chocolate bar for us to nibble on after dinner or with wine. My love for a sweet silky-smooth chocolate bar with bites of spicy-sweet ginger is huge. I think the granulated sugar from the ginger is also part of the big love I have for this flavor combination. If you’re looking for a way to make soft, chewy chocolate cookies with a new spin, these chocolate ginger cookies are your answer! Yes, you have to love ginger to make these cookies. If you love my gingerbread cut out cookies, you’ll love these. The spicy flavor of ginger belongs in our desserts all year, not just during the holidays! When I make my chocolate shortbread, I always want to add some ground ginger to the dough, but the chewiness of the cookies is so good with the chewy ginger pieces, so I think this is the way I will be getting my chocolate ginger fix from now on.
What is crystallized ginger exactly:
First, let’s make sure the ginger you want to bake with is the right type. We’re not using the chewy ginger candy here, because they will melt in the cookie. Crystallized ginger looks like this, and the label will say ‘crystallized,’ which means it’s been cooked in a sugar syrup, allowed to dry and then coated in additional granulated sugar to keep the pieces from sticking to each other. I’ve seen crystallized ginger in cubes and strips, and either will work for this recipe. We’re going to finely dice the ginger with a knife sprayed with cooking spray (to keep it from sticking) into tiny bits. There is a photo below with the size of pieces of ginger, for reference.
Ingredients:
butter: Unsalted butter is best for baking, and then we’ll add our own level of salt to the recipe. granulated sugar egg yolk: This recipe only uses the yolk of one egg; for recipes to use leftover egg whites, try here. vanilla extract all-purpose flour cocoa powder: Unsweetened, natural cocoa powder–not dark or Dutch processed cocoa powder, which has a different pH and will effect the rising of the cookies. instant espresso powder: A small amount of espresso powder is optional, but it really heightens the flavor of the chocolate. baking powder salt crystallized ginger pieces: Remember: the label will say CRYSTALLIZED ginger, which means it’s been cooked in sugar syrup and coated with extra granulated sugar to keep the pieces separate. They come in cubes or strips, and here is a brand that I like. chocolate chips: I like semisweet or dark chocolate chips in this recipe.
How to make chocolate ginger cookies:
I think you will love these intensely chocolate rich cookies with bites of ginger! If you’re a ginger lover, you will also love my small batch of ginger peach cupcakes! I’m such a ginger lover, that I frequently bake with fresh ginger. To keep fresh ginger around longer, peel it when you get it home from the grocery store (use the back of a spoon for this), and then place the ginger ‘fingers’ in a plastic freezer bag. The ginger will keep in the freezer for up to 6 months. I pull it out and grate it while frozen, and it looks like ginger snow. When it melts, it’s as good as fresh ginger! If you’re looking for a recipe with dried, ground ginger, try my lemon ginger thumbprint cookies! I love the tangy pop of lemon curd with ginger, and I think you will, too!
butter: Unsalted butter is best for baking, and then we’ll add our own level of salt to the recipe.granulated sugaregg yolk: This recipe only uses the yolk of one egg; for recipes to use leftover egg whites, try here.cocoa powder: Unsweetened, natural cocoa powder–not dark or Dutch processed cocoa powder, which has a different pH and will effect the rising of the cookies.instant espresso powder: A small amount of espresso powder is optional, but it really heightens the flavor of the chocolate.crystallized ginger pieces: Remember: the label will say CRYSTALLIZED ginger, which means it’s been cooked in sugar syrup and coated with extra granulated sugar to keep the pieces separate. They come in cubes or strips, and here is a brand that I like.chocolate chips: I like semisweet or dark chocolate chips in this recipe.
OXO Medium Cookie Scoop
