I’ve been working on the perfect chocolate sugar cookie for so long, that when I finally nailed it, I felt like I deserved to sit on the couch and eat three of them. And so I did. I’m not doing Whole 30, you are. I typically avoid talking to people during January because most people want to talk about their current diet. Whenever someone starts talking about a diet, all I can think about is cookies. And then I wonder, silently in my head, when was the last time they ate a cookie? For me, the perfect chocolate sugar cookie has a crackly surface (excess sugar and a slightly acidic dough with baking soda causes cracks, did you know?), a good chewy bite, and a deep chocolate flavor.
Chocolate Sugar Cookie Ingredients
Butter. Unsalted butter is my preference for baking cookies, because we will be adding fine sea salt to the dough. This way, we can control the amount of salt in the final dish. Sugar. Granulated white sugar. Vanilla. A very small amount (¼ teaspoon) of high-quality vanilla extract, since we’re only making 6 cookies. Instant Espresso Powder. It’s entirely optional to use instant coffee or instant espresso powder when baking, but it really enhances the flavor of chocolate desserts. Egg Yolk. We only need the egg yolk for this recipe; save the egg white for another use, or for making an omelette in the morning. Flour. Regular, all-purpose flour that has been fluffed, scooped and leveled off with a knife. Cocoa Powder. All-natural, unsweetened cocoa powder. I recommend regular, not special dark due to a different pH. Baking Soda. We’re only using baking soda, no baking powder for these cookies. Milk. A small amount of whole dairy milk makes these cookies soft and fluffy, yet still chewy. Coarse Sugar. This is entirely optional, but I love the way cookies look and taste when they’re rolled in a small amount of super coarse sugar, such as turbinado sugar before baking. Powdered Sugar. This is for the optional frosting.
I do a few things to amp up the chocolate flavor. A little trick that I learned from Queen Ina to make my chocolate desserts even better is to always add vanilla and coffee. You won’t taste explicitly vanilla or coffee; you’ll just taste a richer chocolate flavor. I use instant espresso powder in these cookies–not a lot, just a ½ teaspoon for the whole batch. You won’t taste the coffee, but it will taste richer. It’s magic.
How to Make Chocolate Sugar Cookies
Chocolate Sugar Cookie Variations:
These cookies are good on their own (and honestly, that’s how I eat them most of the time), but a little frosting never hurt anyone. If I’m not frosting these chocolate sugar cookies, however, I love to chop up a 3-ounce chocolate bar and stir it into the dough. With the frosting, though, it just seems a bit excessive so I leave it out. But if excessive cookies are your thing (hi, let’s be friends!), please do it. Plus, I feel like you have a little more wiggle room to be excessive when you’re only making a half dozen cookies. I have a part-time business coming up with good reasons why it’s okay for you to eat more dessert. I’m available as a life coach, too, did you know? (I hope you know I’m kidding!) Also, if you’re looking for plain small batch sugar cookies, I have you covered there, too. I’m having trouble finding super cute Valentine’s Day sprinkles in January (ugh, diets!), so I ended up combining jars of sprinkles in my pantry. I love the size range here–big hearts, tiny red and pink dots, white balls, and the tiniest foil stars and hearts. It’s a good mix. The only problem is, I have a ½ cup leftover. But, we have 5 weeks until Valentine’s Day, so I think we can come up with ways to use them. This recipe uses only 1 egg yolk. Check out my list of recipes that use an extra egg white!
How to Store Chocolate Frosted Cookies
These cookies stay soft on the counter for up to 3 days if stored in an airtight container. You can make the dough balls and freeze up to 3 months in advance; bake from frozen, adding 1-3 extra minutes of bake time. You can also freeze already-baked cookies flat. Defrost at room temperature for a few hours before serving. It is recommended to make the frosting the day you plan to serve them.
