Spelt Brown Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

The best kind of cookies for me need to have crisp edges and chewy center. These spelt brown butter dark chocolate chunk cookies checked off on the perfect texture, and there was no shortage of molten chocolate puddles in every single bite!

Since the recipe called for melted butter, I went a little further and browned the butter. After browning, I weighted the water loss and added back butter to what the recipe calls for. The brown butter (and probably the spelt flour) added a nice nuttiness and complexity to these cookies.

Spelt Brown Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies
recipe adapted from Butter & Brioche
makes about 16 cookies (36-38g each)

100g unsalted butter, browned
130g brown sugar
40g sugar
87.5g AP flour
87.5g spelt flour
1/2 + 1/8 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 egg (about 30g)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
112.5g chocolate, chopped
flaky salt, to top

1/2 egg = approx. 30g

Marou Chocolate from Vietnam

I refrigerated the dough overnight. In hindsight, I should've scooped them at this point before refrigerating.

After refrigerating them overnight, I thawed the dough a bit and portioned them into 36-38g balls. They have gotten too hard for scooping.

1. Place butter into a medium sized saucepan, set over medium-low heat. Heat, stirring occasionally, until butter is browned. Remove from heat and transfer to large mixing bowl. Add butter to make up for water loss weight.Whisk until smooth.
2. Add sugar to butter and whisk until smooth.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients.
4. To butter sugar mixture, add egg and whisk until smooth. Add vanilla extract, whisk until combined.
5. Incorporate dry ingredients to wet mixture, using a wooden spoon to mix until just combined.
6. Fold in dark chocolate chunks until evenly incorporated throughout dough.
7. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set in refrigerated to chill for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.
8. Scoop out cookie dough on lined baking sheets.
9. Bake at 350F for 9-11 minutes. *8 minutes in, tap baking sheet to deflate cookies. Repeat every 30 seconds for 3 more minutes.
10. Remove from oven and let cool.

before

after

This is my first time incorporating spelt flour in my baking, and tbh I don't really taste any difference. But eh, mentally I feel less guilty eating 3 of these in one sitting. 

I also tried a tapping method, mentioned in Butter& Brioche's blog post, which is supposed to help spread and melt the chocolate chunks. It added to the rustic and appealing appearance with the pools of melted chocolate. 

Taste: 4.5 stars out of 5
Pretty good as is but will try lowering amount of chocolate chunks, chopping chocolate chunks to smaller pieces, adding chopped nuts and instant coffee powder next time.
Texture: 5 stars out of 5
My perfect kind of cookie - crisp outside and soft/ chewy inside.

Enjoy!

Olive Oil & Sea Salt Brownie Cookies

Rich, fudgy, and a little chewy on the inside with an exterior that's slightly crisp and firm enough to keep the cookies together. These cookies are perfect for chocolate lovers and those with a sweet tooth! #brookies

Olive Oil & Sea Salt Brownie Cookies
recipe adapted from Butterlust and Nutmeg Nanny
makes approx. 13 cookies

1/2 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp hot coffee
1/4 cup (55g) olive oil
1/2 cup (100g) coconut palm sugar*
1 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/8 cup (42g) white whole wheat flour
3/8 cup (45g) cocoa powder
1/8 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup dried blueberries
1/4 tsp sea salt, for sprinkling

*reduced to 80g and still a tad sweet; reduced to 50g next time.

If you prefer things less sweet, use DARK chocolate chips and UNSWEETENED dried blueberries!

Chill batter in fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Scoop, flatten slightly, and sprinkle sea salt on top.

1. In a small bowl, mix together baking soda and hot coffee, set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together olive oil and sugar until well combined.
3.Mix in egg and vanilla extract.
4. Add flour, cocoa powder, and salt and beat until a dough forms - it should be the consistency of a thick brownie batter.
5. Add dissolved baking soda and coffee and beat until well combined.
6. Stir in chocolate chips and dried blueberries.
7. Refrigerate the batter for at least 30 minutes, up to overnight.
8. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350F and line baking sheets.
9. Use a cookie scoop to scoop out heaping tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets, flatten slightly, and sprinkle with sea salt.
10. Bake for 10 minutes, or until edges are set.**
11. Let cool completely on the baking sheets then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

**My cookies were soft to touch and held its shape at 10 minutes. Baked for an additional 10 minutes to crisp them up.

Baked.

Note that they do spread a little so space them out when scooping.

The batter comes together quickly- no creaming or melting butter. Start by simply pouring some EVOO together with sugar. The batter can be made ahead of time and kept refrigerated for up to a day. I might have over-baked mine with an additional 10 minutes. At the initial 10 minutes, the cookies were firm but had sticky bottoms. In hindsight, letting them cool completely then would've solve the problem. 

The sprinkle of sea salt is absolutely necessary both for flavor and aesthetic! I can't believe this is the first time I used it with my cookies. The salt is especially wonderful with these indulgent cookies. When the sweetness starts to get overwhelming, the salt hits just in time to reset the palette.

Maybe the bottoms won't stick if I've removed them from the silpat after they completely cooled??Since I already baked them longer, I didn't want them to continue baking out of the oven. I used a spatula to carefully pry them off.

There's a good amount of chocolate chips and dried blueberries in each cookie, making them a bit on the sweet side for me. I would probably sub a 1/4 cup of the chocolate chips with nuts or oats and use dark chocolate chips instead of milk.

Taste: 4 stars out of 5
Rich, indulgent chocolate goodness. Love the balance with the sea salt sprinkles.
Texture: 3.5 stars out of 5
Fresh from the oven, they had a thin crisp exterior and moist interior. Overtime, cookies softened.