Aug 28 2012
Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies
There used to be a bakery right across the street from my school in Bourg-la-Reine, a few miles south of Paris. When school let out in the afternoon (usually around 4 p.m.), we would descend on that bakery like Attila the Hun on the steppes of Central Asia to get something for le goûter (aka le quatre-heures), the mid-afternoon snack that is so intrinsic a part of French childhood that we have not one, but two names for it. We would sometimes get croissants or pains au chocolat, but most of the time, we would choose a few pieces of candy, as many as 1 franc could buy us. I was (still am) partial to gummy bears, chocolate covered marshmallow bears, and Carambar, a hard-to-chew caramel confection that has likely removed more fillings from French teeth than any dentist out there.
These are Caranougat, somewhat softer than the original Carambar.
But my favorite thing to get, bar none, was a small container of Nutella. It was very small indeed, containing at most two teaspoonfuls of the stuff. I would peel back the foil cover and use the little plastic spoon it came with to savor it, tiny bite by tiny bite, and make it last as long as possible.
Yum
I’ve had a love affair with Nutella for my entire life. In high school, my best friend and I would stay up till the wee hours of the morning, eating it by the spoonful straight from the jar while listening to our mixed tapes and talking about boys. As an adult, it was my responsibility (and I took it seriously) to introduce my children to that fabulous chocolaty goodness; they are, of course, just as addicted as I am – even my chocolate agnostic son.
My favorite way of having Nutella is still straight from the jar or on a crêpe, but I did come across Nutella cookies online and I was intrigued. Other than using it as a filling in Linzer cookies, I had never baked with it. I simply had to try.
The recipe I found is for a straightforward drop cookie, very simple and quick to make, and with a great chewy texture. The addition of chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli’s 60%) is a must, as the chocolate taste in Nutella probably wouldn’t come through enough all by itself.
These chocolate pieces are larger and flatter than regular chocolate chips.
I adapted the ingredients just a bit, reducing the amount of white sugar to 2/3 cup instead of a whole cup. They’re still very sweet, and oh so delicious. That’s a pretty nice way to create new memories from old ones.
C is for cookie; that's definitely good enough for me.
Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick butter, room temperature
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup Nutella
1 cup chocolate chips
Cream together the butter and sugars. Add vanilla and egg and beat well. Whisk flour, soda and salt together and add to the mixture slowly, making sure the flour is well incorporated. Add Nutella and chocolate chips – no need to beat it in too thoroughly; it’s okay to have swirls of Nutella in the batter.
Nutella and cookie batter: we have a winner!
Drop 2″ apart on baking sheet covered in parchment paper and bake 9-10 minutes in a preheated F375 oven.
Ready to be baked
Remove from oven and let cool 2 minutes on the baking sheet before moving cookies to a rack.
Tempted?
Makes about 2 dozen large cookies.
