Sunday baking project: Helen Goh’s chocolate, rye and espresso cookies

Name: Sunday baking project: Helen Goh’s chocolate, rye and espresso cookies
Cook time: 30 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: Modern Australian
Ingredients: 140g unsalted butter, cut into roughly 6 pieces; 100g bar dark chocolate; 170g plain flour; 70g rye flour; 1 tsp ground cinnamon; ¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda; ½ tsp fine sea salt; 110g soft brown sugar; 110g caster sugar; 1 egg, beaten; 2 tbsp spent coffee grounds; 1 tsp vanilla extract; ½ tsp flaked sea salt

Helen Goh

May 3, 2024

For children, leave out the coffee; they’ll still taste great.William Meppem

easyTime:< 30 minsMakes:12

Spent coffee grounds combine with the cinnamon and brown sugar to add delicious notes of mocha and caramel to these cookies. For children, leave out the coffee; they’ll still taste great. Chopping up a bar of chocolate roughly will result in uneven pieces which add texture to the cookies but, for the sake of expediency, mini chocolate chips can also be used. The raw dough, once rolled, can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for one month. Cookies baked straight from the freezer will just need an extra minute or two in the oven.

Ingredients

140g unsalted butter, cut into roughly 6 pieces
100g bar dark chocolate
170g plain flour
70g rye flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp fine sea salt
110g soft brown sugar
110g caster sugar
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp spent coffee grounds
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp flaked sea salt

Method

Step 1
Put the butter in a small saucepan and place over medium heat. Gently swirl the pan until the butter has melted, then continue to cook until it’s foaming. Swirl gently from time to time to allow the solids to brown more evenly. It will sputter and hiss quite audibly, then quieten down as the foam subsides and dark brown sediments begin to form on the bottom and sides of the pan (about 2 minutes). When ready, the mixture will have turned a rich golden-brown and smell like toasted nuts and caramel. Pour into a large mixing bowl (including any loose brown bits) and set aside to cool slightly (5-10 minutes).
Step 2
Meanwhile, chop the chocolate into roughly 1cm pieces. Place in a small bowl and set aside for now.
Step 3
Place the flours, cinnamon, bicarbonate of soda and fine sea salt in a medium bowl and whisk to combine and aerate a little.
Step 4
Preheat the oven to 175C fan-forced (195C conventional) and line two large baking trays with baking paper.
Step 5
When the butter has cooled down a little, add the sugars to the mixing bowl and use a wooden spoon to beat the mixture until combined. Add the egg, coffee grounds and vanilla and continue to beat until smooth, then add the dry ingredients. Change to a spatula and mix until just combined, then stir in about two-thirds of the chopped chocolate; the remainder will be pressed into the tops of the cookies after they’re rolled. Fold the chocolate into the dough until combined: the dough should be soft with a slight sheen, but not too sticky.
Step 6
Pinch off 12 even pieces of the dough (approximately 60g each) and roll into balls. Holding one at a time, press the top into the remaining chocolate pieces in the bowl so that a few pieces stick to it. Place the spheres, chocolate-side up, onto the lined oven trays, leaving at least 5cm between each one. Sprinkle a little pinch of the flaked sea salt on top of each cookie, then place the trays in the oven and bake for about 10 minutes or until golden-brown around the edges, but still soft in the centre. Allow the cookies to cool on the tray for a few minutes until firm enough to transfer to a rack for cooling.