Cooking with Kids Recipes
Giant Triple Chocolate Valentine Cookies
Baking Time: 10 to 12 minutes
Makes: 16 to 18 3-1/2 inch (9 cm.) cookies
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Better than an ordinary Valentine card. Much better.
ingredients
|
| 2cups |
(500 mL)
flour |
| 1tsp |
(5 mL)
baking soda |
| 1cup |
(250 mL)
butter |
| ¾cup |
(175 mL)
white sugar |
| ¾cup |
(175 mL)
brown sugar |
| 2 | eggs |
| ½ cup |
(125 mL)
unsweetened cocoa powder |
| 1tsp |
(5 mL)
vanilla |
| 1cup |
(250 mL)
semi-sweet chocolate chips |
| 1cup |
(250 mL)
white chocolate chips or chunks |
directions
| 1. | In a small bowl, have your secret admirer stir together the flour and baking soda. This will keep him out of the chocolate chips while you proceed with the recipe. |
| 2. | Meanwhile, in the bowl of a food processor, or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream together the butter and the sugars, then add the eggs and beat for a few minutes, until light. Measure in the cocoa, and keep beating until smooth. Add the vanilla, then stir in the flour mixture. Finally, add the chocolate chips, mixing just enough to combine them evenly into the batter. |
| 3. | Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper – you can find this at any well-equipped kitchen store, and even at some supermarkets. (Don’t try to substitute waxed paper here, please!) On the paper, have your assistant draw heart shapes with a pencil, leaving at least 2 inches between the hearts so that the cookies have room to spread as they bake. Dustin made his hearts 3 inches (8 cm.) high and 3 inches (3 cm.) wide, fitting 4 onto the pan. They turned out big enough to make quite an impression. |
| 4. | Spoon 2 heaping tablespoons of cookie dough onto each heart outline, spreading it to fill the shape evenly. Exaggerate the heart shape a bit because it will round out as it bakes. I would discourage the addition of too many anatomical details (aorta, left ventricle, etc.) since these things are not very romantic. |
| 5. | Bake the cookies at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees centigrade) for 10 to 12 minutes. Let them cool for a couple of minutes before you try to remove them fro the pan. You can reuse the same paper lining for the entire batch of cookies. Let the cookies cool completely before decorating. |
| 6. | Put the white chocolate pieces into a small, heavy duty, zip-top plastic bag. Put the bag into the microwave and cook on high power for 1 minute, then take the bag out and mush it around with your hands to mix. Kids tend to be pretty good at this. Return it to the microwave and continue melting on high power for 30 seconds at a time, taking it out and mushing it around some more after each time, until the chocolate is all melted and smooth. Make sure there are no lumps left, but don’t overheat it because white chocolate can burn easily. |
| 7. | Holding the bag in one hand, squish all the melted chocolate down to one corner. Using scissors, cut a tiny hole in that corner – this will be your decorating bag. Get your assistant to squeeze the bag gently from the top down so that the chocolate comes out of the hole. Now, start writing. |
First published in Today's Parent's 04/1996 issue. © Rogers Media Publishing Inc.
Cooking with Kids
Make mealtime a family affair with simple tips for getting - and keeping - your kids in the kitchen. Today's Tip: Kids can arrange fruit, cheese and veggies and dip platters before guests arrive.
