Double Chocolate Chews

 

I continued my baking binge this weekend with a batch of delicious chewy chocolate meringue cookies. Lately I cannot get enough of the sweet stuff and these treats hit the spot. I was looking for a recipe for some cookies that would satisfy without a tremendous guilt factor and these fit the bill. The key to getting a rich and decadent cookie is using high quality chocolate, as the only other ingredients are egg whites, sugar and vanilla. I used Ghiradelli bittersweet chocolate chips that are 60% cacao and they worked perfectly. My favorite part about these cookies is that they stay chewy and don't turn hard like a typical meringue. A couple of tips for making these are to make sure that the chocolate is not hot when you mix it in with the egg whites, and that the egg whites are beaten until they are stiff, smooth and glossy. Lastly, do not mix the chocolate and the egg whites too much, instead try gently folding the two together until combined. I included a link in the recipe below for how to beat egg whites to the right consistency if you aren't familiar.

Double Chocolate Chews Ingredients: 12 oz. (typically 1 bag or 2 cups) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks or 12 oz dark chocolate chopped into small chunks 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract pinch of salt 3 egg whites 1/3 cup sugar Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Melt 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips in a large heat proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water on the stove. Cool until just warm to the touch. Stir in the vanilla and salt. Beat egg whites with an electric mixer in a separate bowl for 2 minutes, or until white and foamy. Add sugar in 2 tablespoons at a time, beating constantly. Continue to beat the egg whites for about 6 to 8 minutes or until soft peaks form and the meringue is a snowy white color (Click here for clarification on this process). Fold the meringue into the melted chocolate in three batches, being careful not to deflate the egg whites. Continue folding until no white streaks remain and the batter is stiff. Stir in the remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate chips. Drop the cookies onto the sheet pans using heaping tablespoons. Bake for 10 minutes, or until the exterior of the cookies look dry. Cool on baking sheets. Store in an airtight container. Makes about 24 cookies.

Recipe courtesy of Vegetarian Times, April 2009 issue

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