Peace

You all may have noticed by now that I don’t care about chocolate. Never have. I honestly don’t get it! I can’t imagine choosing chocolate over the flavors of caramel, or butter, or fruit, or really anything. Like with every rule, there are some exceptions and this cookie is one of those. If you’re anything like me pre-World Peace Cookies, you have undoubtedly come across this cookie on countless blogs and websites. Everyone raves. Everyone claims they are the best cookie in the history of cookies. Well, I wouldn’t go that far but they are pretty special. Bryan loves chocolate and so I made these for him about a year ago and he did his little dance which means they are very good. Even chocolate-hating-me can recognize that these are excellent cookies. So, make some. And enjoy. And for those chocolate-lovers out there, it will probably be a few months before you see chocolate on Lottie + Doof again, so get it while you can.

Happy 2009 everyone! Thanks for everyone’s support in 2008, I am looking forward to more good food in the new year. Peace and love.

World Peace Cookies (from Dorie Greenspan)

  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 stick plus 3 tablespoons (11 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon fleur de sel or 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or a generous 3/4 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips

Sift the flour, cocoa and baking soda together.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add both sugars, the salt and vanilla extract and beat for 2 minutes more.

Turn off the mixer. Pour in the flour, drape a kitchen towel over the stand mixer to protect yourself and your kitchen from flying flour and pulse the mixer at low speed about 5 times, a second or two each time. Take a peek — if there is still a lot of flour on the surface of the dough, pulse a couple of times more; if not, remove the towel. Continuing at low speed, mix for about 30 seconds more, just until the flour disappears into the dough — for the best texture, work the dough as little as possible once the flour is added, and don’t be concerned if the dough looks a little crumbly. Toss in the chocolate pieces and mix only to incorporate.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface, gather it together and divide it in half. Working with one half at a time, shape the dough into logs that are 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate them for at least 3 hours. (The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months. If you’ve frozen the dough, you needn’t defrost it before baking — just slice the logs into cookies and bake the cookies 1 minute longer.)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Working with a sharp thin knife, slice the logs into rounds that are 1/2 inch thick. (The rounds are likely to crack as you’re cutting them — don’t be concerned, just squeeze the bits back onto each cookie.) Arrange the rounds on the baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch between them.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 12 minutes — they won’t look done, nor will they be firm, but that’s just the way they should be. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack and let the cookies rest until they are only just warm, at which point you can serve them or let them reach room temperature.

16 comments to “Peace”

  1. I don’t know if I can be friends with you anymore, with all the mean things you are saying about chocolate. And we had just gotten started….so sad.

  2. Oh, Steph..I am tolerant, very tolerant. I’ll even bake you (and the boys) some chocolate cookies!

  3. It’s blasphemous to say such things about chocolate. Is it just chocolate foods you’re opposed to or your chocolate twin?

  4. The cookies look incredible. And I’m with you on the chocolate. I’d much rather choose something with nuts or dried fruits. Happy New Year!

  5. Erikka- Ha. You know I’m not opposed to you, and like I said: there are some good chocolate desserts.

    Hayley- Thanks, and Happy New Year! Keep up the good work over at Buff Chickpea!

  6. I feel the same way about chocolate. I like it just fine. But love it over butter and caramel (especially butter and caramel???). Oh hell no. If you say these cookies are worth it then I trust you.

  7. tim popped a few of these in the oven for me after a VERY chilly day on the town. complimented by the perfect cup of tea by Bryan, it was a perfect end to a delightful day. oh wait..i think tim and bryan pushing my car out of the parking spot was actually the end of the day. anyway..although I’m not a chocolate-hater like some of you, I don’t usually choose chocolate-chocolate cookies…but these were GREAT….as are most things tim makes.

  8. do you like spicy? last time i added a little cayenne and it gives it an interesting third act.

  9. If you can’t stand light brown sugar would dark demerra sugar be an okay option or would it change the flavour in the wrong direction?

  10. Hi David: I do like Spicy, and that sounds like a really good idea.

    SMM: I really don’t think you’ll notice what type of sugar is in these. It doesn’t stand out against all of the chocolate. But that being said, I also think that darker sugar might be okay. Different, but okay. I’m always in favor of trying, if you do let me know how it works!

  11. I finally made these incredibly rich cookies today. Oh my! The three of us ate them with total glee and delicious delight.

    Molding them into the logs was strange as was finding a thin knife that would cut through the frozen logs. All worth it.

  12. Love your blog. (Found you through Edward Droste of Grizzly Bear, he tweeted your website link. Very exciting for me.) This was the first recipe I tried; I needed a crowd-pleasing cookie recipe and this certainly delivered! Thanks so much. :)

  13. Amandolin says:

    July 5th, 2011 at 10:50 am

    Just tried these cookies for our July 4 barbeque and they are probably some of the best cookies I’ve ever had. The skeptical looks I got when I said they’re “world peace” cookies turned into “oh, oh yes, I can see why”s every time.

  14. milly vanilla says:

    December 4th, 2011 at 2:52 pm

    Please make MORE recipes without chocolate! My disabled son has severe Crohn’s disease and can’t eat chocolate anymore. EVERYTHING has chocolate!!! (I enjoy chocolate!)

  15. Sorry everyone…… nothing can beat a fruit cake, fruit and nut cake cake AND NO HORRIBLE ICING. Always carefully it off even as a young child.
    Keep those lovely fruit cakes and bars coming please and, many thanks to Lottie and Doof!

  16. Paige Reader says:

    December 20th, 2015 at 11:32 am

    I don’t have the time or patience to do the roll-into-a-log thing and wait 3 hours. So I roll all the dough out into a big square and bake it in one whole jelly roll pan. When cool, I cut into squares and serve with vanilla ice cream. World Peace brownies. Alternatively, you could use a ravioli cutter to cut.

What do you think?