Cookies and Cocoa
My 6 year old nephew and his family had a hot chocolate and cookies stand this afternoon – after school to catch the rush (they live right across the street) – to raise money for the Alberta Cancer Foundation. They called it Cole’s Cocoa for Cancer.
(Does anyone even call it cocoa anymore? I suppose Cole’s Hot Chocolate for Cancer wouldn’t have the same ring.)
We went and hung out on the lawn, nibbling cookies and sipping cocoa.
Wait – does anyone (besides my dad) actually use cocoa to make hot cocoa? Or have we become too reliant on the packaged mix? While we’re on the subject, let me (ahem) pull out my soapbox for a minute to relay the ingredient list you’ll find in the instant powdered stuff – we’ll use Carnation Rich & Creamy Hot Chocolate as an example.
Ingredients: SUGAR, CORN SYRUP SOLIDS, HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OIL (MAY CONTAIN COCONUT, PALM KERNEL AND/OR SOYBEAN OIL), MODIFIED MILK INGREDIENTS, COCOA, CELLULOSE GUM, SALT, DIPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, SILICON DIOXIDE, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOUR, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, GUAR GUM, SODIUM ALUMINUM SILICATE
YUM! It just makes me want to curl up beside a roaring fire with a steaming mug of sodium aluminum silicate. Which goes so well with marshmallows.
This is in no way a commentary on Cole’s cocoa – my point is that real cocoa takes approximately two seconds longer to make – as much time as it takes to spoon some sugar or honey into your mug (the time you spent spooning in your cocoa powder equals the time it would have taken to spoon in the mix – get it?) so I really don’t think the instant stuff should have as big a market share as it does. Use about a tablespoon each of dark cocoa and sugar or honey to a cup of warm milk, et voilà. Since it looks like we’re on the verge of hot chocolate season, we should start out on the right foot, don’t you think?
Cole served his with mini marshmallows and baked hundreds of Chocolava cookies, half made gluten-free by swapping a gluten-free flour blend. These are great to make in (very) large batches, and fun for young kids to help with if you don’t mind your entire kitchen being coated with icing sugar. I know I’ve posted the recipe before, but it’s been over two (!!) years. Here it is for those of you who haven’t been hanging around that long. Or who may have missed that day.
Chocolava
These are rich, intensely chocolate, brownie-like cookies, rolled in icing sugar before they’re baked to create a crackled surface as they rise and spread in the oven. They’re also low fat.
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 large egg whites or 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsp. vanilla
icing sugar, for rollingPreheat oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl or in the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, brown sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt, breaking up any lumps of brown sugar. Add the butter and pulse or stir with a fork, pastry cutter or whisk until the mixture is well combined and crumbly.
Add eggs and vanilla and stir by hand just until the dough comes together. The dough will be fairly dry – it will seem at first that there isn’t enough moisture, but if you keep stirring, or get in there and use your fingers, eventually it will come together.
Place a few heaping spoonfuls of icing sugar into a shallow dish. Roll dough into 1 1/2” balls and roll the balls in icing sugar to coat. Place them about 2” apart on a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Bake for 12–14 minutes, until just set around the edges but still soft in the middle. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Makes 20 cookies.
Per Cookie: 111 calories, 2.6 g fat (1.5 g saturated fat, 0.7 g monounsaturated fat, 0.1 g polyunsaturated fat), 21.3 g carbohydrates, 6.2 mg cholesterol, 1.8 g protein, 1.3 g fiber. 20% calories from fat
November 15 2010 10:33 pm | cookies & squares
Ellen on 16 Nov 2010 at 12:10 am #
i make hot cocoa a lot and never use mix (mostly because i don’t keep it on hand). my version is actually dairy free because i think regular milk tastes sour after being microwaved. i use almond milk, cocoa, a chunk of dark chocolate, vanilla and stevia. it is just as quick and easy as the mix and so much better. in fact, i may have to go make a cup…
did you use any xanthan gum in the GF cookies or do the hold together without?
Sharon on 16 Nov 2010 at 2:24 am #
Cocoa. Droste.
Carolyn on 16 Nov 2010 at 3:08 am #
These were the first cookies I made from OSC and I’ve been hooked ever since.
natalie - ga on 16 Nov 2010 at 5:35 am #
felt so motherly the other day when I made homemade cocoa. I had it waiting for my son (on the steps) to get off the bus. You should have seen his eyes light up. It was fun to see. Got the cookie recipe the first time around…….can’t believe it has been that long!
natalie - ga on 16 Nov 2010 at 5:35 am #
I made homemade cocoa the other day. I had it waiting for my son (on the steps) to get off the bus. You should have seen his eyes light up. It was fun to see. Got the cookie recipe the first time around…….can’t believe it has been that long!
Kris on 16 Nov 2010 at 6:45 am #
I much prefer real cocoa as opposed to hot choc mix but must confess that we have the mix in the house, primarily so my kids can make their own hot chocolate…dump in a package, hot water from the Keurig and they are good to go.
Sandy on 16 Nov 2010 at 6:48 am #
Haven’t made it for a while and I have forgotten the right mixture of cocoa and sugar and vanilla and milk. Can someone remind me of a “recipe”?
JulieVR on 16 Nov 2010 at 7:08 am #
You can do it to your taste, but a good starting point (and easy to remember) is 1 Tbsp. each cocoa and sugar or honey to 1 cup warmed milk. A drop of vanilla too, if you like.
Lana in South Mountain (ON) on 16 Nov 2010 at 7:25 am #
YUM! Although it is so simple, I appreciate the “recipe” as I usually spend too much time adjusting the amounts to get homemade hot chocolate to taste right. Now I know!
(Love these cookies, too!)
sharon on 16 Nov 2010 at 9:49 am #
Homemade cocoa mix: mix up dry cocoa, sugar and powdered milk and leave it in a jar on the counter. Fiddle with the ratio to your taste. Your kids can nuke their own cup of cocoa, by adding a couple tablespoons of the mix to more milk from the fridge, or to water.
sharon on 16 Nov 2010 at 10:04 am #
Sorry for the peripatetic commenting. A request.
Could there be a recipe for easy but real (no condensed milk) chocolate fudge in time for Xmas/New Year mailing? And, for those without a candy thermometer, some tips on how?
jmisgro on 16 Nov 2010 at 10:25 am #
I will be making these cookies today!! I ordered some cocoa from Penzey’s last week.
Your poster Sharon mentioned Droste cocoa. I want some where do you get it??? they have the best chocolate.
krista on 16 Nov 2010 at 11:46 am #
What GF blend did he use-do you know?
I used to love these and have not made them since I found out I had celiac disease and I’d love to make them again.
Bonnie on 16 Nov 2010 at 12:00 pm #
I’d like to know the GF mix you use too!
I never make hot chocolate from a mix…those ingredients just turn me off. It’s COCOA all the way for me!With whipped cream, of course. Or a homemade marshmallow!
I will say, though, that the process of heating milk always seems “harder” than plugging in a kettle of water, so maybe that’s why the mix is so popular???
I think I’ll have to try it with almond milk one of these days…that sounds yummy.
Beverley M on 16 Nov 2010 at 12:18 pm #
My husband just made those cookies a couple of days ago
He’s also the hot chocolate maker in the house, and it seems to involve a lot of ingredients, including real cocoa, milk, and I think maybe also Quick. Comes out very yummy, whatever it is he’s doing!
Avery on 16 Nov 2010 at 1:20 pm #
I’ve always made hot cocoa from cocoa and milk… mostly because it was cheaper to buy a cocoa and use it for other things (brownies, etc.) than to buy the pre-mix packages, especially when I had just moved out on my own. Also, the pre-mix always seems to leave a strange aftertaste/film on my tongue…
JulieVR on 16 Nov 2010 at 1:22 pm #
That must be the sodium aluminum silicate…. mmmmmm…
Natalie B on 16 Nov 2010 at 2:17 pm #
how about a hot cocoa recipe?
Kathy on 16 Nov 2010 at 2:53 pm #
I use real cocoa to make hot chocolate. Too many chemicals in the other stuff for my touchy tummy….
Kathy on 16 Nov 2010 at 2:56 pm #
oh and good on Cole for the fundraising effort!
JulieVR on 16 Nov 2010 at 3:19 pm #
Natalie – it’s up there! Use about a tablespoon each of dark cocoa and sugar or honey to a cup of warm milk. Voila!
Liana @ femme fraiche on 16 Nov 2010 at 3:42 pm #
I’m looking forward to a cup of cocoa while I decorate for Christmas and watch the Toronto Santa Claus parade this weekend! Woohooo to those cookies that are super low in cals and fat! I just subscribed to your blog and your recipes are amazing
Erica B. on 16 Nov 2010 at 4:55 pm #
mmm love hot chocolate, especially on days like today!
Ever since you posted the recipe for chocolate bisque from JPL I’ve been making my hot cocoa just with grated chocolate and milk (1%… no cream for these hips heh) works like a charm and no weird after taste.
Cathy on 16 Nov 2010 at 5:23 pm #
For GF cookies ( which I must make for my celiac spouse)try a mixture of sorghum and white rice flours,or Bob’s Red Mill flour mix, OR these may work with Quinoa flour. I made gingersnaps from “Quinoa 365″ this weekend and they were delicious! Baking GF is a challenge,for sure. One has to keep testing, reading and learning.
Kathryn on 16 Nov 2010 at 5:26 pm #
Making hot chocolate this year has become complicated in our house! I prefer it made with cocoa. My husband (weirdly) prefers the mix (yuk). My 6 year old son doesn’t care either way. My 9 year old daughter is newly dairy free. I’ve used cocoa and plain almond milk for her. Also, we have discovered that chocolate almond milk warmed up is very yummy!
The chocolava cookies have become a family favourite. They are my go-to treat for sending to school!
Sharon on 16 Nov 2010 at 7:40 pm #
Droste cocoa at Dutch and German shops; bakeries, meat shops which carry other imported goods. It’s the bomb. (I always wanted to say that. Thank you). Ghiredelli is good too if you can’t find Droste. Be prepared. It’s not cheap. Also be warned when you go to a Dutch import shop to buy it, there will be 1,l17 other tasty things you can’t leave without.
JulieVR on 16 Nov 2010 at 10:08 pm #
Regarding the gluten-free flour, my sister says – It’s a pre-mixed blend that I bought at community. There are a few different brands, two of which seem better than the others. The one we used yesterday was from Namaste Foods; I can’t remember the name of the other.
Also – she bakes them for a bit less time, otherwise they get hard.
molly on 16 Nov 2010 at 10:10 pm #
How brilliant is cocoa + cookies, a cold-weather lemonade stand?
How did I never think of this?
Smart little whipper snappers. And for a good cause, to boot. Dang.
Vincci on 16 Nov 2010 at 11:16 pm #
Thanks for getting on that soap box! I feel the same way! Sugar as the first ingredient? Hydrogenated vegetable oil (aka trans fat) the third? Ugggghhhh!
Jean Anne on 17 Nov 2010 at 4:44 am #
Good point on hot cocoa. We use one for the Tassismo and I top it with whip cream and chocolate shavings….mmmmm. May have to check my ingredients list and look into this cocoa thing. LOL!
Also, I am in love with these cookies. I have your book one smart cookie and it is a snow day staple at our home to try one of your cookie recipes from that book.
LOVE that I found your blog!!!!!
GourmAndrea on 17 Nov 2011 at 9:05 pm #
Yum! I just made these cookies last night after the recipe was in The Edmonton Journal food section. They are simply sweet & delicious, Thanks!
Kathy on 09 Dec 2011 at 5:13 pm #
Any cocoa that you can recommend that I might find at a local supermarket? I want to make these cookies with my daughter tomorrow but don’t have time to drive far (I live in the deep southwest of YYC).
JulieVR on 09 Dec 2011 at 6:32 pm #
Kathy – Fry’s Cocoa will do just fine!
Char on 19 Jan 2012 at 7:08 pm #
Julie, the first time I made these cookies they were perfect but everytime I make them after I follow the recipe exactly and they don’t flatten!! I’m at wits despair can you please suggest something I use robin hood all purpose flour
I don’t understand.