Comments on: Chocolate “Shard” Cookies… Perfection?

By: poligals

poligals — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:54:48 +0000

Pictures look oh soo yummy!! where can i find the recipe for this?

By: mojito_drinker

mojito_drinker — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 09:00:19 +0000

hi MM – i just tried this recipe last weekend. i’m not normally a fan of regular chocolate chip cookies because they tend to melt in this weather. this one was gooood! i’ve gotten rave reviews from non-chocoholics… thanks!!!

By: SimplePleasure

SimplePleasure — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 01:43:09 +0000

Hi Marketman!

I’ve just made a batch of this recipe last night and can’t wait to bake them off! I found chocolate disks at COOKS EXCHANGE at an affordable price, though I’m not sure what brand it is(I asked, they told me & I forgot! hehehe figures!), it’s quicky melting and bittersweet, I nibbled on one disk last night before incorporating in the mixture.

I’m so excited…WOOHOO

By: NewYorker

NewYorker — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 14:07:46 +0000

betty q – Thanks for the explanation!

By: Blaise

Blaise — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 12:27:17 +0000

COMFORT FOOD! =)

By: sister

sister — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 01:58:01 +0000

If using blocks of chocolate wait until the block comes to room temp. before attempting to cut it into chunks, cold chocolate will only cut into shards. There are other 65-70 % bars on the market that are thinner and easy to dice. You might try scooping out the dough right after mixing, line up closely on a cookie sheet lined in parchment, cover, and refrigerate overnight. You can make a second layer of scooped dough on top to save on space. Cover with foil or cling film to avoid off odors in your fridge. Preheat oven and pick up the balls of dough and position 4 inches apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet, press down to 1/2 inch thickness. Bake. It is easier on the scoop to portion out the dough while it is still at room temp. before chilling.

By: madspartan

madspartan — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:44:34 +0000

Oh, and for those of you who’ve ruined many an ice cream scoop (i have 11 size 26’s — the perfect size, in my opinion — only 2 of which are serviceable now), I’ve found that plastic measuring spoons (glossy on the inside) can be wonderful too. I use the half-tablespoon ones for baby cookies — i let the dough thaw a bit and even it out with a small, off-set spatula. Just nudge the dough out with the spatula tip and it slides right off — no need to grease the spoon!

By: madspartan

madspartan — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:38:07 +0000

Hey, MM — a daily lurker here. I remember having come across those valrhona feves (the oval ones) at cooks’ exchange in powerplant mall. I bought a few 100g. bags just because they were unusual (this was maybe a year ago). I stuck them in the middle of cupcake batter (when I first started to experiment with cupcakes) — and it was rather insane — a giant chocolate kick in the head when you bite into it (it stays gooey even after the cupcakes have cooled) — imagine those shards in a cookie, then! I’d be drunk after just one!

Oh — and as for the cookies getting hard after a day — I stick a slice or two of plain ol’ sandwich bread with the cookies in an airtight container and they stay fresh for quite a bit.

By: betty q.

betty q. — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 18:16:58 +0000

Hello New Yorker…In my appprenticeship days (waaaaay back when!!), bread flour and cake or pastry flour is commonly used in industrial bakeries…bread flour for the breads, rolls, croissants, danishes, etc…pastry flour or cake flour for genoise and angel food cakes…Now, I am assuming that is what Monsieur Torres uses (bakery owner/pastry chefextraordinaire)….cost effective while maintaining the quality of the cookie! All purpose flour is hard wheat (bread flour) and soft wheat (cake flour)added. If you would look at the proportion of the cake flour to the bread flour is in his recipe, it is amounts to nearly 1:1…Sorry, can’t give you an opinion on King Arthur flour….only have Robin Hood, 5 Roses, and something else in grocery stores. ..But wholesalers might have it though…will ask some of the sales reps I used to know.

By: NewYorker

NewYorker — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:52:12 +0000

I made the dough last evening, and am 12 hours into the “chilling” period. I can’t wait to get home to bake a batch.

One thing I found unusual about the NY Times recipe was that it called for cake flour AND bread flour. Most cookie recipes I’ve seen use APF, so does using cake and bread flour really make a difference?

And speaking of flour, what do folks think of King Arthur Flour?