A brookie….what the hell is a "brookie", I can hear you asking?
Well, in my parlance, a brookie is a cookie with the texture of a brownie.
Get it?
I decided to whip these up the other day because I needed a BUNCH of cookies in a hurry for an event I was hosting at my home. Rather than cook up multiple batches of much larger cookies, I decided to pull out my #70 portion scoop (about 1/2 ounce, 1 tablespoon) and cranked out about 4 dozen of these gorgeous little "brookies" in no time.
I had everything I needed on-hand including the vegetable shortening called for in the recipe. I don't often cook with shortening, but the texture of these babies requires it so I always keep some in the pantry and you should too. Just make sure to buy an all-vegetable shortening that has NO trans fats in it, like what I use from "Spectrum Naturals" .
These guys have an awesome, deep chocolate flavor, a lovely crunch from the nuts, and a perfect fudgey-brownie texture. Their easy to pop-in-the-mouth size make them an ideal candidate to bring along to a neighborhood party too…..say, like a 4th of July party?
Happy 4th All!
Cheers – Steve
Chocolate Pecan "Brookies"
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa (use the best you can find, like Valhrona)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar (light or dark)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 - 1 cup chopped pecans (depending on how much you like nuts)
Instructions
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats. Place racks in upper and lower thirds of the oven and heat to 350℉.
- Whisk all dry ingredients (except the nuts) in a medium bowl. Place the butter and shortening in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and blend on medium speed until creamy, stopping and scraping down the bowl as necessary. Add the sugars and mix until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla and mix again until fully incorporated.
- With the mixer on low speed add the dry mixture and blend until just incorporated. Add the chopped nuts and mix briefly on low until evenly distributed.
- Using a #70 (1 tablespoon) scoop, load up each sheet try with balls of dough, you should be able to get around 20 per sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, switching pans top to bottom, and rotating them front to back around the half-way point to ensure even cooking.
- The cookies should be just set up at the edges but still be fairly soft in the center. let sit on the sheet trays for a few minutes after you take them from the oven, then transfer the cookies, still on the parchment to cooling rack to continue cooling. When firmed up enough to handle, remove them from the parchment and leave them to cool completely on the racks.