I devised this recipe about 18 years ago and have made it now and then for special times (like holidays). Since I have brewed no hard apple cider this year, I thought I’d resurrect it.
Javascript Cookies
Ingredients:
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup finely ground coffee powder1
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened2
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 5 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (or chop your own from your fav semi-sweet chocolate)
• 1/2 cup hazelnuts or sliced almonds, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar for coating
Instructions:
1. Whisk together flour, coffee powder, baking powder, and salt in a bowl until combined.
2. Beat together butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed (or get movin’ with your wire whisk!) until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes in a stand mixer or 4 minutes with a handheld. Add egg and vanilla, beating until combined. Reduce speed to low, then add flour mixture and mix until combined well. Add chocolate and nuts and mix until just combined. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill dough until firm, about 30 minutes.
3. Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 325°F.
4. Roll 1 tablespoon of dough into a 1-inch ball, then flatten slightly with palm of your hand to form a 1/3-inch-thick disk and coat with confectioners sugar. Make more cookies in same manner, arranging them 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.
5. OK, that was the original recipe directions. this is easier, and the cookies taste just as good. Put 1/2 cup of confectioners sugar in a bowl (I used a soup bowl/LARGE mug with a handle). Drop the appropriate amount of dough in the bowl and swirl the bowl to roll it around. Pick the doughballs up and flatten them onto the ungreased baking sheets. No (or less) messy hands, quicker and easier.
6. Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until they puff up and tops crack slightly, 8 to 10 minutes total, then transfer with a metal spatula to racks to cool completely. Recoat cookies with confectioners sugar, if you want (they’re sweet enough for me without the extra, but I have one tester who likes ’em that way). Oven times may vary. Add time if you make your cookies larger, of course.
N.B. I have had some success making a keto-friendly version of this using almond and coconut flour and sucralose.
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1 As fine as you can grind it; as close to flour texture as possible
2 Depending on your microwave oven, could take as little as 30 seconds to soften a stick of butter enough to use. YMMV, of course, depending on both the temperature you store your butter and your MW’s power rating.
