Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Val's chocolate chip cookie cake


Today's recipe comes from Val, my sugar-coated candy soulmate!  This girl.

The girl who had a cookie and candy buffet at her wedding.  The girl who has introduced me to so many confectionery joys over the years, like Sarris chocolates, Hershey's Drops, Oreo truffles, pretzel M&Ms just to name a few.

The girl who is the other half of a daily exchange of candy reports.  Never will one of us feel (too) guilty about eating an entire box of Whoppers for lunch because we know the other has most likely done something very similar.  That and we are avid runners.  Girls have to keep their figure somehow, right?

As soon as the idea for a cookie party was concocted, Val was the first person to know because I knew it was a fete right up her alley.  To say that I was eagerly anticipating her cookies would be an understatement.  And girl certainly did not disappoint.

She brought homemade chocolate chip cookie cake!  All together now: eeeeeeeeeee!

Nothing says sweet celebration quite like a giant chocolate chip cookie.  But Val amped it up a little more by using almond extract (her husband loves all things almond!  I loved that her cookie cake was a little thicker than the average Mrs. Field's.  It was a perfect (and sturdy) hand-held treat.  A slight crunch on the outside protected the soft and chewy center with just a hint of that bomb amaretto flavor.

I'm so glad I snagged two pieces in my to-go box for a sweet treat later.  Val recommended nuking a piece in the microwave for a few seconds to make a warm and extra gooey dessert.  Why not top it with a scoop of ice cream or a drizzle of Hershey's syrup, too?  Raise your hand if you're salivating right now!

I can't say for sure if we'll host another cookie party next year.  Not that this wasn't an overwhelming and delicious success -- because it so was! -- but Val's recent idea of a candy party sounds incredibly tempting :)

On tap for tomorrow is Natalie's recipe for white chocolate and dried apricot cookies!


Val's Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
(adapted from this recipe)
-makes one 8-inch round cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon almond extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and both sugars on medium speed until well combined and light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.  Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth.  Stir in the flour mixture and beat until no white streaks remain.  Fold in chocolate chips.

Press batter into bottom of a nonstick 8-inch round cake pan.  Bake until edges begin to turn golden brown and toothpick inserted into center of cookie cake comes out clean, about 17 to 19 minutes.  Cool completely in pan on wire rack before slicing and serving.  Store in sealed container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

3 comments:

  1. So... I know you postet this almost 1,5 years ago, but maybe you remember how you made or your friend made this cake... I ate a cake like that a few years ago and it was absolutely awesome, unfortunately I don't have that specific recipe. I found this one two days ago and immediately tried it. The pictures you posted look like what I was hoping to get.But my cake pretty much looked and tasted like a regular cake! I didn't have that chewy part in the middle that I was lookng forward to... Maybe you can help me?
    Since I baked it as a birthday cake for my friend and she can't get enough, I took thrice the ingredients (her wish) and uses a regular baking sheet. I'm not sure how long I left it in the oven, but it was definitely longer than the 17-19mins you suggested. Other than addind a sip of Amaretto for the taste I followed your recipe in detail. I was wondering if maybe I used too much baking soda or had the cake in the oven for too long (which would mean that, to get the chewy bit, the cake must be kinda raw inside). Do you have any tipps or suggestions on what I could do better?
    I would reeeeally appreciate an answer! And thanks for the recipe, it tasted awesome even without the chewy part ;)
    Best Regards!

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    Replies
    1. I'm glad you liked the cake! As far as the chewy center (or lackthereof, in your case), my first instinct is to say it's due to both the increased baking time and increased surface area of the cake after tripling the recipe. A larger surface area means more room for moisture in the dough to evaporate and produce a drier cookie cake. Try scaling back the recipe to its original proportions or dividing the tripled dough among 3 equal size pans. The only thing better than cake is three cakes :) Good luck!

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  2. Great, thanks a lot!! I will definitely give it another try.

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