This post is what I would like to call an “emergency blog post.”  Emergency as in, I still haven’t bought a new camera, I just finished two slightly insane weeks at work, and have been running around crazy trying to prepare for my upcoming move to Chicago. However, despite the impending chaos, I needed to tell you about these cookies…As soon as possible.

I found the recipe for “Chocolate Brownie Cookies with White Chocolate and Roasted Macadamia Nuts” in the Joy the Baker cookbook.  I have been following Joy Wilson’s blog for awhile now, and I like how she takes a more non-traditional approach to traditional food; in this cookbook, you can find everything from Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes to Browned Butter Peanut Butter Rice Crispy Treats.  You can even find a recipe for Coffee Bacon…if you’re in to that sort of thing.

When I got to the third chapter of the cookbook, entitled “I need a hug, or a brownie.  Maybe both,” I knew that I had struck recipe gold.  I’m not always an emotional eater, but it’s nice to know that there’s a whole chapter in a cookbook devoted to nursing me through stress or potential heartache.

Interestingly, these cookies combine two things I’m not a huge fan of.  I’ve never really liked White Chocolate (dark is my favorite), and I don’t usually like nuts in my baked goods.  I think it’s something about the crunch combined with the soft, chewy goodness of cookies or the fluffy moistness of cakes…In my opinion, these desserts have always tasted better unadulterated, and in their purest form.

Then I made these cookies, and realized what I had been missing.  The roasted macadamia nuts were buttery and creamy, and provided just the right amount of crunch.  And the white chocolate chips were sweet, but perfectly balanced by the flavor of the bittersweet chocolate and coffee powder.  The cookies (which taste best under-baked) were moist, gooey and soft, but still were dense and rich…they combined the best of both desserts (a brownie and cookie), all in one bite.

So basically my point is, even if life is throwing you curve balls, you have more on your plate than you think you can manage, and you’re (more than a little) overwhelmed by the future, don’t despair…make these cookies.  And fast…Their chocolately gooey deliciousness will provide a temporary fix to any problem you’ve encountered…or at the very least are a worthy distraction.

Note: I used unsalted roasted macadamia nuts, even though the recipe called for salted (I bought the wrong bag at the grocery store).  It’s up to you what you end up doing, but I thought the hint of salt that the recipe called for was enough.

Chocolate Brownie Cookies with White Chocolate and Roasted Macadamia Nuts (slightly adapted from Joy the Baker Cookbook)

Makes 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

8 oz bittersweet chocolate chips or coarsely chopped chunks (I used chunks)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon instant coffee powder (or if you have it, espresso)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 large eggs (at room temperature)

3/4 cup white chocolate chips or chunks (I used chips)

3/4 cup roasted unsalted macadamia nuts

Directions:

1.) Place racks in the upper third and middle of the oven and preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

2.) Gently simmer 2 inches of water in a medium saucepan.  Place bittersweet chocolate and butter in a medium-sized heatproof bowl and place the bowl over, not touching, the simmering water, creating a double boiler.  Melt the chocolate and butter together until butter is melted.  Remove from the simmering water and stir until chocolate is completely melted.  Allow the chocolate to cool.

3.) In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.

4.) Whisk the granulated sugar, instant coffee powder, and vanilla extract into the warm chocolate mixture.  Whisk in the eggs one at a time until well incorporated.  Add the chocolate mixture, all at once, to the flour mixture.  Fold to incorporate.  When the flour just begins to disappear into the chocolate mixture, add the white chocolate and macadamia nuts.  Fold thoroughly.  Batter will feel thick.

5.) Dollop batter by the heaping tablespoonful onto prepared baking sheets (or tablespoonful if you want smaller cookies).  Bake for 11 minutes (like I mentioned before, the cookies are best slightly underdone).  Let rest for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before removing to a cooling rack.  Cookies will keep in an airtight container, separated in layers by a piece of waxed paper, at room temperature for 5 days.