Friday, December 14, 2012

Chocolate Crinkle Kiss Cookies


Snow slowly falling on the rooftops, hot roast cooking in the oven, sitting by an open fire… the ideal Christmas is one of warmth with family and friends while it’s snowing elves and reindeers outside.

Having spent most Christmas’s in New Zealand where it’s summer in December, I grew up celebrating Christmas with barbeques on the beach, swimming with sharks (not really) and overdosing on ice cream (really). But because movies commonly depict the traditional white Christmas, snow was still something associated with the holiday season, and so many kiwis would spray white fluff around the edges of their windows, with the warm sun shining through. As a child, I never really thought about the logistics of Santa getting around on a sleigh when there was no snow—or maybe it was that I didn’t want to think about it.



Powdered snow on sidewalks always reminds me of confectioners’ sugar, so I thought I’d turn that around, and make confectioners’ sugar look like snow. These chocolate crinkles are little snowballs of brownie batter, with a Hershey’s Kiss (well Hug, but let’s not get technical) on top. What’s not to love about it?


I have my fingers and toes double-crossed for a white Christmas this year, but should Mother Nature give us sunshine, these little treats will help bring the snow to this holiday season.

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
60 Hershey Hugs

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract.
3. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.
4. Unwrap the Hershey Hugs, and freeze until ready to use.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
6. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Put confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl. Scoop ½ tablespoon balls of dough, roll in powered sugar, and place on baking sheet.
7. Bake for 11-13 minutes, until cookies crackle. Remove from oven, and press a frozen Hug into each cookie. Cool completely in the fridge.



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