These marvelous cookies and their unique name come from the inimitable Dorie Greenspan, the idea being that if everyone had them, world peace would be inevitable. I think she may just be on to something there. I remember back in ye’ ol’ days of blogging when these were absolutely all over the place with everyone raving about them, but I never got around to making them. Last year while perusing her cookie book which I simply adore, I realized I had never discovered what all the fuss was about. I whipped up a batch of the dough, and proceeded to fall in love.
Given the name and the hype you might expect something over the top with complex techniques or fancy or unusual ingredients, but thankfully that isn’t Dorie’s style. Simplicity is always a virtue, but I consider it nearly essential when it comes to holiday baking. In the season of fever pitch baking and general life chaos, a recipe that is easy, simple, and so damn good is precisely what we all need.
With cocoa powder in the dough and a healthy dose of chopped dark chocolate mixed in, these simple beauties are perfect for the chocolate lovers on your list. Even better, they are slice and bake cookies which means you can prep the dough whenever you have a bit of free time and then have it ready to go in your fridge or freezer to pop into the oven when you need them. No rolling and cutting, no frosting or icing, these are about as simple as it gets. I kept these on hand throughout much of last winter and they were a life saver for lunch desserts for the kids, or an extra special little snack for myself when I was craving such a treat.
