Chocolate Cinnamon Snowflakes

We just returned from a few days in Mexico, a welcome time in warm climes with soft sand and blue skies. Each evening during our stay, we’d hear a knock on the door for a delivery of warm tea and pieces of chocolate. The candies were locally made by the Quintana Roo chocolatier Xoco-Loco. Each chocolate piece was delicately shaped and full of flavor. When we came back to snow-covered lawns and frigid temperatures, it seemed only right to pay tribute to the combination of flavors that pleasantly ended each of our days on the beach. These chocolate cinnamon snowflakes bring together the tastes of Mexico with a delightful sweet snow-white coating.

The first time I saw that these cookies called for a pound of dark chocolate, I knew I had to try them. Part of a menu by pastry chef Jehanne Burch at the famed Castle Hill Inn & Resort in Newport, Rhode Island, the cookies were featured in an article in the December 1999 issue of Bon Appétit. What better way to warm up on a cold day than with the smell of cinnamon and chocolate filling up my kitchen?

The Dough

As I gathered the ingredients for the cookies, the ratio of chocolate to flour kept bamboozling me.  Sixteen ounces of dark chocolate to one-half cup of flour.  These were going to be intensely flavored bites.

I started by combining the chocolate (I used 12 ounces of bittersweet and 4 ounces of semisweet) and butter in a medium pan, then moved it over a very low flame on my stove to slowly melt them together.

As the chocolate was cooling, I began to beat the eggs and sugar for the base of the dough.

Once I mixed the melted chocolate and butter mixture in, the batter started to thicken quickly. I next blended in the dry ingredients, covered the bowl with plastic, and set it in the refrigerator overnight. (Note that you can chill the dough for as little as one hour.)

Baking the Snowflakes

The next day, it was easy to scoop out the dough into equal-sized balls and roll them in powdered sugar.

Once in the oven, they transformed from snowballs to snowflakes, flattening out with crinkly surfaces. Each one had a different pattern, just like their namesakes.

The most difficult part of making these cookies is waiting for them to cool enough to sneak the first taste. The crackly outer shell yields to a soft, rich center that is gooey with chocolate and gently spiced with a cinnamon note.

Looking outside at our wintry landscape, it was easy to feel warm with these cookies on a plate.

Whatever the weather, these snowflakes bring a welcome front of flavor.

Chocolate Cinnamon Snowflakes

Sunnyside Cook

Dawn Dobie

Gooey centers surrounded by a crackly sweet outer crust make a chocolate cookie that is a real treat.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Chilling time 1 hour hr

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Servings 30 cookies

Ingredients

  

• 16 ounces bittersweet or semisweet (not unsweetened chocolate), chopped
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar (about 1 1/2 cups)

Instructions

 

• Combine chunks of chocolate and butter in medium saucepan. Place over lowest heat possible and stir until melted and smooth. (Or place chocolate and butter in top of double boiler over simmering water; stir mixture as it melts until it becomes smooth). Remove from heat. Cool chocolate mixture to lukewarm.
• Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt into a small bowl. Mix together with a spoon to distribute everything evenly.
• Using a stand mixer (or handheld mixer), beat the eggs and 1 1/2 cups of sugar in a large bowl, until they are pale and quite thick, around 8 minutes. Mix in the melted chocolate, working quickly as the mixture will start to solidify. Sprinkle half of the dry ingredients over and quickly fold in. Follow with the last of the dry mixture, incorporating it completely into the batter. Dough may be very stiff.
• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour, until it is firm enough to scoop. (I let my dough refrigerate overnight.)
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place powdered sugar in large shallow bowl. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Scoop dough into portions of about 2 tablespoons each and roll into balls that come out around 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Roll each ball in powdered sugar and then place on lined baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between the unbaked cookies.
• Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the tops are cracked and the cookies are just firm to the touch. Move the baking sheets to a cooling rack and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to separate cooling rack and cool to room temperature.

Notes

Dough can be made a day ahead of time and chilled.

Baked cookies keep for 2-3 days, covered in an airtight container.

Adapted from a recipe from the Castle Hill Inn in Newport, Rhode Island, that appeared in Bon Appétit (Dec 1999).