April 21: Tex-Mex Chocolate Chipotle Cherry Cookies

Tex-Mex Chocolate Chipotle Cherry Cookies

Ingredients:
2 cups (9 oz) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup (8 oz) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped
2 cups extra dark chocolate chips
2/3 cup dried cherries

1. Preheat the oven to 375 and place a rack in the center. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick foil.
2. Mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, chipotle powder, and nutmeg together in a medium-size bowl; set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl, using a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter, both sugars, honey and vanilla on medium speed until creamy. Reduce the mixer speed slightly, and then add the eggs, one at a time. By hand or using the lowest speed of the mixer, slowly incorporate the flour mixture into the batter. Stir in the pecans, chocolate chips, and cherries. Chill the batter for about 15 minutes.
4. Scoop up tablespoonfuls of dough and shape into balls a little over 1 inch in diameter. Arrange about 2 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake one sheet at a time for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies appear set. Let cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Dry Ingredients

Butter, sugars, vanilla, honey

Adding egg

Mixing in the dry

Adding in the extras

Pop in the fridge for 15

Thoughts: These cookies yielded a lot! In the book it says 32, but I got 67 cookies! In the recipe it says "tablespoonfuls" and I used one tablespoon scoop. So I have 2 large and 1 small container full of these. So far at work, there are mixed reviews so I may have to toss some. I couldn't find "extra-dark" chocolate chips so I just used "dark" chocolate chips. The bag of chips in the picture wasn't enough for the 2 cups required but I had some extra in the pantry. The cookie definitely had a small kick, but it tastes more like a spice cake cookie. Patrick and I both liked it.