Ginger and Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made an incredible but extremely time consuming and messy gingerbread as Christmas gifts last year (Jamie Oliver’s from his COOK with Jamie). I also made chocolate chip cookies but found them a little boring. This year I wanted something simple, I wanted it gingery but also wanted something chocolate-y so I thought why not combine the two? So I asked my friend Google and after providing a ton of recipes with crystalised ginger (I had none), he produced this stunner from Sunset magazine.

The original recipe called for molasses, but my pantry only had golden syrup but the substitution worked perfectly well. It also asked for bittersweet chocolate but I used milk which allows the ginger and spice to shine a little better. I didn’t have any sugar that wasn’t icing or caster, both of which would have melted, so I skipped that step. I also made them chunky – the original recipe wanted a size and thickness that was more akin to a ginger snap. Cookie batter is flexible, just go with whatever you feel like.

I think they are best warm so the chocolate chip cookie melts all over the place.

3/4 cup unsalted butter (I used about 190g)
2 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
2 1/2 tablespoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground nutmeg (used the pre-ground variety – it was fine)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup golden syrup
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
230g chocolate chips
1/3 cup granulated sugar (I’d use something like demerara sugar)

Preheat the oven to 180C (350F). Line a couple of baking trays with baking paper.

Sift flour, cocoa, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt into a bowl. Mix until well combined.

In a separate bowl cream the butter and the brown sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the golden syrup, egg and vanilla. Add the sifted dry ingredients until well combined. Stir through the chocolate chips.

Form batter into balls. If you wish you can roll each in the sugar. Space evenly on the baking paper. Flatten the balls to the desired thickness (1″ – 1/4″) using the back of a spoon or the base of glass (water will help stop the batter from sticking).

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes depending on thickness and how gooey you want them to be. As I mentioned earlier, it’s a flexible dough. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

And Merry Christmas!