Chocolate Crinkles - Crunchy on the outside, gooey on the inside!

I have been baking Chocolate Crinkles eversince I started helping my Mum's catering business a few years ago. I first came across them from my baking class with Heny Sison.

I like them because they look like cookies, but a bite out of them reveal their brownie like taste and texture. Nice!!! It's crunchy on the outside, soft and chocolatey on the inside. It also is quite easy to make and takes about 10mins only in the oven. Quick, easy and yummy! What more do you want? These was my Mum's best seller and I probably have baked thousands of them already. Once I baked them and gave the lot as a gift to my friend's birthday party without asking permission from my hubby and daughter who adores these crinkles. They have never forgiven me that day and I had to make another batch just so they would speak to me again! lol

Anyway here is the recipe, enjoy and don't forget you can't use cheap cocoa powder! This makes or breaks a cake (or cookie on this instance).

Ingredients (Makes 30-36)

3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 medium to large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups sugar
1 1/4 cup cocoa powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
about a cup of confectioners sugar

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare 2 baking sheets. In a bowl, combine all the liquid ingredients and beat until well combined. In another bowl, combine all dry ingredients except confectioners sugar and mix. Make a well in the center and pour the liquid mixture. This is the fun and hard part of the job, take off all your jewelries and using your clean hands, knead this mixture until combined. You cannot use any utensils here as the mixture turns heavy when mixed. Knead until everything is well combined. Take a scoop of dough (preferably use an ice cream scooper) and form the dough into a ball by rolling each between the palm of your hands. Roll in confectioners sugar then put on the baking sheet with an inch apart.

Bake until cookie breaks on top (about 10 mins or so). Don't overbake, center should still be soft.

Green Tea Cupcake

I ordered green tea online for the first time as I was missing my favourite Green tea frappuccino which I always order from Starbucks back in the Philippines. I cant seem to find this green tea powder on any chinese or specialty tea store around so I went and ordered it online. I haven't made my frap yet, but I did use the green tea to make the Icing for the above cupcake. This is ordinary chocolate cupcake recipe with added instant espresso powder to give it a little kick and the icing is made from butter, cream cheese and green tea. The consistency is too runny, I am not sure why, probably because of the addition of green tea or it could be because I used medium fat cream cheese which is slightly less firm. The cupcake got a thumbs up from my husband.

Coffee and Chocolate Cupcake (makes 12, you can double the recipe)

1/3 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 small or medium size eggs

1 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 Tbsp instant espresso powder (omit or lessen to 2 tsp if you want to lessen the caffeine)

3/4 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla

Method

Beat butter until softened, add sugar and beat until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until mixed. In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients. Set aside. Add vanilla to the milk, this will be your liquid ingredients. Add a third of the dry ingredients to your butter / sugar mixture and beat to combine. Add half of the liquid ingredients and beat to combine. Repeat until all is combine together. Scoop batter into cupcake cups, about 2/3rds full. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

Green Tea Icing

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

4 oz cream cheese

1 1/2 - 2 cups powdered sugar

1 tbsp green tea powder

Method

Beat butter and cream cheese together until well combines. Stir in 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar and 1/2 of the green tea powder and beat to continue. Taste, add more powdered sugar and green tea if you want to. Pipe icing onto cupcake or if too thin, put in the fridge for an hour or two to thicken before decorating the cupcake.