flourless chocolate cookie

I was wondering what to do with all my leftover egg whites from a disastrous attempt at pastry cream, and I fortuitously happened upon François Payard's Flourless Chocolate-Walnut Cookie recipe in New York Magazine. Seeing that there were but six ingredients, I couldn't resist trying it out.

You add a dash of salt into a lot of confectioner's sugar and a little unsweetened cocoa powder, add the egg whites, and struggle to transform it from a goopy gloppy mess into a smooth mixture. Next time I'll use the mixer.

I know François' recipe includes walnuts, but the Husband and Kids are decidedly anti-nuts, so I made one tray without, one tray with (I am pro-nuts.)

before

after

I included a before and after shot of the baking sheets to show how the cookies spread quite a bit. I fit 10 per sheet for a total of 20 cookies, reducing the time to 12 minutes. The recipe calls for 6 per/12 total, but I was afraid that might be just too big of a good thing.

François Payard’s Flourless Chocolate-Walnut Cookies

from New York Magazine

2 3/4 cups walnut halves
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350. Spread the walnut halves on a large-rimmed baking sheet and toast in the oven for about 9 minutes, until they are golden and fragrant. (1) Let cool slightly, then transfer the walnut halves to a work surface and coarsely chop them. Position two racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and lower temperature to 320. Line two large-rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. (2) In a large bowl, whisk (or combine in an electric mixer on low speed) the confectioners’ sugar with the cocoa powder and salt followed by the chopped walnuts. While whisking (or once you change the speed to medium), add the egg whites and vanilla extract and beat just until the batter is moistened (do not overbeat or it will stiffen). (3) Spoon the batter onto the baking sheets in 12 evenly spaced mounds, and bake for 14 to 16 minutes, until the tops are glossy and lightly cracked; shift the pans from front to back and top to bottom halfway through to ensure even baking. Slide the parchment paper (with the cookies) onto 2 wire racks. Let cookies cool completely, and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.