Bready or Not: Half and Half Cookies
You don’t have to choose between chewy chocolate cookies and brownies with this delectable recipe for Half and Half Cookies. You can enjoy both, and in the same bite, if you want!
This recipe is wonderfully straightforward. The dough doesn’t even need to be chilled. You mix, bake, and enjoy.
Recipes like this are when a teaspoon scoop comes in handy for creating even portions of dough. The resulting cookie is fairly large because it’s essentially two mini cookies merged like Voltron to create something even more awesome.
Bready or Not: Half and Half Cookies
Equipment
- parchment paper
- food scale
- teaspoon scoop or spoon
Ingredients
Main dough
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature (2 sticks)
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 11 ounces white chocolate chips 1 bag
Cocoa dough
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder sifted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth, scraping the bottom of the bowl a few times to ensure everything is combined. Add eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Gradually beat in the flour mixture.
- Use a food scale to divine dough in half between two bowls. To one dough, add the extra sugar and cocoa, stirring until the color is consistent. Divide the white chocolate chips in half between the two doughs and fold in to incorporate.
- Use the teaspoon scoop to dole out one scoop of white dough, one scoop of cocoa dough and press together. Flatten slightly so that the half-and-half dough is visible. Set each combined dough ball spaced out on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 11 to 13 minutes, until cookies look set. Let them rest on the sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: “Coal” Double Chocolate Cookies
For about a decade, I had it in my head that I wanted to surprise my husband’s co-workers at the nuclear plant with coal cookies as a holiday surprise. I wasn’t sure how to go about it until I saw a brownie-style cookie recipe and decided evolve it with some modifications and a coating of sparkly black sugar. The result: “Coal” Double Chocolate Cookies.
These still taste like crunchy-chewy brownies. The black sugar adds a sweetly crisp outer layer… and in my case, it also turned tongues blue! I didn’t expect that, and it made the gag cookies even funnier to me. I don’t know if all black sugar brands will do that, so if you actually want that effect, you may need to do some testing.
These cookies were a hit at the nuclear plant, a delicious joke that everyone got. Do note that if you want to stick these in stockings, use small baggies–most of the sugar stays put, but some will come off. That’s the way the (coal) cookies crumble.
Bready or Not Original: “Coal” Double Chocolate Cookies
Equipment
- baking sheet
- parchment paper
- teaspoon scoop or spoon
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar packed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1/3 cup baking cocoa sifted
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder optional, for deeper chocolate flavor
- 2 Tablespoons milk or half & half
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup walnuts chopped
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1 cup black sugar crystals for topping
Instructions
- Cream together butter, sugars, and vanilla. Beat in the egg. Add the cocoa, espresso powder (if using), and milk. Gradually add in the flour and baking powder, scraping the bottom of the bowl to incorporate everything. Fold in the walnuts and chocolate chips. Wrap dough with plastic wrap and set in fridge to firm up for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place black sugar in a small bowl.
- Use a teaspoon scoop or spoon to create a lump of dough. Roll it in black sugar to coat. Place spaced out on cookie sheet.
- Bake for 9 to 11 minutes. Watch for the cookies to look set; it will otherwise be difficult to gauge doneness because of the cookies’ dark color. Let sit on sheet a few minutes, then move to a cooling rack. Pack cooled cookies in a sealed container at room temperature.
OM NOM NOM
Bready or Not: Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies
You cannot get a more classic American pairing than chocolate and peanut butter. These Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies are a dose of delicious nostalgia.
These cookies contain some rolled oats, but I wouldn’t term them oatmeal cookies. They don’t have that much density. Rather, these cookies are light and chewy.
The dough doesn’t need any chill time in the fridge. Mix it and bake it right away.
Bready or Not: Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies
Equipment
- teaspoon scoop or spoon
- baking sheet
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick) room temperature
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup peanut butter chunky or creamy
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats also called rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Add the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla.
- In another bowl, stir together the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Gradually combine the contents of both bowls. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Use a teaspoon scoop or spoon to place rounded balls of dough spaced-out on the cookie sheet. Flatten them slightly. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until set and golden. Cool on cookie sheet for 10 minutes before transitioning cookies to rack. Store cookies in a sealed container at room temperature.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Swirled Cookie Butter Brownie Bars
These Swirled Cookie Butter Brownie Bars are thick and luscious with just the right balance of chocolate and cookie dough flavors.
If you’re one of those people who had just to discover the joys of cookie butter–you’re in for a treat! Think cookies blended with oil to create a spreadable mass just like peanut butter. There is nothing healthy about it, but it tastes like cookie dough. You can find it at Trader Joe’s as Speculoos and at other stores as Biscoff or as a generic.
Cookie butter can pretty much replace peanut butter in any recipe, or even on something as simple as a sandwich. Here, it’s great swirled in with brownie batter. Chocolate and cookie dough, ever the perfect combination.
Since the swirl-in includes cream cheese, be sure to refrigerate these after they’ve baked and cooled. They are divine straight from the fridge!
Bready or Not Original: Swirled Cookie Butter Brownie Bars
Equipment
- 13×9 pan
- aluminum foil
- nonstick spray
- uneven spatula
- cutting board
Ingredients
Brownie base
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups white sugar
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup baking cocoa sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
Cookie butter swirl-in
- 2 boxes cream cheese (8 ounces each) softened
- 1/2 cup creamy cookie butter
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 13×9 pan with foil and apply nonstick spray.
- In a big bowl, beat together eggs, butter, and vanilla. In another bowl, combine the brownie dry ingredients and gradually add them to the egg mix. Fold in the chocolate chips. Set aside 1 cup of the brownie batter for the topping. Scoop the rest into the prepared pan and use an uneven spatula to even it out.
- In another bowl, beat together the cream cheese blocks, cookie butter, and sugar. Once that is blended, add the egg and milk. Use an uneven spatula to spread the mixture in a thin layer across the top of the brownie batter in the pan. Dollop the reserved brownie batter on top. Use the tip of the uneven spatula or a butter knife to create swirls.
- Bake pan for 35 to 40 minutes, until the very middle passes the toothpick test. Cool on a wire rack for an hour, then place in fridge to completely chill. Use the foil to lift the contents onto a cutting board. Slice up and store in a sealed container in the fridge. Keeps for at least 3 days.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Honey Ginger Blondies
These Honey Ginger Blondies are sweet and spicy-warm, the bars chewy and delightful.
Many years ago, back in January 2016, I posted a recipe for Honey Blondies. They were smooth and sweet. Quite excellent. Earlier this year, I resolved to rework the recipe because I needed to use up ingredients prior to moving.
It took me several bakes to get the balance right. I wanted the ginger present, warm and cozy. I wanted adequate chocolate to balance with the sweetness of the sugar and honey. The textures needed to be right, too–the interior smooth but for the chewy bits of candied ginger and softened chocolate.
The result is a delicious, unique recipe that is perfect year-round!
Bready or Not Original: Honey Ginger Blondies
Equipment
- large saucepan
- 9×13 pan
- aluminum foil
- nonstick spray
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter 2 sticks
- 2/3 cup honey
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar packed
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons fresh ginger
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1 1/4 cup candied ginger chopped
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Melt butter and honey in a large saucepan. Stir in the brown sugar and fresh ginger. Remove from heat and set aside to cool for about 20 minutes.
- Since the contents are still likely a bit warm, add some of the flour and stir to cool things off. Mix in the eggs and vanilla extract followed by the rest of the flour and the salt. Mix until just combined, and let it continue to cool about 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350-degrees. Prepare a 9×13 pan by lining with foil and greasing with nonstick spray or butter. Fold the candied ginger and chocolate chips into the batter, then spread into the pan.
- Bake for about 30 minutes; the edges will just be turning brown. Let the blondies cool completely on a wire rack, speeding the process in the fridge, if desired. Use the foil to lift them out to cut into squares. Store in an airtight container.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Ultimate Double Chocolate Brownies
Brownies. There are probably infinite recipes for them. I probably have over a dozen on Bready or Not. These Ultimate Double Chocolate Brownies have all the classic elements, plus a little more.
That “little more” is Oreos. I suppose I could upgrade these to Triple Chocolate, but I suppose someone might debate if Oreos count as chocolate or just chocolate flavor. So let’s keep things simple.
The important thing is that these brownies are bursting with chocolate flavor. To increase that burst, add in some espresso powder (that enhances chocolate) and/or make these a day ahead of when they need to be served. Chocolate cakes and brownies often develop a deeper flavor after a day.
I used classic Oreos in this recipe, but add any kind you want, even those seasonal flavors. Heck, use minty ones and add mint extract. Use this recipe as a base for new deliciousness!
Bready or Not Original: Ultimate Double Chocolate Brownies
Equipment
- 13×9 pan
- aluminum foil
- nonstick spray
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup baking cocoa sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter room temperature and divided
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 2 cups white sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon espresso powder optional
- 10 Oreos coarsely chopped
- 2 cups chocolate chips semisweet, milk, or dark, or a mix
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 13×9 pan with aluminum foil and apply nonstick spray.
- In a big bowl, combine the cocoa and baking soda with 1/3 cup of butter. Add the boiling water and stir to combine. Add the sugar, eggs, and remaining butter. Once that is consistent in color, add the flour, vanilla, salt, and espresso powder, if using.
- Fold in the Oreos and chocolate chips until they are distributed throughout.
- Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the brownies are pulling away from the sides of the pan and the middle passes the toothpick test.
- Cool at room temperature, speeding the process in the fridge, if desired. Brownies will be denser and easier to cut if chilled. Use the foil to lift the brownies onto a cutting board to slice. Store in a sealed container at room temperature or in fridge.
