little miss sweetie: Dark Chocolate Cookie

This is a very satisfying cookie. This little morsel has everything you can ask for: crunchy hazelnuts, rich dark chocolate pieces, tiny intense cocoa nibs, a pinch of fleur de sel, all encased in a soft chocolate, not-too-sweet cookie dough. The bonus is that it can be whipped up very quickly! This is my go-to recipe for after dinner sweet cravings...

A note on the ingredients:
- I used Guittard Cocoa Rouge unsweetened cocoa powder, I love the intensity and bittersweet quality of it in this cookie. I also use it in chocolate cake and many other baked goods.
-For the chocolate pieces, I used a Valrhona 70% dark chocolate bar. Of course, any chocolate will do, but the darker the chocolate, the more intense the taste!

There can be infinite variations on this cookie...I've played around with a few different mix-ins: pistachios & dried cranberries, orange zest & pecans, rosemary & sea salt...play around with your imagination!

Dark Chocolate Cookie
~makes about 20 small cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
114g (1/2 cup) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup dark chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup hazelnuts
2 tablespoons cocoa nibs
1/2 teaspoon fleur de sel

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare two baking sheets lined with parchment paper.

Roughly chop chocolate and hazelnuts, set aside.

Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

In a large mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat with electric hand mixer on medium until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg and vanilla, continue mixing until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

Add dry ingredients in 3 additions, beating on low speed after each addition. Be careful not to add all of the flour at once, as the flour will splash everywhere! Do not overmix.

Stir in chopped chocolate, hazelnuts and cocoa nibs. (I've saved a few large nut pieces to place on top of each cookie just before they bake to ensure enough nuts on each one.)

Place a tablespoon of cookie dough, spaced at least 2 inches apart, on cookie sheet. Sprinkle a tiny pinch of fleur de sel on top of each cookie. Bake 10 minutes.