This is one of the most delicious flourless cookies I have ever tried. It’s from the master Pastry Chef Francois Payard. There are a ton of variations out there and this is another one – more meat on the best bones – so to speak, this is Christmas Treat #11 – Flourless Chocolate Walnut Cookies.
So, did I have to do a variation?! Nope, I didn’t! But there are only two changes I made and really just for convenience. First, I had just over 3 cups of walnut halves left in the bag – so immediately, that changed the consistency of the batter; and second, I didn’t use a mixer – I did it by hand. This was slightly more challenging in the sense that the batter was really stiff and a little harder to stir and incorporate. End result – an amazingly good cookie, even with my cosmetic changes. What does that mean exactly?! Well Chef Payard is nothing short of genius and worthy of all the praise he gets (three generations of Pastry Chefs). I read a lot of comments from people who tried this recipe and complained it stuck to the parchment – I had no problems with this so can only presume they didn’t follow instructions – ahem! I think the problem might be that they didn’t bake them long enough. I got about 36 and only mooshed (technical term, took years of schooling to learn this one) up one cookie in the transfer/removal process. Why? Well when I went to move it the bottom was slightly more damp than the other 35 cookies – oh what a delicious moosh! Nothing to do with the recipe – it’s perfect!
My cookies didn’t come out thin like as the pictures in the original, but I didn’t follow the exact recipe created by a Pastry Chef. When I was rotating the trays half way through baking, I noticed I didn’t get any spread so I pressed the tops down with the back of a spoon to flatten slightly, rotated the trays and finished the baking. Again, this was because I used extra walnuts and did the mixing by hand and not long enough. As a result, my baking time took a bit longer – one to two minutes longer. So use a mixer and they will turn out as he intended or use your inner Pastry Chef zen and mix it perfectly well. They had that delicious smooth and glossy cracking in spots and they tasted amazing.
We are so close to the end of the 2020 Christmas Treat Series so if you haven’t made any of these yet and are waiting for a snowy day, this is the one I would bake – today, when you finish reading this blog, no really! You will not be disappointed. Wash your hands, wear a mask, socialize responsibly as per your regional guidelines and stay safe! We will get through this, we’ve come so far – don’t stop now! As always – enjoy!
Ingredients
3 cups walnut halves
3 cups (350g) confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons (70g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
Substitutions and/or changes
None – This is a perfect recipe – absolutely no changes are needed to the original to make it work. Any changes you make will be to make a different cookie
The only other thing I did was to, sprinkle toppings on the cookies just as they came out of the oven. Some with coarse sugar, some with salt and some with a combination – and for goodness sakes, leave some plain as they are deeeeelicious!!!!
Directions
Heat the oven to 325f with racks in the upper and lower thirds
Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats – set aside
To a large pan, add the walnuts and toast until fragrant, remove to a cutting board and let cool
When cool to the touch, chop roughly to end up with pieces (or buy walnut pieces and skip this chopping step)
Combine the confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and walnuts in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment – mix on low speed until combined
With the mixer running, pour in the egg whites and vanilla – increase the speed to medium and beat until the mixture has thickened slightly (the batter is evenly moist/mixed) – about 3 minutes
Using a tablespoon, scoop out the batter and put it on the parchment paper – I did 15 per tray and another 10 or so on a third tray
Leave 2 – 3 inches space between the cookies as – if you have mixed them well, they will spread
Bake at 325f for 8 minutes, rotate the trays and continue to bake for another 8 minutes – do the nudge test, if it shifts when nudged it’s ready, if it doesn’t, leave it in for another minute or so
The tops of the cookies should be glossy and lightly cracked
Let the cookies cool completely before removing the cookies from the parchment – use a spatula to help move them if you see it sticking to the parchment
Store in an airtight container at room temperature
