Triple Threat Chocolate Cookies

I can't believe it took me this long to make these cookies. I have had my Pastry Queen book for years now and I have always looked at this recipe, but then picked something else to bake. The only reason I picked them this time was that I was out of light brown sugar and needed a recipe that didn't call for any.

These are deep, dark chocolaty cookies with lots and lots of walnuts and pecans for crunch and flavor. The middles are soft, but not cake-like, moist and chewy with the glossy/cracky top of a really good brownie. These are the types of cookies that tempt me the most and are hard for me to keep my hands off of. With all that chocolate -- unsweetened and bittersweet melted into the batter and then chocolate chips stirred into the finished product -- and all of those crunchy walnuts and pecans.... perfection.


Ingredients:
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup chopped walnuts
6 tbsp butter
8 oz bittersweet chocolate chopped
3 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp vanilla
1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Toast the walnuts and pecans on a baking sheet in a single layer for 5-8 minutes. Watch them carefully because they burn quickly. Cool completely.

Line a baking sheet with parchment or silpats.

Melt the butter, bittersweet chocolate and unsweetened chocolate in a small saucepan set over low heat. Stir occasionally to make sure the chocolate does not burn. Remove the pan from the heat to cool.

Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl on medium speed about 3 minutes until fluffy. Add the vanilla and melted chocolate. Beat on medium speed about 2 minutes, until the dough is thick and glossy. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the chocolate mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Stir in the nuts and chocolate chips. Let the dough rest 20 minutes, which makes it easier to scoop.

Drop spoonfuls of dough on the baking sheet and gently press them them a bit, until the hump is gone. Bake 10-12 minutes or until set on the edges and the tops begin to crack and look glossy.