Prep: 45 mins || Cook: 10 mins || Makes: 25 cookies
INGREDIENTS
200g unsalted butter, cubed
285g light brown sugar
80g caster sugar
1 large egg
1 Tbsp vanilla bean extract
350g all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
200g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
Flaked salt, optional
METHOD
Place the butter into a medium-sized saucepan set over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally, until the butter is golden and melted. Remove from the heat and pour the butter into a large mixing bowl. Add the light brown sugar and caster sugar, and whisk until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla bean extract, and whisk until smooth and glossy. Set the bowl aside.
In a separate medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, ground cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, ginger and salt.
Incorporate half of the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients, using a wooden spoon to mix until just combined. Some dry flour pockets should remain. Add in the remaining dry ingredients. Again, mix until just combined.
Fold in the dark chocolate chunks until evenly incorporated. Cover the bowl with a layer of plastic wrap and set the dough in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C. Line three large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Using a small cookie scoop or a generous tablespoon as a measure, roll out as many balls out of the dough as possible. You should get about 25-27. Divide them amongst the baking trays, making sure to space them evenly apart to allow room for spreading. Sprinkle over a little of the flaked salt, if desired.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Three quarters of the way into baking, about 8 minutes in, open the oven door and raise the cookie sheet by a few inches. The cookies should just be beginning to puff in the middle. Use a little force to tap it against the oven rack so the cookies deflate slightly. You should see the chocolate begin to spread. Close the oven door and let the cookies bake and inflate again, for a further 2 minutes.
Again, repeat this raising and tapping process for a total of 3 more times every 2 minutes. The cookies should be golden, crisp around the edges and the middle's just set with chocolate puddles throughout. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on their baking trays for 5 minutes. Then carefully transfer them to a wire rack to further cool, before serving warm or at room temperature.