Hey so I finally fixed the problem with my site! I posted about it on Instagram and TikTok, but basically I wasn’t able to post anything for like a week. So obviously this post was supposed to be published in October, but better late than never right?
Anyway, these are definitely one of my favorites for the month. They’re really simple but they look pretty cool and they taste amazing. It’s too late now, but I think these would be an excellent cookie to pass out to trick-or-treaters. We can keep that in mind for next year I guess.
In other news, I’m a little behind her at Ballerina Baker to be completely honest with you. Between this weird issue with my website, school, dance, and life things I’ve fallen a little behind schedule. HOWEVER. I believe that I can get through this and get all of these recipes out to you. So sit tight and buckle up because I promise there will be plenty of cozy fall and holiday recipes coming your way. Also lets all cross our fingers nothing else weird happens to my website.
Describe These Cookies to me
Taste: These cookies have a rich dark chocolate flavor with notes of espresso. The vanilla glaze on top adds a subtle sweetness that balances all the flavors beautifully.
Texture: These cookies have a soft, buttery texture that melts in your mouth. The icing on top hardens and gives the cookie a little crunch on the outside. This flavor and texture combo makes these cookies pair perfectly with a cup of coffee!
Ease: These are actually pretty simple. They’re as quick and easy as a classic sugar cookie but the icing and decoration is way easier. No coloring or piping, all you have to do is dip the cookies in the glaze.
The Cookie
These cookies are like a fancy chocolate sugar cookie. The dough is super simple, made with all the classic kitchen staples: cocoa powder, flour, butter, vanilla etc. But don’t let the simplicity fool you, the dough’s structure is important. It needs to be sturdy enough to hold the shape of the intricate spiderweb stamp, but still soft enough that the cookies aren’t crazy crunchy or tough.
The Glaze
This is a very simple, classic vanilla glaze. It’s designed to highlight the spiderweb shape rather than cover it up, so it’s a little on the thin side. It comes together with a handful of kitchen staples; confectioners sugar, milk, vanilla bean paste, and salt. This glaze solidifies as it dries so it gives the cookies this sweet vanilla shell that pairs beautifully with the rich chocolate flavor of the cookie itself.
Spiderweb Cookies
Equipment
- Spiderweb cookie cutter and stamp
Ingredients
Chocolate Espresso Cookies
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ¾ cup dutch processed cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon espresso powder
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Vanilla Glaze
- 1 cup confectioners sugar
- 4 Tablespoons milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- a pinch of salt
Instructions
Make the cookie dough
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa power, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl using a hand or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and espresso powder together on medium high speed until creamed and combined, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat on medium speed until combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once and beat on low speed until just combined. The dough will be thick and creamy.
- Lay a large piece of cling wrap out on the counter and put the dough in a clump on top. Press the dough into a disk, about ½ inch thick. Fold the edges of the cling wrap over to cover the flattened dough. Place in the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour.
Shape
- Line three baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
- Once chilled, unwrap the dough and place it on a floured work surface. Roll it out a little more so its around ⅓ inch thickness. Using a spiderweb cookie cutter, cut the rolled out dough into cookies. Re-roll and cut the remaining scraps until you have used up all of the dough. To stamp, dip your spiderweb cookie stamp in flour and press it onto the surface of your cut out cookies. You may have to rinse off and re-flour the stamp a couple times as you go.
- Once all the cookies have been shaped and stamped, place the cookies about 1 inch apart on the previously prepared baking sheets. You may need a third sheet depending on the size of your cookie cutter (mine was about three inches and needed a third sheet.)
- Chill the shaped cookies on the trays for 1 hour.
Bake
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Once preheated, bake the shaped cookies for 11-13 minutes or until the tops and sides look set. Let the cookies cool on the tray for 10 minutes before moving to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Once cooled, add the icing
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the confectioners sugar, milk, vanilla bean paste, and salt until smooth. The glaze will be thin.
- Dip the stamped side of the cooled cookies into the glaze, and place back on the wire cooling rack to let the excess glaze drip off. Repeat with all of the cookies.
- After a couple of hours the glaze will harden up and will no longer be sticky. Enjoy! Cookies keep for up to 5 days sealed in an airtight container.