I have been making a version of this cookie for probably over 20 years!  Every year since I was young, I have baked an assortment of Christmas cookies having accumulated a short list of favorites over a dozen long.  I will add a holiday cookie recipe every week or two leading up to the holidays, so you can try them out and consider them for inclusion in your holiday traditions.

This cookie is a bit different than the initial cookies I made years ago, I have switched the walnuts for pecans, and added in some Kahlua to add bitterness to the cookies (making the chocolate more chocolatey!)  These do very well in the freezer, so make them 1 week to 1 month ahead of time, and stick them right into the freezer until ready to eat or gift them.  Below is a doubled recipe that will create about 100 cookies.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, no need to soften 🙂

8 oz. unsweetened chocolate*

2 tbsp Kahlua (can use brewed and cooled coffee or espresso instead)

4 cups all-purpose flour

4 cups sugar

1 cup pecans

(chop whole pecans then roast them 4 minutes in the preheated 350 degree oven to bring out their oils)

4 tsps baking powder

1 tsp salt

6 eggs

Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In large saucepan, melt butter, chocolate and Kahlua over low heat, stirring constantly (or in a double boiler).

Tip:  I make my own double boiler by resting a glass bowl over simmering water in a soup pot.  This will melt the chocolate more gently so it won’t break.

Remove from heat; cool slightly. While cooling the chocolate, chop and roast the pecans for 4 minutes.  Pour the chilled chocolate into the bowl of a Kitchen Aid stand mixer, or into a large bowl and use a handheld blender.  Add the remaining ingredients except for the powdered sugar and blend together.

This is the only recipe where you can add the eggs all at once and the dried ingredients all at once and just blend it together.  It feels like you are doing something wrong, but it works.  As always, when adding in dry ingredients blend on low so it doesn’t all fly into the air.   Chill dough 30 – 60 minutes, turn off the oven.

Once the dough is chilled, preheat oven again to 350*. Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll in powdered sugar (coat heavily, and expect a mess). Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheets (if you have trouble getting them off the sheet, use parchment on the sheets – I always use parchment to save on clean-up).

Bake for 12-16 minutes or until edges are set. Remove from cookie sheets immediately to cool. Makes 96 cookies.

I am a purest – best with a cold class of milk!  Also fantastsic with vanilla bean or butter pecan ice cream smashed between 2 cookies

* Secret:  I splurged today and used a very high end chocolate, but you can use any unsweetened chocolate you find at the market.  Particularly when it comes to the flavor components of a dish, I never go cheap.  For instance, I will always go for Madagascar vanilla and have never used imitation vanilla!  In general if you buy all natural, organic and top quality ingredients, the result will always be improved.  Here is the chocolate I bought that worked out fantastically: