Chewy Chocolate Cookies

Because sometimes, you just need some chocolate.

1 3/4 cups (unbleached) all purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup plus 1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips (minis)
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
2 1/2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon water
3 egg whites
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350.

Sift the first five ingredients into a bowl and stir well.

Combine 3/4 cup chocolate chips plus the oil in a small saucepan and heat on low, stirring constantly, until chocolate melts. Pour the chocolate mixture into a large bowl (preferably the bowl of a Kitchen Aid or other mixer) and let cool for five minutes. Add corn syrup, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and egg whites* to chocolate and stir well. Add flour mixture and remaining chocolate chips to the wet ingredients and stir well. The dough will be slightly dry, but should stay together if pressed in your hand.

Drop by level tablespoons about two inches apart on baking sheets coated with cooking spray or (better) onto Silpats. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. Let cool for 2-3 minutes, then move to wire racks to completely cool. Do not store these cookies in the open air.

If you use an ice cream scoop (dip) to drop the cookies, use a smaller one, as otherwise you will get uneven cooking and the outer eges will be crispy while the center is raw.

* Egg whites: I used a carton of egg whites (All Whites) for this recipe. Three tablespoons equals about one large egg, so I added five tablespoons to the mix initially. When adding the flour, my mix wound up a little dry, so I added a bit more egg white while the KA was mixing for me until the dough was moist enough to stay together but still dry enough to retain the chewy factor after baking. The total egg white addition was probably about seven tablespoons. Your mileage may vary, so adjust according to your needs.