Dark Chocolate Chunk Chestnut Muffin-top Cookies

This cookie is so good, it's actually smiling! Do you see the face?

For a while now, my blog's name has worried me a bit. Not because I don't like the name, but because I've never really pushed myself to try baking with flour other than wheat, almond, or oatmeal, as the name might suggest. But today I'm proud to announce that all that has changed! I'm going to make an effort to regularly bake with a different flour at least once a month. And to kick things off, I decided to look for the most unusual one I could find: chestnut flour!


This past Sunday my family and I celebrated Mother's Day, or as I like to call it, "Let's Spoil The Heck Out Of Mom Day". Seriously, my son treated me like a queen! Not only did I have breakfast made for me, get showered with some awesome gifts, get to go out to one of my favorite restaurants for lunch, AND get to go to Trophy Cupcake for a dessert, I was also treated to a day in downtown Seattle and a stroll around Pike Place Market. This always means a stop at DeLaurenti's which I happen to think is the best Italian grocery store in Seattle. I got a little carried away and bought a bunch of baking supplies. This included "00" flour, some arrack extract (no idea what it is but it smells great!), candied citron, some really authentic extra virgin olive oil, and a pound of chestnut flour. Now I'll admit that I've never even had a chestnut before but I thought it would be fun to see what I could make with it.
As soon as I got home I started my quest to find a recipe. During my research I found out that chestnut flour is very low calories, fat, and carbohydrates! And, to my delight, I found out that it is also gluten-free. This worked out perfectly because just a few days before one of my coworkers, Jay, confided that he's can never indulged in my treats due to his sensitivity to gluten. The moment he said that I knew I had to make him something special. Isn't it funny how things fall into place sometimes? :)It didn't take me very long to find Sara's blog and this insanely yummy recipe. Originally I had wanted to follow it to the letter and make muffins but they fell apart in the pan. However, the tops of the muffins stayed completely intact so I decided to just make cookies instead. Honestly I think they were better than any muffin could have ever been.
The best part about making these was seeing the look on Jay's face when he came into the office. He was beyond thrilled and later on that night he sent me the following message that I just have to share:

Thanks *so* much for showing me that its possible to have delicious baked goods once again... your gluten-free dark chocolate coconut/chestnut cookies made me remember how wonderful desserts were. It really made my week! (I'm really at a loss for words...) Please continue to share your love with so many people. They truly are sincere acts of sweetness!

Soft Chestnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Yield: About 24-27 2-tablespoon sized cookies.
adapted from Ms. Adventurers in Italy

2 cups or 200g chestnut flour
1 cup or 60g unsweetened medium or finely shredded coconut flour
3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 stick plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cups of whipping cream
1/2 cups of milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup semisweet (60% or more) chocolate, chunked into small pieces
1/2 cup of milk chocolate chips (I used mini chips)

Preheat oven to 375F. Prepare a cookie sheet with a Silpat mat or line with parchment paper.

Whisk the chestnut flour, coconut flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda together in a bowl. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the softened butter for two minutes until light and smooth. Add the brown sugar at high speed for 2 minutes until light brown and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time and mix for 30 seconds each. Add the vanilla last and mix again on medium speed for 30 seconds.

Add half of the chestnut flour mix and very slowly and mix, pulsing at firs. Add the cream and mix for about 30 seconds until all the cream is absorbed. Add the milk until all the milk is absorbed. Scrape the bowl and the beater blade. Add the remainder of the dry ingredients until well distributed. Add the chocolate and mix until everything is well combined, about 20 or so seconds.

Drop dough using a one or two-tablespoon cookie scoop 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 9-13 minutes or just until the tops spring back slightly when you touch it.