The real poop on World Peace Cookies

World
Peace
Cookies








For those that get email from me regularly, either under my nom de plume "Moms Kitchen" or my real name know that my email signoff says "May Peace Prevail on Earth". I am a big fan of peace poles. I raised funds to put one in on my church grounds. I regularly wear a button pinned to my label that says "May Peace Prevail on Earth" that gets lots of comments. So I was really fired up to try Dorie Greenspan's World Peace Cookies. You can find the original Dorie Greenspan World Peace Cookie recipe at Splendid Table.

Much has been written about these cookies - just google "world peace cookies" and see. Some have called them the best cookie ever, the name itself came from one of Dorie's neighbors that claimed they were so good, if everyone ate them, we would achieve world peace. I think they were probably given their new name because they are cookies in need of a public relations campaign. They are good cookies....I recommend you try them. However, I've got to warn you that forming them into 1 1/2 inch diameter ropes as originally described, they look exactly like...uh....hmmm...I guess the best adjective would be "scatological".

Upon forming them into the foot long ropes, they then need to be chilled for 3 hours. When I first formed these, I felt a little ashamed that the first thing that popped into my head was...(I'll say it in French because these cookies were originally from Dorie's book called "Paris Sweets)....I thought "Merde!" Every time I opened the fridge door, I was taken aback. Thinking that perhaps I was being a little juvenile, I looked forward to baking them later.My middle school aged daughter caught sight of them on the shelf and looked at me horrified, "Mom, what is THAT in the fridge????" "Cookies!", I replied cheerfully. "What did you think it was?" Middle school aged son then asked, "Are those the peace cookies? Maybe we should call them piece of crap cookies." I guess I wasn't the only one....

As you can see from the result, upon baking, they don't look much better. But they taste fantastic! An improvement would be to them into a square cross section. Also, I think you can skip using the expensive fleur del sel - ordinary table salt works better and gives a more uniformly salty taste to each cookie. The combo of salt and chocolate is heavenly! It seems like a lot of salt, but it is just right. I can't stop eating them. Perhaps like world peace itself, the work isn't often pretty, but the result is divine. May peace cookies prevail on earth!


My World Peace Cookies (that look more appetizing than the original)

makes about 5 dozen cookies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips

1. Stir the flour, cocoa and baking soda together.

2. Working with a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add both sugars, the salt and vanilla extract and beat for 2 minutes more.

3. Turn off the mixer. Pour in the dry ingredients, drape a kitchen towel over the stand mixer to protect yourself and your kitchen from flying flour and pulse the mixer at low speed about 5 times, a second or two each time until the floury mixture isn't spraying all over. Continuing at low speed, mix for about 30 seconds more, just until the flour is barely mixed in, The dough looks a little crumbly. Toss in the chocolate pieces and mix only to incorporate.

4. On four pieces of plastic wrap, divide the dough into 4 balls. Shape the dough into logs and wrap with the plastic wrap. Form the dough into a square cross section, each side about 1 1/2 inches. Refrigerate them for at least 3 hours., or freeze them. If you've frozen the dough, you needn't defrost it before baking — just slice the squares into cookies and bake the cookies 1 minute longer.

5. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

6. Using a sharp thin knife, slice the logs into squares that are 1/2 inch thick. If they crack, squish them back together. Arrange the squares on the baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch between them.

7. Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 12 minutes — like brownies, they won't look done, nor will they be firm. Transfer the cookies from the baking sheet to a cooling rack to cool.