Bake the Winning Recipes from the Hutong's Cookie Monster Charity Bake-Off

Judges Choice Winner: Chef Jordan Silva's (Eudora Station) Chewy Chocoholic Cookies

200g butter
200g shortening
300g sugar
100g brown Sugar 
120g whole eggs 
8g vanilla extract
400g pastry flour
136g cocoa powder 
2g baking soda 
6g salt
40g heavy cream
40g chocolate flavored rum (or ordinary rum)
300g white chocolate chips
100g chocolate chips

1. Cream butter and shortening into sugar and brown sugar.
2. Slowly emulsify eggs into creamed mixture.
3. Sift all dry ingredients together (excluding chocolate chips) then mix into butter/sugar/egg emulsification.
4. Whip in heavy cream and chocolate rum until batter becomes very sticky.
5. Fold in chocolate chips.
6. Measure out 40g for each cookie. Roll into balls then place on baking sheet and mash down with a fork to create hashtag pattern.
7. Bake at 180C for 10 minutes, turning after five minutes

Chef's Tips: This batter is VERY sticky. Most cookie recipes say don't overmix your batter but in this case DO IT! The more sticky and gooey, the better! These two things are what make these cookies soft and chewy.
 

People’s Choice Winner: Cracker Jack Cookies, Kinsey Morrow and Cara Gleeson

FIRST MAKE YOUR CRACKER JACKS ...

½ cup unpopped corn kernels (~10 cups popped)
Enough vegetable oil to coat bottom of pan
¾ cup unsalted butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp baking soda
½ cup roasted and shelled peanuts, slightly chopped

1. Pop popcorn over the stove or in microwave.
2. Melt butter over medium heat. When completely melted, stir in brown sugar. Allow the mixture to boil for around three to four minutes.
3. Remove pot from heat and add vanilla. Once incorporated, stir in baking soda and salt.
4. Immediately pour half of the caramel sauce over the popcorn and stir until evenly coated. Toss in the peanuts and then stir in remainder of caramel.
5. Pour caramel corn onto wax paper to cool. Place batches in oven at 200C for 20 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes. Baking it will help keep it crunchy!

… THEN BAKE YOUR CRACKER JACK COOKIES

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 ½ tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp maple syrup
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3 ½-4 cups of cracker jacks
1 cup white chocolate chips
Coarse sea salt for sprinkling

1. Combine flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.
2. Brown 1/2 cup butter in a medium skillet. Swirl (don’t stir) the pan every other minute, and keep an eye and your nose on the melted butter. When you smell warm nuts, it’s time to quickly take it off the heat. Pour the browned butter into a bowl and allow to cool for 20 minutes.
3. Cream together remaining room temperature butter and brown sugar. Cream with a hand mixer until light and fluffy, about three to five minutes. Add the vanilla extract and maple syrup and beat until incorporated.
4. Once the brown butter has cooled, pour the butter (brown bits and all) into the creamed butter and sugar mixture. Add the granulated sugar and cream for two minutes, then add the egg and egg yolk and beat for one minute more.
5. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir with a wooden spoon and until everything is just incorporated. Then gently fold in chocolate chunks and cracker jacks.
6. Cover dough and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
7. Use spoons to shape and drop two to three inch cookies onto parchment paper. Sprinkle a small pinch of sea salt over the cookies.
8. Bake in the oven for approximately 10 minutes at 180C (or until the edges are brown). The brown will differ depending on what type on brown sugar you use.

More stories by this author here.

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Photos: Uni