I went to school in Berkeley, and I still remember the first time I discovered the Cheese Board's pizza. As a senior, I lived on Northside, on Oxford between Virginia and Cedar, which is not too far from the Cheese Board. We ended up there one day after class, and I just remember the individual-sized pizza had incredible dough, goat cheese, and lemon zest... and was out of this world. I had never had anything like it.
Since then, I have been to the Cheese Board many times, eaten many Chocolate Things and Cheese Rolls and Corn Cherry Scones. My sister-in-law bought me their cookbook, and I have used it many times.
This past visit to Berkeley, said sister-in-law, our collective five kids, and I went to the Cheese Board, stood in line for pastries, and made a picnic on the tiny tables outside the shop. To be honest, we scarfed everything down so fast, I went back in for a second round of goodies. On a whim, I bought a Double Chocolate Cookie, which I saved for our drive home, by which time it had broken into pieces.
It was one of the best cookies I have ever had. Full of big chunks of dark chocolate. Rich. Just the right amount of crispness on the edges, yet still chewy, probably due to all of those chunks of dark chocolate.
I had to find the recipe. I looked everywhere online. I called and emailed the Cheese Board, who were super responsive but indicated that the recipe isn't published and it ain't gonna be. (Dang.)
In the meantime, I tried out a few recipes that seemed to be in the direction of what I was going for. This one was really very good, and I have made it several times since. I'd have to make it side by side with an actual Cheese Board cookie to know how close I've gotten, because right now I'm just holding it up to a memory. Either way, it is a very good cookie. They have melted dark chocolate as well as chocolate chips. Recently, partly due to COVID-19 chocolate chip limitations, I have been experimenting with mixing semi-sweet and dark chocolate (and even playing around with different sized chips) in cookie dough, and I am really enjoying how the combo makes for a more interesting taste. Some bites are sweeter or darker, and you get more of a chocolate hit if you get a larger chunk.
Though I am generally opposed to giant cookies, this one does really benefit from being made big - you get to experience all the different sensations of crisp and chewy and gooey when the cookie is larger. However, I have also made them "normal" sized and baked them for a shorter time, and they come out very well. This recipe also has an odd instruction about scooping the dough and then turning the scoop on its side - trust me and try it!
Double Chocolate Cookies: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mET-Lnc_2gmJntsHgNLxpxVL_HADXYX9Q2iKWKASFik/edit
Since then, I have been to the Cheese Board many times, eaten many Chocolate Things and Cheese Rolls and Corn Cherry Scones. My sister-in-law bought me their cookbook, and I have used it many times.
This past visit to Berkeley, said sister-in-law, our collective five kids, and I went to the Cheese Board, stood in line for pastries, and made a picnic on the tiny tables outside the shop. To be honest, we scarfed everything down so fast, I went back in for a second round of goodies. On a whim, I bought a Double Chocolate Cookie, which I saved for our drive home, by which time it had broken into pieces.
It was one of the best cookies I have ever had. Full of big chunks of dark chocolate. Rich. Just the right amount of crispness on the edges, yet still chewy, probably due to all of those chunks of dark chocolate.
I had to find the recipe. I looked everywhere online. I called and emailed the Cheese Board, who were super responsive but indicated that the recipe isn't published and it ain't gonna be. (Dang.)
In the meantime, I tried out a few recipes that seemed to be in the direction of what I was going for. This one was really very good, and I have made it several times since. I'd have to make it side by side with an actual Cheese Board cookie to know how close I've gotten, because right now I'm just holding it up to a memory. Either way, it is a very good cookie. They have melted dark chocolate as well as chocolate chips. Recently, partly due to COVID-19 chocolate chip limitations, I have been experimenting with mixing semi-sweet and dark chocolate (and even playing around with different sized chips) in cookie dough, and I am really enjoying how the combo makes for a more interesting taste. Some bites are sweeter or darker, and you get more of a chocolate hit if you get a larger chunk.
Though I am generally opposed to giant cookies, this one does really benefit from being made big - you get to experience all the different sensations of crisp and chewy and gooey when the cookie is larger. However, I have also made them "normal" sized and baked them for a shorter time, and they come out very well. This recipe also has an odd instruction about scooping the dough and then turning the scoop on its side - trust me and try it!
Double Chocolate Cookies: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mET-Lnc_2gmJntsHgNLxpxVL_HADXYX9Q2iKWKASFik/edit
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