Back on track! After a blowout graduation party complete with a tassel hat and margaritas, it's time to head back to episode 1.08 Love and War and Snow to look into one of the most iconic Sookie recipes of the series next to macaroni and cheese with a jalapeno-chipotle cream sauce. I know this recipe has been done a million and one ways by fellow Gilmore girl fanatics such as myself, but it was so much fun to put my own spin on this beloved cookie.
Before jumping in to the recipe, let's talk a little bit of context. Rory stops by the Inn with Lane before school to pick up some of Sookie's rocky road cookies. Lorelai stops her halfway way to the door stating, "What is this? You hate rocky road cookies."
FIRST OF ALL - and I'm only bragging because I truly believe that this recipe has been divinely inspired by Sookie St. James herself, because I do not like chocolate (yeah, yeah, take my Gilmore card from me now) but these cookies were ON POINT. How could anyone not enjoy them? What could have possibly been in these cookies that would be undesirable? I guess it was just the writer's roundabout way to expose that the cookies were actually for Dean. Bringing baked goods to a boy is absolutely a sign of true affection. Trust me. I've seen marriages built on it.
I tried to keep away from as many of the existing copycat recipes as possible so as to try and stay as original as possible, but what I wasn't prepared for is the troubleshooting that it was going to take to get the perfect texture. I took my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe base and added cocoa powder (Valhrona of course, if you haven't been reading along - the best!) along with dark chocolate chunks, pecans and mini marshmallows. I knew enough about chunky cookie dough to gently mix the marshmallows and other fixings in at the very end before rolling into balls, and I thought that would be enough to protect them from melting to soup in the oven. Boy, was I wrong.
A little tweaking and the second batch came out much better. Turns out I needed to take the flour down a notch and babysit the cookies a little more than I had originally anticipated. These cook for just a few minutes in the oven before finishing them off with a short broil to brown up the marshmallows - but without the exploding part.
What I did notice from other images from those who have made their own version of Sookie's rocky road cookies was the addition of the marshmallows in after the cookie dough was rolled, or eliminating the marshmallows from the dough completely and just returning the baked cookies to the oven topped with mini marshmallows at the very end. I really wanted to find a way to keep the marshmallows in the batter. They provide so much gooey texture throughout the whole cookie if you bake them just long enough to avoid oozing out and turning to goo.
These cookies are chewy with a slight crunch from the chopped pecans and filled with fluffy pockets of roasted marshmallow. Even if you don't like chocolate, what's to hate about any of that?? I gave leftovers to my mom (the official taste tester for my recipes as of this point) and to a couple of coworkers who all gave them great reviews.
Final Review
On top of being incredibly delicious, these cookies are insanely easy. About five minutes to mix, 10 minutes in the oven and 30 minutes to rest on the baking sheet to finish cooking. I don't I've been more confident in any of my other recipes thus far that would do Sookie more justice.
Rating: You have to try these!
On a little side note and housekeeping - I feel like I haven't discussed this episode much, but a lot happens! Max and Lorelai have their first snow-induced date planned by Fate! And Lane touches Rich Bloomingfeld's without his permission! All in all it's an incredibly cute episode and I kind of wish it was Winter again (...almost).
One of my favorite little lines (that meant nothing to us at the time) is one of the first scenes where Lorelai wakes up in the middle of the night to listen to Max's message and smell the snow. She apologizes to Rory for waking her up, to which she responds, "That's okay. It's all fodder for the tell-all." Such a sweet nod to what is to come at the end of A Year in the Life, even unintentionally.
I also somehow missed that before Rory asks Sookie for the rocky road cookies she mentions that she had made cinnamon buns - so that will be next week's recipe! Also because the recipe after will be fried stuffed squash blossoms, and I have been on a mission to find a farmer's market near me who is actually selling them, apparently they may not come in season until June! Talk about logistics here. Anyway any tips on that are welcome, and I'd love to here your feedback if you try out the cookie recipe!
Rocky Road Cookies
8 tbsp (1 stick) salted butter
1/2 c sugar
1/4 c light brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanillas
splash of almond extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 c cocoa powder
1 c flour
1/4 tsp coarse sea salt
1/3 c dark chocolate chunks
1/3 c mini marshmallows
1/4 c chopped pecans
Directions
Preheat oven to 350º. Microwave the stick of butter for 30 - 40 seconds. You want it to be above half to two-thirds melted. Mix the melted butter with both sugars. Mix on high in a stand mixer until it is pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in the egg and extracts and mix just until incorporated, about 15 seconds. Add in the baking soda, sea salt and mix in the cocoa powder and flour in a half a cup at a time until combined. With a rubber spatula fold in the dark chocolate chunks, mini marshmallows and chopped pecans. Roll the dough into 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoon size balls and bake on a cookie sheet for 7 minutes. Watch carefully to ensure the marshmallows don't melt. After the 7 minutes, turn on the broiler for 1 to 2 more minutes just until the outer marshmallows are a nice toasty brown. Keep the cookies on their baking sheet and let them rest on the oven (don't forget to turn your broiler off!) for 30 minutes. Enjoy!
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