Chewy Chocolate Sugar Cookies with Cardamom

I have been making some version of these chocolate sugar cookies with cardamom for twenty years, and the recipe has made it’s way, with various tweaks, into two of my cookbooks. In this recipe, the chocolate dough balls are rolled in granulated sugar that’s mixed with cardamom.

These cookies are easy to make, and adds to my list of best holiday cookie box recipes. They also will satisfy any chocolate craving you may have.

I had never even heard of cardamom until I started working at the Blue Heron Coffeehouse; Colleen had made cardamom chocolate scones and after one bite I was completely hooked. I made sure cardamom found it’s way into a lot of my baking, from Pound Cake to Sugar Buns to Layer Cake. While I love all of those recipes, my favorite way to use it is still paired with chocolate. If you’re not a fan of a cardamom, I think you’ll love my Chocolate Espresso Sugar Cookies.

These cookies have deep chocolate flavor, slightly crisp edges the day of baking, and a tender, rich center that lasts for days. They incredibly easy to make, no refrigeration of the dough needed. And they freeze well, which helps when planning holiday get-togethers.

Ingredient Notes for Chocolate Sugar Cookies:

• All-Purpose Flour: Make sure your all-purpose flour is not too high or low in protein; I like to use Gold Medal unbleached all-purpose for cookie baking. At 10.5 percent protein it is a good, moderate choice to keep baked goods tender.
• Unsalted Butter: I use unsalted butter in my recipes so I can control the salt content. This recipe uses both salt in the dough and sprinkled on top before baking, so unsalted works well here in order to keep the cookies from getting too salty.
• Chocolate: These cookies are all about the chocolate, and so using your favorite cocoa powder and bar chocolate will be important. My current favorite cocoa powder is Guittard’s Cocoa Rogue Unsweetened Dutch Cocoa Powder, and for the chopped chocolate I love Valrhona’s Equatoriale Noire. Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Bar also works really well.
• Cardamom: Freshly ground cardamom is amazing in this recipe and will offer the most flavor, but you can also use pre-ground cardamom with good results. Diaspora’s Baraka Cardamom is amazing. If cardamom isn’t your thing, you can omit it from the recipe.

Can The Cookie Dough Be Frozen?

This cookie dough can be formed into balls and frozen for up to 2 weeks; let the cookies sit out at room temperature until the oven preheats. The cookies will need an extra minute if baked frozen. Also, cookie dough can be formed and refrigerated overnight, then baked the next day; the cookies may need an extra minute if chilled. Baked cookies can also be frozen: store them in a freezer-safe bag or container for up to 2 weeks.

Chewy Chocolate Sugar Cookies with Cardamom

Servings: 20 cookies

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 13 minutes minutes

These rich and chewy chocolate sugar cookies are rolled in cardamom sugar, making for a very delicious cookie!

Sarah Kieffer

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Ingredients

• 2 cups [284 g] all-purpose flour*
• 1/2 cup [50 g] Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 cup [2 sticks or 227 g] unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 3/4 cup [350 g] granulated sugar, plus 1/2 cup [100 g] for rolling
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 oz [57 g] semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

Equipment

• Half Sheet Pan

Instructions

• Adjust an oven rack to the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350F [180C]. Line three sheet pans with parchment paper.
• In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add 1 3/4 cup [350 g] of the sugar, and beat again until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the egg, yolk, and vanilla, and beat on low speed until combined. Add the flour mixture and beat again on low speed until just combined, then add the chopped chocolate and mix until incorporated.
• Place the remaining 1/2 cup [100 g] of granulated sugar and cardamom in a medium bowl, and whisk to combine.
• Scoop the dough into 1 1/2 oz [45 g] portions [2 tablespoons]. Roll each ball in the sugar until they are evenly coated. Place 8 cookies on each sheet pan.
• Bake one pan at a time, rotating halfway through baking. Bake until the sides are set and the top begins to crackle, 12 to 14 minutes.
• Transfer the sheet pan to a wire rack and let the cookies cool for 5 to 10 minutes on the pan, then remove the cookies and let them cool completely on the wire rack.
• Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Notes

Throughout my recipes posted on this website, 1 cup of flour equals 142g. Please note that 1 cup of flour can range anywhere from 120g to 142g, depending on the baker or website. I found that after weighting many cups of flour and averaging the total, mine always ended up around this number. If I am posting a recipe from another cookbook, I will use whatever gram measure of flour used in that book, which is why you may see a few posts with a different cup measurement.

Different brands of flour have varying levels of protein, ranging from low to high, which can result in very different outcomes when baking. I’ve found Gold Medal all-purpose unbleached flour to be the best option for many of my recipes; I use it in all the baked goods that don’t use yeast.