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Chunky Chewy Chocolate Cookies

 

A wine that is a bit sweeter than these cookies---such as a late-harvest Riesling from Germany or a ruby port---hits the spot here for grown-ups. Children of all ages cheer for milk.

 

To bake these fabulously chocolatey cookies on your grill, use a heavy-duty baking sheet that you can place over Indirect heat. By adjusting the amount of sweet raisins or dried cherries in the batter, you can suit your own preference for chewiness.



1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 package (11-1/2 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chunks, divided
3 large eggs
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup raisins or dried cherries, or use half of each


In a saucepan over very low heat, melt the butter with 1/2 package (about 1 cup) of the chocolate chunks, stirring constantly until smooth. Set aside to cool to lukewarm.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Beat in the cooled butter-chocolate mixture.

In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt together. Gradually stir into the large bowl of batter. Add the walnuts, coconut, raisins and/or cherries, and the remaining 1 cup of chocolate chunks; stir to blend. Batter will be stiff.

Use a tablespoon and wet fingertips to drop 1-inch mounds of the batter onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, keeping the mounds about 2 inches apart (the cookies do not spread when baked). Grill the cookies in batches over Indirect Medium heat for 20 minutes, keeping the grill's temperature as close to 350° F as possible. Remove from the grill and let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet until they are easy to remove with a spatula, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely.

Makes about 36 cookies.