Dark Chocolate Pecan Praline Cookies
Dark Chocolate Pecan Praline Cookies
One dough. Two beautiful cookies. A little surprise in the middle.
Rich dark chocolate cookies, generously studded with pieces of 80Noir Ultra 72% chocolate. Six hide a homemade pecan praline centre. Six are left beautifully simple.
Both are rather wonderful. Especially when dunked into a cup of proper dark hot chocolate.
The best cookies have a little secret.
There's something particularly satisfying about breaking open a warm chocolate cookie and finding a soft, nutty praline centre.
For this recipe, we're making the praline from scratch: toasted pecans folded into golden caramel, then blended into a smooth, deeply fragrant paste.
The cookie dough itself is made with gluten-free flour, finely ground 87.5% 80Noir Ultra chocolate and generous pieces of our smoother 72% dark chocolate.
And because not everyone wants a filled cookie every time, we're making two variations from one batch.
A little weekend baking that gives you something lovely to look forward to during the week.
Two simple preparations. One very good result.
Make the pecan praline first, then prepare your chocolate cookie dough while the filling sets.
Homemade Pecan Praline
- 150g plain pecans, unsweetened and not candied
- 150g granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
Toasted pecans and golden caramel, blended into a smooth, fragrant filling. Reserve a little of the finished praline for decorating.
Dark Chocolate Cookie Dough
- 180g softened butter
- 70g light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 320g GF plain flour
- 7g finely ground 80Noir Ultra 87.5% dark chocolate
- 5g GF baking powder
- 3g GF bicarbonate of soda
- 5g salt
- 150g chopped 80Noir Ultra 72% dark chocolate
Make the pecan praline.
A little patience with the caramel makes all the difference.
- Toast the pecans. Add the pecans to a dry frying pan over a medium heat. Toast gently, stirring frequently, until fragrant and beginning to release their oils.
- Make the caramel. Add the granulated sugar to a heavy-bottomed pan and heat gently until melted and a deep amber colour. Swirl the pan as needed to encourage even melting.
- Coat the pecans. Carefully add the toasted pecans to the caramel and stir until evenly coated.
- Cool completely. Transfer the caramel-coated pecans onto a heatproof tray lined with baking parchment. Spread out and allow to cool until completely hard. Hot caramel can cause serious burns, so avoid touching it.
- Blend into praline. Break the cooled pecan caramel into small pieces. Transfer to a food processor or powerful blender and process until a smooth paste forms. This can take several minutes. Stop occasionally to scrape down the sides and prevent overheating.
- Add the vanilla. Blend in the vanilla essence. Reserve a little praline or some finely crushed caramelised pecans for the final decoration.
- Set the centres. Spoon the praline into six small silicone mould cavities suitable for cookie fillings. Freeze until firm enough to handle, approximately 10–20 minutes depending on size. Keep frozen until assembly.
Make the dark chocolate dough.
Soft, buttery cookie dough with pieces of real dark chocolate in every bite.
- Cream the butter and sugar. Beat the softened butter and light brown sugar until smooth and pale.
- Add the eggs. Add the eggs and mix until fully incorporated into the butter mixture.
- Add the dry ingredients. Add the gluten-free flour, finely ground 87.5% chocolate, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Mix gently until a uniform dough forms.
- Fold in the chocolate. Add the chopped 72% 80Noir Ultra chocolate and mix briefly until evenly distributed.
- Chill the dough. Wrap or cover the cookie dough and refrigerate until firm enough to shape without sticking excessively. Approximately 30 minutes is a useful starting point.
The little surprise inside.
Six filled cookies. Six classic cookies. One delicious batch.
- Preheat the oven. Heat to 180°C fan. Line a baking tray with parchment.
- Divide the dough. Divide the cookie dough into 12 approximately equal portions. Roll each into a ball.
- Fill six cookies. Flatten six portions of dough into discs. Place a frozen praline centre into each and carefully wrap the dough around the filling, sealing the edges completely.
- Keep six classic. Shape the remaining six portions into ordinary chocolate cookies, leaving them unfilled.
- Arrange and bake. Place the cookies onto the lined baking tray, leaving room for spreading. Bake for approximately 12 minutes, until the edges are set and the centres remain slightly soft.
- Cool and finish. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking tray so they firm up. Finish the praline-filled cookies with a little reserved crushed caramelised pecan praline.
Two cookies. Two very different pleasures.
One of the loveliest things about this recipe is that you don't have to choose. Make a batch of each and discover which disappears first.
Pecan Praline Filled
A dark chocolate cookie wrapped around a rich, nutty caramelised pecan centre. The sort of cookie you break open slowly.
Classic Dark Chocolate
No filling required. Just buttery cookie dough and generous pieces of 72% dark chocolate. Especially good for dunking.
And if you have any praline left over, a little spoonful is rather lovely stirred into warm chocolate.
A few things worth knowing.
- Be careful with caramel. Melted sugar is extremely hot. Allow the praline to cool completely before breaking or blending it.
- Be patient with the blender. The praline moves from crumbs to a thick paste before becoming smoother. A powerful food processor helps.
- Freeze the centres. Firm praline portions are much easier to enclose in the cookie dough. The centres may soften quickly, so work with a few at a time.
- Choose certified gluten-free ingredients. If baking for someone with coeliac disease, check the flour, raising agents, chocolate, vanilla and other ingredients for suitability and avoid cross-contamination.
- Don't overbake. The cookies will continue to firm as they cool. Slightly soft centres are part of their appeal.
- The perfect pairing. These are delicious on their own, but dunking them into 80Noir Ultra hot chocolate makes them something rather special. A proven favourite with children and adults alike.
A cookie in one hand.
Hot chocolate in the other.
Bake with our 72% and 87.5% dark chocolate and discover just how good homemade chocolate cookies can be.
Grab your chocolate. Let's get baking.
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