Ingredients
For the dough:
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 3 ounces dark chocolate (70% cacao), roughly chopped
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
For folding in and topping:
- 7 ounces dark chocolate (70% cacao), hand-chopped into rough, uneven chunks
- ¼ cup turbinado sugar
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once fully melted and starting to foam, remove from heat and add the 3 ounces of chopped dark chocolate. Let it sit for 1 minute, then whisk until smooth and glossy — the chocolate should melt completely into the butter, creating a dark, shiny mixture that smells deeply of cocoa.
- Pour the melted chocolate-butter mixture into a large bowl. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and whisk vigorously until combined and slightly thick, about 1 minute. Add the egg and vanilla extract and whisk until the mixture looks smooth and satiny and pulls away from the sides of the bowl slightly, about 30 seconds.
- Add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Switch to a spatula and fold gently until the flour just disappears — the dough will be thick, dark, and fudgy, almost like brownie batter. Do not overmix. Fold in the 7 ounces of chocolate chunks until evenly distributed throughout. You want big, uneven pieces in every bite.
- Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight. The dough should feel firm and scoopable when ready — not sticky or soft. Overnight is ideal.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop the dough into balls about 2 tablespoons each. Roll each ball in the turbinado sugar, pressing gently so the coarse crystals stick to the surface.
- Arrange the dough balls on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes — they should look slightly underdone in the center, with crackly tops and edges that are just barely set. The centers will still look shiny and soft. Pull them even if they seem too raw — they firm up significantly as they cool on the baking sheet. Let them rest on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.