The owners of Angelina’s, Manu and Jennifer were gracious to share some of their recipe secrets. I was not able to get the exact formula but these are pretty close. Manu is from Italy and has the most charming accent. I felt like I was back in Rome sipping espresso at a local café. If you want to experience a cookie that will satisfy even the most sophisticated palates you must visit Angelina’s Café at 505 Front Street in Lahaina, Maui and tell them I sent you.
The secret to these yummy cookies is in the cocoa powder they use. Cocoa powder is naturally low in fat, sodium, and is cholesterol free. I mixed dark and light cocoa powder for a richer flavor but the regular Hershey’s light cocoa works fine for this recipe.
Recipe for 2 dozen cookies:
- ¾ cup unsweetened Hershey’s cocoa or other brand, dark or light cocoa
- ½ cup margarine, Crisco shortening, or butter
- 1 ¼ cup unbleached raw sugar
- 2 eggs
- 3 teaspoons fine ground espresso roast coffee beans or dark roast coffee grounds
- 1 cup flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. For best results use parchment paper as the cookies will stick to a bake pan. I made a mess of the first batch of cookies as they stuck to the pan and broke into pieces.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Assemble all the ingredients. Melt the margarine or butter in the microwave for about 15 seconds on high heat. Watch as it is melting and do not walk away as margarine melts quickly.
In a large mixing bowl add the cocoa, sugar, eggs, coffee grounds, and margarine. Whip with a whisker or electric mixer for 2 minutes on medium speed until ingredients are blended well.
Add flour all at once and salt and baking powder. Mix until moistened with spoon by hand.
Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts. For variety add white chocolate chips or macadamia nuts.
Drop cookies by tablespoon onto parchment paper that is laid on a cookie pan. The clean up will be easier and the cookies will be easy to remove from the paper when they cool.
Bake in center racks of oven until cookies get puffy and cracked on top.
Let cookies cool at least 15 minutes before peeling from parchment paper.
When cool serve and enjoy. These cookies have caffeine and you may not want to give to children and definitely not to animals as caffeine is toxic to pets. Try decaffeinated dark roast coffee beans as a substitute.
Remember to share some of these cookies with others and spread the Aloha spirit where ever you live. Thanks for reading my column.
