Baltimore Berger Cookies

While I’m in Alaska for the arrival of my sister’s sixth baby boy – yes SIX…they now have a sub for a basketball team – we all had the craving for the famous thick and fudgy Baltimore Berger Cookies. Having Berger Cookies shipped to Alaska is insanely $$$ and not an option, so my sister and I searched the web and decided to try King Arthur Flour’s Berger Cookie recipe.  Result – it’s a winning recipe, be sure to read the great reviews.
I whipped these cookies up for my sister and the family and they turned out great, we loved them. The cookies are pretty darn close to the original. If you’ve never had a Berger cookie, you would never know the difference. The cookie portion is a great copycat. The chocolate icing is a little more rich than the original, but the texture is perfect. Overall, it’s a great copycat for one of my favorite cookies. I can’t wait to make these back home for family and friends.

INGREDIENTS:
Cookies:

• 1/2 cup (99g) granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup (5 1/3 tablespoons, 74g) unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups (177g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1/3 cup (74g) milk

Icing:

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup (170g) heavy cream
• 1 1/2 tablespoons (28g) light corn syrup
• 1 1/2 cups (170g) confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 2 cups (340g) semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment paper) two baking sheets.
2. To make the cookies: In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, salt, vanilla, and baking powder.
3. Beat in the sugar, then the egg.
4. Add the flour to the wet ingredients alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour. Do this gently; there's no need to beat the batter.
5. Using a spoon or a tablespoon cookie scoop, drop the dough onto the prepared cookie sheets. The balls of dough should be about 1 1/4" in diameter. Flatten each mound of dough to a circle about 1 1/2" across; wet your fingers or a knife, or grease the bottom of a drinking glass or measuring cup to do this. Leave 2"; to 2 1/2" between each cookie, for expansion.
6. Bake the cookies for about 10 to 11 minutes, or until they're a mottled brown on the bottom (carefully tilt one up to look), but not colored on top. You may see the barest hint of browning around the edges, but these cookies are supposed to be soft and cake-like, so don't over-bake them. Remove the cookies from the oven, and let them cool right on the pan as you make the frosting.
7. To make the icing: Place the chocolate chips, corn syrup, vanilla, and cream into a large microwave-safe bowl, or into a large saucepan.
8. Heat the mixture until it's very hot; the cream will start to form bubbles. Remove from the heat, and stir until smooth.
9. Beat in the confectioners' sugar and salt. Let cool to warm room temperature while you make the cookies.
10. Dip the top of each cookie into the warm icing; swirl the cookie around to really give it a good coating. Set the cookies back on the baking sheet.
11. Spread the remaining icing evenly atop the cookies. If it's too soft and flows off the cookies, let it set a bit, until it's firmer. It'll feel like you're piling on a lot of icing; that's precisely the point!
12. Allow the icing to set completely, then store the cookies airtight in a single layer. Keep at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.