If you’ve never cooked sugar, you’re gonna wanna make that right. Right about now.
You’ll need a stand mixer to do the heavy lifting. And a super basic candy thermometer that clips to the side of a moderately sized pot. Oh, and you’ll need that pot, too.
Candy-making is totally exhilarating. And just as terrifying. I’m deep into my Candy Period, I’m afraid. It all started with Cocoa Peppermint Patties. Then I bought a really good book about Chocolates & Confections. By now, I barely recognize myself without near-invisible strands of sugar trailing from my mouth. And perhaps my nose.
This is not quick. Or entirely painless. But it’s fun. And once you’ve made a 9×13 chocolate nougat behemoth, it’s amazing how creative you can get trying to use the stuff up. Like pimping out the world’s best chocolate chip cookies with a chocolate nougat center. Like so. Use the chocolate chip cookie recipe from my book (recipe also here on the blog, found in the link just above). Or use your own favorite.
Of course, there’s always this. Which reminds me — If any of the Three Musketeers call, tell ‘em they can kiss my a**.
| Chocolate Nougat Cookies (Nougat adapted from CIA at Home Chocolates & Confections |
- 2 extra-large egg whites
- 1 3/4 cups light corn syrup, divided
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup natural cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup milk powder (or whey powder)
- 1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 4 ounces (6 tablespoons) melted unsweetened chocolate
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup water
- Candy/deep fry thermometer
- 1 recipe http://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/thick-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies/ or your own favorite
- Line a 9-inch x 13-inch baking pan with unbleached parchment paper, and set it aside.
- First we set up our mise en place. That’s the key. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the egg whites, 1/4 light corn syrup and vanilla extract. Leave it be for now (do not turn it on).
- In a medium sized bowl, sift together the cocoa powder, milk or whey powder, and confectioner’s sugar, and set it aside.
- In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the granulated sugar, water, and 1 1/2 cups light corn syrup. Cover the pan and bring the contents to a boil over high heat. Continue to boil, covered, for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, remove the cover and clip your candy thermometer to the side of the bowl with the probe in the boiling mixture. Continue to cook over high heat, without stirring, until the thermometer reads 233 degrees F. At that moment, begin whipping the egg white mixture in the stand mixer on high speed. If necessary to keep the temperature of the sugar syrup rising, cover the pot as much as possible. Once the sugar syrup reaches 260 degrees F, remove it from the heat immediately.
- With the stand mixer still whipping the meringue on high, while resting the lip of the hot saucepan on the lip of the stand mixer bowl, carefully pour the hot sugar syrup along the side of the stand mixer bowl in a slow but steady stream. Continue to whip on high speed, uninterrupted, for 8 minutes. Turn off the mixer.
- Next, add the sifted dry ingredients to the whipped mixture, and mix carefully a bit by hand with a rubber spatula. Add the melted unsweetened chocolate, and mix everything together with a rubber spatula by hand until most of the white streaks of meringue have disappeared. Do not overmix, or you will deflate the nougat.
- Scrape the nougat from the mixing bowl into the prepared baking pan, and press into an even layer. A slightly wet rubber spatula can work wonders here.
- Allow the nougat to cool completely to room temperature (about 2 hours). Cut into small squares with a very sharp knife, and roll the squares into balls between your palms. Allow to rest briefly at room temperature.
- To make nougat-filled chocolate chip cookies, line rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Roll bits of cookie dough into balls. Press a divet into the center of each ball (see photos), fill with a round of nougat, then mold the cookie dough closed over the nougat. Roll into a ball between your palms, and place about 2 inches apart on parchment-lined rimmed baking sheets. Place the baking sheets with the cookie dough in the freezer until cold, about 15 minutes. This will keep them from spreading too much when baking.
- Place cookies in the center of the preheated oven, and bake for about 12 minutes, until beginning to brown around the edges, rotating once during baking. The center will still be soft (but not unbaked). Remove from the oven, allow to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes.
- Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Leftover nougat can be coated in tempered chocolate (see photo), which will preserve it. Leftover cookies can be frozen for months.
Any old candy thermometer will do. You don’t need anything fancy, but you do need something with clear temperature markings.
Nougat is an aerated candy. The worst thing you can do is overmix it when stirring in the sifted additions.
Sugar cooking temperature is critical in confection-making. For slightly softer nougat, cook the sugar syrup about 4 degrees F lower.
Love,
Me
P.S. I often get the nicest emails from you. You want to give back to me, to us, to the blog. Now you can help. Yes indeedy. I’m actively seeking new Blog Sponsors. If you or someone you know might be a good fit, please email me at gfshoestring [at] gmail [dot] com. It would mean a whole lot to me. Hug?
Don't miss a recipe! Stay connected. Enter your email address: |
Oh my,oh my, oh my! How good are these?! I love chocolate. I had decided to make the peppermint patties and my sister’s truffles as part of gift give aways this holiday season. Now I can add chocolate covered nugat to the list. I like the idea of being “deep” in a “candy period”. I’ve always been deep in a chocolate period myself. I can’t wait to make these. What else have you got up your sleeve?
Hi, JoAnn,
Nice to hear from you! These would make a perfect holiday gift. Super special. Deep in a chocolate period is just a state of being. I don’t ever wanna come out.
So glad you’re up for candy-making!
xoxo Nicole
Hi Nicole,
I agree, candy making can be a bit time consuming, but it is oh so fun, and the results are usually more than worth the effort! This chocolate nougat sounds really good, however, I can’t imagine a dairy free sub. for the milk or whey powder would give anywhere near the same results *sigh*. I will definately make the choc. chip cookies though, I’ll just have to “stuff” them with something else! I know that you said these were hearty cookies, but I was wondering aproximately how many cookies I will get from a batch?
Thanks,
Sherry
Hi, Sherry,
Sorry it’s taken me a bit to get back to you. I hope you’re still around..
Actually, I think that a dairy-free sub for the milk or whey powder would work quite well. You really just need a little fat and some protein, so something like soy protein should work. Can you have that? We can totally make this work dairy-free. The total essentials are cooked sugar and egg whites. You really can’t make these egg-free or sugar free. Most everything else should be up for grabs.
Depending upon the size of your cookies, you should get about 1 dozen – more if you make them smaller. Just be sure to keep them cold cold cold before you bake them, so they end up thick and chewy.
xoxo Nicole
Woohoo! You made my(family’s)day:) Soy, eggs & sugar are fine w/ us. Gluten and dairy are our only restrictions for now,we get the results of our daughters’ food sensitivity panel back on the 7th, keep your fingers crossed for us.
I will pick up some soy protein and give this a whirl some time. I will def let you know how they turn out w/ the substitution! Thanks so much for the response, and no worries, my new favorite hobby is reading through your blogs past & present, so I’m usually “around”;) My family has really been benefitting from the knowledge & experience of you & your readers. I know that I would feel much more lost & clueless if it wasn’t for you! I hope you can feel the love.
Sherry
Hi, Sherry,
I’m so glad about all of those things! Great that you can have soy, eggs and sugar. I have my fingers crossed for your daughter’s panel, for sure. I know how much of a difference in the life of a family things like that can make.
I’m so glad you’re making your way through the blog. I like to think that the old posts don’t disappear into the ether. :)
You’re not alone. I’m here. We’re all here! I can feel the love, for sure. Thank you so much for sending it. It means a lot to me. More than you know.
xoxo Nicole
These WILL BE MINE!!!!!!
Christa! You’re hypnotizing me. I’m on my way.
xoxo Nicole
awesome, Nicole. You have the patience of a saint. I get totally flummoxed with the thermometer stuff, but I keep trying. I want to reach through the page and grab one of those adorable little candy bars….
What is it about the candy thermometer that messes you up, Lisa – the time it takes?
well, that. maybe. but more cause 1) makes me nervous to count on it and 2) I can’t see the numbers without my strongest reading glasses…and 3) I typically miss by a few degrees and end up with the wrong stage. but sometimes I actually hit the mark. But candy making feels like chemistry class on test day…
I can see that, Lisa. If you had a digital candy thermometer, I bet all of those concerns would disappear. I like chemistry class. I’m an egghead. I guess I forgot about that part. ;)
Comments on this entry are closed.
{ 1 trackback }