I am a Vegemite girl, always have been and always will. Even now I still have the odd Vegemite sandwich for lunch although I've upgraded from butter to avocado (don't mock it til you try it).
A few weeks ago on Masterchef, they had to create a dish with Vegemite and chocolate as the core ingredients. I can see how the saltiness might pair well with chocolate but I think I'll save my vege-choc experiments for some time in the very distant future.
I personally think there are spreads that are much nicer paired with chocolate.
Peanut butter comes in at number one favourite, it was perfect in my peanut butter filled biscuits. Nutella is another one that lends itself very nicely to sweet treats. It doesn't really count as a spread when you can pretty much eat it by the spoonful as a sweet treat and yes it already has chocolate in it, but it definitely adds something delicious to baked goodies.
I loved the subtle hazelnut flavour it gave nutella cookies. Their texture was hard but a little bit crumbly like shortbread and they were oh so tasty. What's even better is that they're the perfect snack size and won't thwart your post-wedding-weight-gain loss.
Ok so that might be just me so I shall rephrase, they're only a little bit naughty.
They're also a cinch to make. Start by beating the butter and sugar together in the electric mixer until they are nice and creamy.
Add the eggs and the nutella and beat them through well. It looks and smells pretty delicious after this stage.
Sift in the flour and baking powder and then tip in the chocolate chips and stir them through with a wooden spoon until they're just mixed in.
Scoop up just less than a tablespoon of dough and roll it into a ball. Repeat with the rest of the dough and place them on the lined tray. Leave at least 2cm between each one.
Use a fork to press down the top of each dough ball to make a pretty little mark. Bake the biscuits for 12-15 minutes at 180C or until they start to firm.
Leave them on the tray for five minutes to set and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Serve them up for afternoon tea or keep them in an airtight container.
Mine are four days old now and they're still fresh so I think they should last a while. Enjoy!
What about you? What's your favourite spread?
Recipe
Ingredients
- 125 g 4.4oz butter
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ cup Nutella or choc-hazelnut spread
- 1 ¾ cup plain flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ cup dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 160C (320F) fan-forced and grease or line two baking trays with baking paper.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until they're light and creamy.
- Add the egg and nutella and beat them in.
- Take the bowl off the stand and sift in the flour and baking powder and then tip in the chocolate chips and gently stir it all together so there are no dry parts.
- Using a little less than tablespoon of dough at a time, roll the dough into balls and place them on the trays leaving a couple of centimeters between each one.
- Gently press the top of each ball down with the back of a fork.
- Bake the biscuits for 12-15 minutes.
- Leave the cookies to rest on the trays for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Kayla Woodbury says
This looks great but I have a question. I was thinking about turning these into sandwich cookies with toffee frosting as the filling. The toffee frosting calls for dark brown sugar specifically. Would these cookies work still be good with dark brown sugar as well or should I still use light brown sugar? (I assume you used light because of the pictures.)
Claire says
I think they would be just as good Kayla maybe just a little richer. Enjoy!
plasterers bristol says
Yum these actually sound delicious. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Simon
Zeenat says
These look delicious! I wonder if they will work sans chocolate chips? Or what you might recommend as an alternative if there is one? Unfortunately we don't have chocolate chips available where I live.
Claire says
Zeenat yes they'd work without but you could use nuts or just chopped up chocolate instead.
vanessalilllian says
My (then toddler - not quite sure why I took her advice!) cousin taught me that Vegemite and raspberry jam actually go together quite well on toast, so it wouldn't surprise me if chocolate went with Vegemite, too. But Vegemite and avocado? Definitely YES!
Claire says
Vegemite and raspberry? Now that's an interesting combination!
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says
Pretty please may I have one now? I have a very lonely cup of tea Claire :P
Claire says
I could express courier it to you but I think your tea might go cold!
Emilie@theclevercarrot says
Who doesn't love Nutella? These cookies look delicious. I like the little milk bottles you have in your photos too. Super cute.
Claire says
Thanks Emilie. They're cute aren't they?!
Kristin says
Yum these look amazing! I have a huge weakness for Nutella. Adding it to the "To Bake" list right now... x
Claire says
Your sister would love these too! x
Maureen says
Cookies last 4 days at your place? (eyeroll) lol
I can be upstairs cleaning toilets and I can hear the cookies calling from the kitchen. If they were these gorgeous Nutella ones they'd probably yell so loud the neighbours would come calling.
As for mixing vegemite with chocolate, I think I'll have to pass. My husband eats vegemite every week on something.. usually a cracker with butter and vegemite. I just can't get there.
Claire says
Haha... well I'm the only one who eats them so really it's a bad thing that they only last 4 days. I have crim safe to keep the neighbours at bay.
Maybe you'll be a vegemite convert one day.
Hotly Spiced says
There's nothing better than a fresh bread vegemite sandwich. I missed that episode of Master Chef! I love the look of your nutella cookies. How yummy xx
Claire says
No there isn't is there? Especially when the bread still has a crunchy crust. Oh Charlie you've given me cravings.