Browned Butter Dark Chocolate and Marshmallow Cookies-Cookie Wars 2012!

You remember how I told you guys about Baker Bettie's Cookies Are The New Cupcake? She's taken it to the next level!! I'm not sure if you're familiar with The Food Network show "Cupcake Wars", but Baker Bettie is hosting "Cookie Wars"!!! The requirements are that it must be an original recipe (although the base can be adapted), and it must have at least 2 of the following ingredients:

• Avocado
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Basil
• Beer
• Coffee
• Cranberries
• Cream Cheese
• Dark Chocolate
• Dried Chilies
• Dr. Pepper
• Fennel Bulb
• Garlic
• Goat Cheese
• Grapefruit
• Greek Yogurt
• Hazelnut
• Honey
• Kumquat
• Maple Syrup
• Marshmallows
• Mint
• Passion Fruit
• Peach
• Rosemary
• Sour Cherries
• Sweet Potato
• Tomato

I chose to make cookies featuring dark chocolate and marshmallows. Admittedly, I'm playing it safe. However-I am a picky eater. And I wanted to like whatever cookies I made, so I went with ingredients I knew I could make work and that I would want to eat.  

Then I had to decide what base recipe(s) to use. I'm still pretty infatuated with these cookies I made, and I (like everyone else) am also obsessed with browned butter. And something in my brain just clicked with that combination. I was giddy with excitement. I made sure I had enough mini marshmallows (I did), I decided to use some of the best dark chocolate I had at my disposal, and I decided to only brown half the butter in the recipe (partly so it didn't interfere with the texture to too much of a degree, and partly to have a little more balance with the browned butter flavor).

Those beautiful specks of browned butter, the melting dark chocolate, and gooey marshmallow. Mmmm...

 Umm...OMG. These were so delicious!!! Something about the combination of the nutty browned butter and the sweet marshmallows formed a great, complex, caramel-like flavor, and then the bite of that melty dark chocolate just tied the whole thing together. The flavor is so warm, and the overall cookie is so gooey, but with great texture. I could not stop eating these. I just ate the last of them a few days ago, and I'm very sad that they are gone. One of my favorite cookie recipes, for sure. Michael loved them too-he said he liked that the browned butter was more subtle, and that the marshmallow and chocolate balanced each other. In my opinion, this tasted a little like a very sophisticated s'more.

And they are just so pretty. Seriously. I'm very very proud of myself. It doesn't even matter how I do in the competition, because just being able to make and eat this makes me feel like a winner! :)

Browned Butter Dark Chocolate and Marshmallow Cookies

A Cooking Actress original, base adapted from Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie and  Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 18-26 cookies, depending on size.

 Ingredients:

• 2 sticks unsalted butter (1 stick browned, 1 stick cold and cut into very small pieces)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3+ cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 1/2 tsp. table salt
• 2 tsp. cornstarch
• 1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 2 cups dark chocolate chips/chopped dark chocolate (at least 60%-I used a combination of Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips, chopped Ghirardelli 86% and Godiva 72%)
• 1 cup mini marshmallows

Preparation:

• Prepare cookie sheets with parchment paper/silpat. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Brown 1 stick butter in a small saucepan. Melt over medium heat, then continue to cook-whisking constantly-until it foams up and then turns brown, with little brown particles (this should take 5-10 minutes). Remove from heat immediately and allow to cool completely.
• In a large bowl, cream cold butter and sugars. This is easiest if you use a stand mixer, but it will work with a hand mixer-it's just more difficult (I had to get in there and break up the butter with my hands periodically). Once fluffy-ish, mix in the browned butter.
• Mix in the eggs, one at a time.
• Mix in flour, salt, cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda. You want the dough to be very thick, continue to mix in additional flour until the dough is not sticky.
• Add chocolate and marshmallows (make sure that if there are little chocolate shavings/crumbs that you get all that goodness in there), knead into the dough with your hands.
• Form dough into large, golf-ball sized, balls and place on cookie sheets--leave plenty of room between!! You may have to bake these in batches (I had a constant rotation of one pan in oven, one ready, etc.).
• Bake in the center of the oven for about 10 minutes-until just beginning to brown. You do not want to over-bake these.(The marshmallow may be oozing out a bit at the sides on some cookies--that is fine, in fact, it tastes amazing. You can fold them in towards the cookie to make it prettier.)
• Let cool a few minutes and then remove from the pan (I kept mine on parchment paper until they firmed up a smidge, then moved them to cloth napkins to finish cooling). Make sure to eat at least 3 of them while warm and fresh. 

Helloooo GORGEOUS.

I am linking here,here,here, here, and here.