Quick and Easy Spicy Chocolate Snaps are to die for – a spicy, chewy, chocolate cookie combination! And if you’re a red wine lover, these little cookies are it! Nothing makes me happier than savoring one of these yummy spicy cookies with a nice glass of Syrah or Cabernet. Ok, skinny cookies? Yeah not so much. This recipe is definitely under my, “Not So Skinny Recipes,” section. Every once in a while though you’ve got to live and this one is worth the splurge. But keep reading and I’ll tell you how to avoid not eating the whole batch with a bottle of wine!
The Secret Ingredients
Can you find the secret ingredients?
Here they are!
- Duncan Hines Devil’s Food Cake Mix (paid link)
- Black pepper
- Chocolate chips
- Fresh ginger
I can’t even remember where I first saw a version of this recipe. Usually I’m not one to make chocolate chip cake mix cookies but one of my employees at my tea room, Afternoon to Remember found the recipe for me and we adapted it for our afternoon tea menu. They were a huge hit! “What are in these cookies?” Customers couldn’t believe that we put black pepper in them. Fast forward years later, I always brought these little chocolate gems to the Northwest Tea Festival. They are the perfect fall cookie and go great with tea (as well as wine). I have adapted this recipe and added my tips over the years but you can find a similar version of this recipe in one of my afternoon tea cookbooks – Twelve Teas to Remember.
My Favorite Memory of Spicy Chocolate Snaps
My favorite memory of these cookies is with my friend Devan Shah. I always think about him every time I make them. He absolutely loved these spicy chocolate cookies and I always made him his own special box whenever I saw him. Devan was my tea mentor and wholesaler for 14 years when I had my tea business. Sadly he passed away much too early in 2016. His daughter Bianca now runs his tea company – International Tea Importers.
How to avoid eating the whole batch
Here’s my tip for making cookies and staying slim. I don’t like to sacrifice taste in desserts at all. I hate fat free, sugar free, yuck. So my tip for making cookies is to make the batch, ball them up, and flash freeze them. Later I transfer them to vacuum sealed bags (paid link) of 6 each. When you want a little treat, take out a few cookies and bake them. They thaw out on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (paid link) in about 10-15 minutes. If you have a toaster oven, you can bake your small batch without heating up your house. If you don’t bake the whole batch, you can’t eat the whole batch!
Another tip is to use a smaller cookie dough scoop (paid link) and make smaller cookies. I often do this as well.
How to make Spicy Chocolate Snaps in pictures:
Mix the cake mix, eggs, spices and water in a mixer. This is my Nutrimill Artiste Mixer (paid link). I love the open bowl style!
Add in the chocolate chips.
Spray a cookie dough scoop (paid link) with cooking spray. This scoop is 1 1/2 inches across. Use the cooking spray or the dough will stick to the scoop.
Scoop out the cookie dough and plop into the sugar. Roll the ball around until covered, then form it into a nice round ball with your hands.
Place cookie balls on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (paid link). I place all the balls close together first, then flash freeze them until solid. Next I transfer to a Ziplock bag (paid link) or vacuum sealed bags (paid link).
When I’m ready for a little treat, I let them thaw for about 15 minutes while the oven is preheating.
They bake in about 6-8 minutes. If I’m baking a small batch after dinner like this one, just for my husband and I, I’ll use our Breville Smart Oven Air (paid link) – which is a fancy toaster oven with lots of other options. I like it because it doesn’t heat up the whole house for just a few cookies.
Can you see yourself sneaking downstairs at night for some Spicy Chocolate Snaps and a nice glass of red wine? I can!
Spicy Chocolate Snaps
Ingredients
- 1 pkg. Duncan Hines Devil's Food Cake Mix
- 1/3 c. oil
- 2 eggs beaten lightly
- 1 T. freshly grated ginger
- 1/2 T. black pepper
- 1 t. cinnamon
- 1 T. water
- 3/4 c. chocolate chips -semi sweet
- about 1/4 c. sugar to roll the balls in, or sprinkle on top
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- Combine cake mix, oil, eggs, ginger, pepper, cinnamon and water. Stir in chocolate chips. Be careful not to over mix as the batter gets very sticky.
- Use a 1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop or cookie dough scoop /spoon. Spray the cookie dough scoop/spoon with cooking spray (all sides). You may need to stop during the scooping, clean your scoop and spray again, then continue scooping. They get very sticky.
- Scoop out cookies into a bowl of sugar. Roll cookies in sugar and form into a rounded ball with hands. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper a few inches apart. At this point you can flash freeze them if you want. If you want to bake them right away, I do suggest chilling them in the freezer for 5 minutes or the refrigerator for 15 minutes, then bake them.
- Bake 6-8 minutes. Cookies will "crack," and look "set." Cool at least 3-5 minutes before removing them to cooling racks. Store in an airtight container.
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