Chocolate Pizzelle
Pizzelle are wonderful, crisp cookies that are incredibly easy to make, but their embossed patterns make them look impressive. The downside: You need a special piece of equipment to create them—a pizzelle iron (see Resources). These are intensely chocolaty, and my favorite way to serve them is dipped in melted chocolate. You can also use them to make sandwich cookies, cake decorations, and even killer ice cream cones (see Pro Tips).
Makes 30 to 35 small cookies
Difficulty: Easy
Make Ahead and Storage: The pizzelle, dipped or undipped, can be stored airtight at room temperature for up to 3 days. Any longer, and they tend to lose their crispness, especially in humid weather. You may be tempted to refrigerate them if you coat them with chocolate, but the fridge will rob the cookies of their crispness.
- 120 g / 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 43 g / ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (dark, if you can get it)
- 4 g / 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 g / ½ teaspoon salt
- 170 g / 3 large eggs
- 198 g / 1 cup granulated sugar
- 113 g / 4 oz / 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 5 g / 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 284 g / 10 oz bittersweet chocolate (up to 70% cacao), chopped and melted, for dipping (optional)
1. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl.
2. In another medium bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, melted butter, and vanilla well to combine. Add to the flour mixture, whisking well to combine. The batter should be thick, but smooth.
3. Preheat a pizzelle iron until hot (sprinkle a little water on it, and if it sizzles, it’s ready). Lightly coat the surface with nonstick spray or vegetable oil. Use a large spoon or small ladle to place a mound of batter in the center of each mold, then close the iron and cook until steam comes out of it and the cookies are baked through, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Use tongs to remove the cookies from the iron to a cooling rack, and repeat with the remaining batter. Let cool completely.
4. If dipping the pizzelle in chocolate, line your work surface with parchment or wax paper. Transfer the melted chocolate to a wide shallow dish. With your hands, lay the cookies, one or two at a time, flat in the chocolate so that the bottom side gets coated and the top remains bare. Then use a small pair of tongs to lift the cookies out of the chocolate, shake off the excess, and lay undipped side down on the parchment. Let the chocolate set until firm and shiny, at least 5 minutes.
✻ Why It Works
This recipe works much in the same way recipes for waffles do—the batter is thin and contains a high ratio of fat. That, combined with direct high heat from both sides, ensures even browning and a crisp texture.
★ Pro Tips
Pizzelle are malleable when warm, which means they can be formed into shapes like cones, bowls, or even sweet taco shells. The tricky part is handling them when they are still hot; wearing disposable gloves helps if your hands are sensitive. You can buy molds for shaping pizzelle or just use whatever you’ve got on hand. The top of a wine bottle or the end of a tapered rolling pin makes a good cone guide. You can also drape warm pizzelle over upturned small bowls or press them into the cavities of muffin pans. Or just use your fingers and hold each cookie in place until it cools.
If you want to get really snazzy, ladle melted chocolate into a pizzelle cone/bowl, then invert to pour the excess chocolate back into the bowl of chocolate. Let set before filling with custard or ice cream.
