One of my partner’s favourite places for coffee is Patricia Coffee Brewers in Melbourne’s CBD. This quirky little shop is known for its awesome coffee but they also have the most tasty little treats. As I eagerly eyed their display case, greedily checking out the cookie selection, I chose what I thought were chocolate chip cookies. I checked to make sure I was right and was happy to hear that they were orange and chocolate chip cookies with a touch of tahini. I was so excited at the orange bit that I misheard tahini and thought she said zucchini. When I realised it was tahini I was still excited as I love tahini.
The cookies were delicious but I couldn’t get zucchini out of my head. I decided to experiment with a chocolate chip zucchini cookie but didn’t want to make a large batch just in case I didn’t like them. I’ve been meaning to try a small batch cookie recipe and this was the perfect time to do it. After finding a few recipes that didn’t have egg in them, I played around with the measurements to create a single batch cookie. The good thing about an eggless cookie recipe is that you can scale up to make as many cookies as you want!
The recipe below makes one cookie so you can make a few batches and try different flavour combinations. My first try is the recipe below, which gives a subtle taste of zucchini. I made a second cookie and doubled the zucchini but the extra zucchini added more moisture which made the cookie a bit cake-like in texture. It was still nice but I preferred the lovely balance of flavour and texture of the first one. Next I made a tasty chocolate chip and tahini cookie by substituting the zucchini with 1 teaspoon of tahini. Not only can you experiment with flavours but also cooking times as the longer you cook the cookie, the crisper it gets. My mind is bursting with all the different combinations I can try – especially with the holidays approaching!
Chocolate Chip and Zucchini Cookie
Ingredients
15g (1 tablespoon) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon sugar (granulated)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons plain flour
1 teaspoon grated zucchini (make sure you squeeze out any liquid)
8g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
salt for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 180C / 350F.
Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy.
Add the vanilla and mix until combined.
Stir in the zucchini.
Add the flour and mix until combined.
Fold in the chocolate.
Roll dough into a ball and place on prepared tray.
Press down slightly, but not too far as the dough will spread.
Sprinkle with salt if desired.
Bake for 15-25 minutes or until the edges are browned and cooked to your liking.
You can eat it warm or cold.
vsomethingspeaks 