The Most Chocolatey Cookie That I Make Every Holiday

Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Making cookies without chocolate is like going to the beach on a cloudy day. You could do it, but why would you? I'll admit, sprinkle-topped sugar cookies look pretty, gingersnaps smell great, and lemon bars are great for a crowd, but if a cookie doesn't contain chocolate, I'm not interested. Throw in some chips, at least!

Which is why these Fudgy Flourless Chocolate-Pecan cookies caught my attention. They meet all my cookie requirements: they are rich, have a great texture, and are so chocolatey it's ridiculous. Made with cocoa powder, chopped semisweet chocolate, and toasted pecans, they're like a chewy, gooey brownie in cookie form—crackled on top and soft on the inside.

Best of all, they only require seven ingredients, most of which you probably have right in your pantry. At first glance, the recipe looks like it's missing a few ingredients—there's no butter, flour, or baking powder. Don't worry, that's not a mistake. Powdered sugar and egg whites are all that's needed to bring the batter together, which is why the cookies are so intensely flavored. There's no flour to get in the way!

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Semisweet chocolate really is the star here—make sure to choose a good brand (I used Ghirardelli). The shards of chopped chocolate distribute throughout the cookie, blending into the dough and creating rich, melty pockets. If you want to save time, substitute an equal amount of chocolate chips, but a little chopping is worth the effort.

The batter will be very sticky when you scoop it out onto the baking sheets, but that's totally fine. The cookies will spread a little and puff up as they bake. Let them cool on the baking sheets for at least five to 10 minutes, otherwise they will fall apart when you transfer them to a cooling rack. When freshly baked, they cookies are super soft, but they will firm up as they cool.

Although it's not in the recipe, I recommend sprinkling a little flaky salt over the tops of the cookies when they come out of the oven. I love the extra crunch and burst of salinity, which makes the chocolate flavor even more pronounced.

You should definitely eat one when it is still slightly warm from the oven, but be aware that you will then want to eat an entire dozen. Thankfully, it's easy to whip up another batch.