The Spicy Ingredient You Should Try Adding To Your Chocolate Chip Cookies

Nothing beats a warm batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven. If you've been a devoted sweet treats lover for most of your life, you've probably already learned how to make perfect chocolate chip cookies every time your sweet tooth calls. Besides carefully whipping room temperature butter and sugar and restraining yourself from overmixing that precious vanilla-flavored dough, and apart from using the right blend of chocolate chips, what else is there to learn?

While classic chocolate studded cookies are always delicious, those looking to upgrade your tried and true chocolate chip cookie recipe may want to consider leveling up the flavor of these traditional baked goods with a hint of cayenne pepper. While the history of drinking chocolate mixed with chilies can be traced back to 500 B.C., many at-home chefs might shy away from the taste and aroma of chili peppers in fear of their intense flavor overpowering their favorite chocolate treats. However, with just a hint of cayenne pepper, the taste of your resulting chocolate chip cookies becomes well-refined and distinct. Before we reveal the best kinds of chocolate to pair with cayenne pepper, let's go into more detail about this bold spice's impact on the sweet and creamy components of delicious chocolate.

Among the 25 best ingredients to upgrade your chocolate chip cookies, adding a touch of heat will bring out the hidden flavors of your selected chocolate bar or chips instead of making your chocolate cookie dough spicy. Next to the amount of cocoa included, most chocolate varieties have several nuanced flavors that can be enhanced with the right blend of ingredients. Chocolate flavors range from raw and earthy to savory and even floral. Chili peppers can complement some of these unrepresented tastes without adding heat to your beloved desserts.

While you can spend a hefty amount of time pairing specific chilies with different types of chocolate, keep the process simple by adding a simple pinch or ⅛ teaspoon of cayenne pepper to your next batch of cookie dough. If you want to round out your use of spices, add a bit of cinnamon to make the flavor mimic the taste of Spanish hot chocolate. Once baked, these two small spice additions will bring out the depth and complexity of your added chocolate without resulting in spicy chocolate chip cookies. Now that you know how to upgrade the flavor of your favorite treats with just one simple ingredient, one important factor is worth considering before adding this red hot spice.

You'll want to go the extra mile and choose quality chocolate for your next batch of cookies to parallel the power of cayenne pepper. While there's nothing wrong with standard chocolate chips, if you truly want to level up the flavor of your chocolate chip cookies, skip milk chocolate chips and choose darker varieties. Pick a bar (or two) that ranges in cocoa solid percentage and maybe even taste test a few different brands or use a blend of different dark chocolate varieties in your cookie batter. The milk and semi-sweet chips flavors are already mild and may get lost behind your bold spice additions. If you do decide to use dark chocolate, be mindful of the taste differences between quality chocolate bars and a bag of generic chocolate chips. Even though dark chocolate has a sharper taste, this variety's somewhat bitter flavor blends perfectly with sweet, evenly spiced cookie dough.

Once you overcome your fear of adding cayenne pepper to your beloved cookie recipe, you can try several different treats that include this impactful spice. You can mix cayenne with cumin and turmeric and make spicy chocolate-filled peanut butter cookies or venture outside the realm of cookie-making to craft Mexican hot chocolate cupcakes. Once you experience the flavor-enhancing properties behind a bit of cayenne pepper, you might never go back to your traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe.