Averie Cooks

-1 In a medium-sized bowl, sift together the flours (the Cooks Illustrated recipe exclusively calls for all-purpose but I prefer a blend of all-purpose and bread flour for chewier cookies; if you don't have bread flour, exclusively using all-purpose is okay but cookies won't have quite as much structure or be as quite as chewy) cocoa powder, baking powder, and optional salt; set aside.
-1 In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt the baking chocolate on high power for about 1 minute, stir, and continue to melt in 30 second increments until fully melted and can be stirred smooth; set aside.
-1 In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and vanilla; set aside.
-1 To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.  Add the sugars and beat to incorporate and mixture is unform, 1 to 2 minutes, noting the mixture will be granular.  Add the egg-vanilla mixture and beat until incorporated, about 1 minute.  Add the melted baking chocolate and beat until combined, about 1 minute. Add the sifted dry ingredients and beat to just incorporate them, about 1 minute. Do not overmix batter at any point in the process.
-1 Add the semi-sweet chocolate chips, chopped truffles (or chopped candy bar pieces; chopped to the size of a chocolate chip or just slightly larger) and the chopped Oreo cookies and beat for 10 seconds to just incorporate or fold in by hand (I used chocolate-filled Oreos because I wanted all-chocolate, no white in the dough, but traditional white-filled Oreos may be used; chocolate graham crackers may also be substituted. The Oreos and their resulting crumbs help soak up some of the moisture from the batter and if not using them you may consider increasing the flour by 1 to 2 tablespoons as well as adding slightly more semi-sweet chocolate chips or truffles/candy based on how your batter looks). Chill dough for at least 30 minutes and up to 5 days before baking. Note that unbaked cookie dough can be formed into balls and stored in an airtight container or ziplock in the freezer for up to 3 months and baked straight from freezer to oven, extending baking time by a minute or two if necessary; this is nice so you don't have to bake all of them at once as they are rich.
-1 Preheat oven to 350 F and line two baking trays with Silpat Non-Stick Baking Mats or spray with cooking spray, set aside. If necessary, allow dough to come to room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes and scoop out 2.25 ounces of dough, weighed on a scale (approximately a scant 1/4-cup measure or a heaping 2-inch cookie scoop) and place mounds on a baking tray, spaced about 2 inches apart. I bake 8 to a tray, maximum.
-1 Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the tops have just set, even though the centers will seem soft or slightly underbaked, as the cookies will set up quite dramatically as they cool. If the cookies stayed domed and mounded while baking (mine did), tap the top of each mound lightly yet firmly with the back of a spoon or push down very gently with the bottom of a glass to flatten them. If after flattening they seem very soft, return to the oven for 1 to 2 more minutes (mine were soft to the point of raw after flattening so I returned to the oven for 90 seconds; total baking time was 11 minutes). Allow cookies to cool on baking sheets for at least 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
-1 Adapted from the The New Best Recipe cookbook