The last (and best) cookie of 2012.

Did you read the title of this post?

That’s a bold statement. A bold statement that I am prepared to stand behind 100% and fight you over. (Though I should warn you I fight with words, not fists. On the the first phrases I ever said aloud was “I’m a lover.” I like to think that I followed that with “not a fighter” if only in my head.)

The thing about that statement is that it is only partially true.

A partial truth, according to my mom, is the same as a lie. She tried (unsuccessfully to convince me of that, but I was – and still am – having none of that.

The (partial) truth: This is the last cookie that you will see for this year on this blog. (Tomorrow’s a new year. See what I did there? I love the new years not-at-all funny jokes. I’ll stop now.)

The partial untruth: It is more than just a mere cookie. It can also be a brownie, if you so desire, with a tiny tweak of the recipe.

See? That isn’t a lie at all.

Told you, mom.

In fact, just to really drive home this (dull) point, I’m going to go ahead and call these “Brownie cookies”. Because using two different dessert names in the name of a single dessert recipe isn’t confusing at all.

See, look! Now it’s a cookie. I’m a baking ninja.

Before we get to the recipe, let me tell you why these brownies, and subsequently the cookies, came to be.

Last year I tried to bake some treats for my students when they had an exam, but this year I was a slacker. I managed to bake for them a couple of times early in the semester, but then life happened and…well, I ran out of steam.

For the last day of class for the semester, my class of 7 students were giving presentations, and we’d invited everyone from the department. So, clearly, I had to show off my mad baking skills provide coffee and cookies for our classroom guests.

Lest you think I was playing favorites, I also made a bigger batch of these same brownies, minus the M&Ms, for my other two classes the week before.

They were a hit both times.

Personally, I like the cookies better, but for purely selfish reasons. Cleaning up a silpat is way easier than the mess that forms in the bottom of a pyrex pan.

White Chocolate Peppermint Brownie Cookies

• 1/4 cup margarine
• 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar (I used the usual 1/3 Stevia Baking Blend 2/3 erythritol combo)
• 1 large egg (use 2 eggs for brownies)
• 10 drops liquid peppermint stevia (or 1/4 tsp peppermint extract)
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder (I used this brand, which also has beet powder in it!)
• 1/3 cup oat flour (use only 1/4 cup for brownies)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• White Chocolate Peppermint M&Ms (or use mint chocolate chips or regular or whatever add-ins you want)

Preheat oven to 325. Prepare your pan – an 8×8 in pyrex for brownies or a silpat-lined cookie sheet for cookies.   

Cream together the sugars, margarine, egg, and extract. Add in the cocoa, flour, baking soda, and salt and stir until just combined. You can either mix in the M&Ms directly into the batter now, or form the cookies or spread the brownie batter into the pan and then plop them on top.

I went with the plop method, because there is nothing worse than an M&M getting burned to the bottom of a pan, taste-wise and clean-up wise. Plus, I liked the looks of a single M&M on the cookies.

Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes (I did 8, and they were nice and gooey) or brownies for 20.

Everyone who tried these loved them.

I brought the cookies home with me for Christmas and they got rave reviews. I think everyone is still secretly (or not so secretly) surprised when a dairy-free, gluten-free cookie actually tastes good. Maybe because most of the crap you can buy at the store tastes like cardboard.

Sadly, they are gone, but happily I made more yesterday. Not these same cookies. A different one.

So, crap, these weren’t the last cookies of 2012. Another partial truth, but it is the last partial truth of 2012.

What was the best cookie (or any food) that you ate or made in 2012?