School is starting back up soon, which means it’s time to begin thinking about lunchbox goodies. And if you don’t have children to bake for, let me just say for the record that kiddos are optional.
Even before I became a mom, I baked treats for myself to enjoy during the week. Why not? We all need something to look forward to, and if you have a stellar cookie waiting for you at lunchtime then you know at least one thing will go right during your day.
These chocolate earthquake cookies have chewy centers, crisp edges, and sparkly sugar on top. The name comes from when my son was a toddler and liked to watch cookies baking in the oven. Whenever I made these particular cookies, he’d throw his little hands in the air and shout “earthquaaaake!” when the cracks started to form. Teens aren’t quite known for the same unbridled glee, but he still loves these cookies. For more than a decade, we’ve been calling them chocolate earthquake cookies.
If you’re saying to yourself, “I don’t have time to make a complicated cookie recipe,” let me reassure you: these cookies are easy to make. You’ll only need a few pantry staples and basic cookie-making techniques. A simple dough comes together in minutes, then you chill it in the fridge before rolling scoops into balls and coating them with granulated white sugar.
I use 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie, but friends have used more dough to make larger cookies. I have not tried this myself, but one person told me:
“I used a 2 1/2-inch cookie dough scoop, so the final cookie is 6 inches wide and totally delicious! Had to increase the baking time to 15-16 minutes since the cookies were larger than in your recipe.”
Want another reason to make these cookies? You can freeze the unbaked cookie dough, then pull out the frozen balls for spur of the moment baking anytime. My son does this with my Can’t Make Up My Mind Cookies and the same technique works here. I don’t know about you, but I’m always a fan of on-demand cookies. 🙌🏻
More Lunchbox Favorites
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What Makes the Cracks in These Cookies?
The cracks in these cookies are created by rolling the chilled cookie dough in sugar before baking. The sugar coating helps dry out the surface of the cookie during baking, which encourages cracking as the inside of the cookie continues to expand.