A house isn't a home until you've baked cookies

I was very excited to bake my first batch of cookies in my new kitchen and to have the house smell like chocolate chip cookies. I also wanted to bring something delicious over to our neighbors to introduce ourselves. Mama N inspired me to bake after hearing about her carrot cake on FB.

I must also confess that I am a huge fan of Gwyneth Paltrow's website (and also of Gwyneth herself, evidenced by my walking into a hair salon last week and asking for the "Gwyneth cut"). On GOOP Gwyneth recently wrote about her favorite cookie recipes. I decided to try the dark chocolate and cherry cookies that Katie Lee, soon-to-be ex-Mrs. Joel, made for her. The key to these cookies is to find the best artisanal dark chocolate. I really like Scharffen Berger chocolate, so I used a bar of 70% cocoa that I found at WF. You also want to use tart cherries, rather than sweet, which is a nice complement to the dark chocolate. Here is the yummy recipe (I decided not to include the pecans):

YIELDS: About 4 dozen cookies

2 1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
8 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped (be sure to use a high-quality chocolate with more than 60% cacao)
1 cup dried cherries (about 6 ounces), coarsely chopped
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375º F.

Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together into a bowl.

In the bowl of an electric mixer (or in a bowl using a handmixer), beat the butter with the sugars until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated. Beat in the vanilla. On low speed, add the flour mixture. With a wooden spoon, fold in the chocolate, cherries and pecans (if you’re using them).

Scoop by heaping tablespoonful onto two nonstick or greased cookie sheets. Bake until golden and chewy, about 12 minutes, rotating the sheets after six minutes. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool and repeat the process with the remaining dough.