CHRISTMAS COOKIE COUNTDOWN:  

Ginger Chocolate MIDNIGHT MAGIC Cookies

Mix together the flour, ground ginger, and ground cinnamon and set aside. Mix together the baking soda and cocoa powder and add the hot water to make a paste; set aside.

Cream butter, dark brown sugar and freshly grated ginger with an electric beater on medium speed until smooth, creamy and lightened, roughly 2 minutes.  Add in the treacle and continue to beat on medium speed until completely combined. Add in half the flour mixture on low speed so as not to overwork the dough at this point, followed by the cocoa powder paste. Switching to a spatula, finish by folding in the remaining flour mixture and chocolate chips. Chill the dough for at least a couple of hours before baking. The resting time will give you the best final shape and a really good, chewy texture.

Preheat the oven to 180˚C, 160˚C Fan, 350˚F, Gas 4

Shape the chilled dough into 3cm balls. You can roll the balls in demerara sugar for sparkle and crunch and then space them apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Alternately, you can bake the cookies as-is and finish with a dusting of icing sugar for a softer, more wholesome effect.

Bake cookies for approximately 12 minutes. They should come out of the oven looking a bit inflated and crackled, with a very defined edge, but still be very soft to the touch in the centre. Slide the parchment off of the tray and cool on a rack. Once cooled, the cookies will settle into the most satisfying chewy-cakey texture.

*For best results, use a fine microplane to grate the fresh ginger. To maximize magical properties, use the darkest, most delicious chocolate you can find, ideally at least 70%. The bitterness will balance well with the intense sweetness of the treacle.