Chocolate Chairlift Cookies Recipe from "Ski Snacks"

Excerpt from "Ski Snacks: Easy, Tasty Recipes for Powder Days and Mountain Adventures" by Lily Krass Ritter and Max Ritter:

Stuff a bag of these cookies in your jacket pocket and make friends wherever you go. These rich chocolate and olive oil cookies began as a holiday favorite, but have since become a season-long staple. Stir them together in one bowl, chill them in the fridge, and bake for only ten minutes! So easy, even a ski bum can do it, or little kids. If you’re totally over the mess of gingerbread houses, whip up a batch of these with kids instead; they’re fun to roll out and you can make them as small or large as you want. Plus, they make great bribes on the hill to get your whole family to ski longer.

Makes 28 to 32 two-inch cookies.

Ingredients

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (or 1/2 cup all-purpose and 1/2 cup whole wheat)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar

Instructions

1. Mix the sugar and cocoa powder in a medium bowl, then stir in the olive oil.
2. Whisk in eggs and vanilla.
3. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt, and stir until well combined.
4. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and pour the powdered sugar into a small bowl.
6. Roll the dough into 1-tablespoon balls and toss them in the powdered sugar until fully coated.
7. Space the cookies at least 2 inches apart on a baking sheet.
8. Bake for 10 minutes. The cookies will seem soft and undercooked but will harden up when they cool, so don’t be tempted to over bake!