Ingredients

• ¹⁄₂ cup flour
• ³⁄₄ cup quality dutch-process unsweetened cocoa
• ³⁄₄ tsp. ground cinnamon
• ¹⁄₂-³⁄₄ tsp. cayenne
• ¹⁄₄ tsp. salt
• ¹⁄₄ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 ¹⁄₂ tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 12 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Instructions

1. Whisk flour, cocoa, cinnamon, cayenne, salt, and pepper together in a medium bowl and set aside.
2. Put sugar, vanilla, and egg into a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on high speed until thick and pale, about 3 minutes. Add butter and continue to beat on high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes more. Using your fingers, work flour mixture into butter mixture until dough is just combined.
3. Divide dough in half and roll each half into a 9" log. Wrap each log in parchment paper, twisting ends tightly to make a uniform cylinder. Freeze dough logs for at least 8 hours and as long as overnight.
4. Preheat oven to 350°. Unwrap dough and slice each log into rounds about ¹⁄₃" thick. Place rounds ¹⁄₂" apart on parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. Bake cookies until slightly puffed and tiny cracks appear on surface, about 8 minutes. Transfer cookies to a rack to let cool.