Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Luckin Coffee to Pay $180 Million Penalty to Settle Accounting Fraud Charges: US SEC

China-based startup Luckin Coffee Inc. has agreed to pay a $180 million penalty to settle accounting fraud charges for “intentionally and materially” overstating its 2019 revenue and understating a net loss, U.S. regulators said on Wednesday. The U.S. Securities and Commission (SEC) fine on the China-based rival to Starbucks comes after it said earlier this year that much of its 2019 sales were fabricated, sending its shares plunging and sparking an investigation by China’s securities regulator and the SEC. The SEC said it found that Luckin “intentionally and materially overstated its reported revenue and expenses and materially understated its net loss in its publicly disclosed financial statements in 2019.” Luckin has not admitted or denied the charges, the SEC said. The company has agreed to pay the penalty, which may…

These cookies are great when you have a craving for something super chocolatey.

Bake them for 8 minutes for chewy cookies and 10 minutes for crispier ones.

Difficulty: Medium

Makes 30 cookies

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla. Mix until smooth.

Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix again until the batter is smooth and creamy. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the chocolate chips.

Use a tablespoon or cookie scoop to form small balls of dough. Put the balls of dough on two large ungreased baking sheets. You should be able to fit 15 cookies on each sheet. Make sure they’re not too close together. They’ll need about 1 inch on each side to spread out.

Bake one sheet at a time for 8–10 minutes, until the cookies are light golden brown.

Use pot holders to remove the baking sheet from the oven. Let the cookies cool for 1 minute on the pan, then move the cookies to a cooling rack using a spatula. Cool 5 minutes more before serving.

Nutritional Info Per Serving (2 cookies)

Excerpted from “The Everything Kids’ Cookbook, Updated Edition” by Sandra K. Nissenberg. Copyright 2002, 2008, 2020 by Simon & Schuster, Inc. Photographs by Kelly Jaggers. Used with permission of the publisher, Adams Media, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved.

Focus News: Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Half of Australia’s Largest Chinese Media Outlets Linked to Beijing’s United Front: Report

A new report has confirmed long-standing concerns that Australia’s Chinese-language media landscape is dominated by outlets “friendly towards the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).” “The influence environment” by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) analysed the content, political stances, business ties, and management structures of 24 of the largest Chinese-language media (print and online), located mainly in the country’s capital cities. It found that executives from 12 media outlets have been members of organisations controlled by the United Front Work Department, Beijing’s foremost overseas infiltration organ. At the same time, four outlets were directly owned or received financial support from the CCP. One of the largest online Chinese language media is Sydney Today, who had an alleged 670,000 followers in 2019. The co-founder of Sydney Today, Stan Chen was also listed…