You could say that Anna Polyviou has been pretty industrious the last couple of days. The award-wining pastry chef and her team made a tonne of cookie dough (literally 1000 kilograms) spiked with hunks of chocolate, which they’ve scooped into 600-gram tubs for Sydneysiders to buy this weekend.

The affable chef (who even during lockdown is sporting an impressively sculpted pink mohawk) was invited by popular chook-shop chain Chargrill Charlie’s to create this week’s instalment of Local Flavours. She chose a crowd favourite, triple chocolate, which will be on sale from Friday May 8 until sold out.

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For the past few weeks, Chargrill Charlie’s has been inviting local chefs who have lost work due to Covid-19 to create limited-edition dishes or menus for takeaway and delivery. The Local Flavours program kicked off with Michael Rantissi from Redfern Israeli diner Kepos Street Kitchen, who made falafel, hummus and meatballs. Next up was “Big” Sam Young, head chef at Dan Hong-led Merivale restaurant Lotus, who handmade lasagne al forno with an Asian spin (the bolognaise sauce was seasoned with soy sauce, fish sauce and soy paste for depth of flavour and a whack of umami).

Polyviou, who is often called the “Punk Princess of Pastry”, is executive pastry chef at Sydney hotel Shangri-La. She achieved national fame when she made her signature 74-step dessert, Anna’s Mess, on Masterchef in 2016. It’s a take on the Eton Mess, but it looks like the Death Star from Star Wars. Diners drop – or smash – the dessert onto their plate to both reveal and combine its elements.

While that particular recipe comes with eight pages of instruction, these cookies are vastly simpler to make. You just scoop a few tablespoons of the dough onto a lined tray and pop it in the oven for 10 minutes or so. You can also freeze the dough in smaller batches so you’re all sorted for future cookie cravings.

The tubs cost $15, but they’re packing some premium products. Polyviou has used Callebaut Belgian chocolate; Heilala vanilla extract (“which comes from Tonga and the sales go back to the community”, she says); and Olsson’s sea salt from Sydney.

“It’s been so great for the team, because although the government has been generous to give us money to support us and get us through coronavirus, we haven’t been working,” Polyviou tells Broadsheet. “So this has given the team something to do and to work on. It’s been really fun.”

Polyviou’s cookie dough ($15) is available for pick-up and delivery from Friday May 8 (until sold out) from Chargrill Charlie’s stores in Rose Bay, Woollahra and Annandale. You can find her recipe for the cookies here.

chargrillcharlies.com