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Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookies

What is it about chocolate chip cookies that make everything seem better?  I have yet to meet a person that doesn't like this type of cookie.  One remembers those chipwiches from childhood or the store bought "soft batch" that tasted so good to us.   I know people who only like thin and crispy chocolate chip cookies or those who only like soft and chewy ones.  Personally, I like any chocolate chip cookie as long as it's made with good ingredients.  This particular cookie is soft, puffy and chock-full of chocolate morsels.  The other wonderful aspect about this recipe, is that you can pop the cookies into the oven as soon as you've completed your dough.  There is no need to chill it beforehand.  These will not spread much and burn around the edges like other recipes.  Have a look.


The oven should be preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
You should have several cookie sheets lined with parchment or silpats.
Ingredients:
  • 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (kosher works well too)
  • 14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 12 oz (2 cups) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips 
Whisk your dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  Cream the butter by itself in the bowl of your electric mixer fitted with your paddle attachment.  Do this until it's creamy (about 1-2 minutes).  Scrape down your bowl.

Note: you can use a handheld mixer.

Add your granulated sugar and dark brown sugar.  Cream this well for about another minute or two.  You want it creamy, but not too fluffy.
  
I can't stress it enough how important it is to scrape down that mixer bowl once or twice. 

Add your eggs one at a time and mix well.

Stop your mixer and add the entire dry ingredients.  Turn your mixer on low and mix until there are no more specks of flour.

Add your favorite chocolate chips or chunks now.  If you want to include nuts, you should add them at this point.  One cup of chopped nuts is plenty.

The finished dough.  Make sure the chocolate is evenly distributed.  I won't tell anyone if you decide to try some.

I'm using a 1 1/4" ice cream scoop to portion the dough onto my silpat lined baking sheet.  Parchment can be used with equal success.  If you notice, I'm staggering the dough so that I give them plenty of room.  

Pop the baking sheet into your preheated oven and bake for approximately 12-14 minutes.  Watch them carefully.  They'll be done when you notice a bit of browning around the edges.  Don't let them burn.

Cookies right out of the oven.  Perfect mounds! This makes approximately 3 dozen cookies.

I couldn't resist.  I immediately poured myself a glass of cold milk and scarfed down two cookies on the spot.

I just had to share these goodies with my friends Jerry and Dan.  They were packaged in a large cellophane bag with an embossed sticker that says "It's a Good Thing" from the former Martha by Mail catalog.


A chocolate chip cookie right out of the oven is one of life's real treats, but they're just as good the next day.  These can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days if they last that long.  You could freeze them if you really want to, but why not share them with friends, relatives or neighbors?  Start baking!

Comments

  1. BernadineJanuary 31, 2011 at 4:44 PM

    Hi David,
    Two things: I tend to mix in the chocolate chips by hand since the mixer tends to grind some of them up, I can hear it grate up against the sides. Do you ever add them by hand? Or at what speed do you blend the chips/nuts into the dough? Also when I make a batch of cookies I come out with a little more than 3 dozen like you, but the recipe books say, "Makes 4.5 dozen". What size scoop are they using?
    Thanks,
    Dede

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good Things by DavidFebruary 3, 2011 at 11:36 AM

    You can mix in the chips by hand with a bit of elbow grease or you can dump your chips and give the mixer 2-3 quick bursts (quickly go to medium for 2 seconds and turn off) of power to mix them in. If I have nuts, I do the same quick bursts. This usually won't break up the chips or nuts. As for the scoops, they're probably using a much smaller one (teaspoon size) or they're dropping them by using two spoons. A 1-1 1/4" scoop should give you the three dozen. Happy Baking!

    ReplyDelete

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