The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

 You read that right: these are THE best chocolate chip cookies ever. I found a basic recipe back when... I'm
not even sure now? I think I still lived at home so let's just say it's been well over a decade! Anyway, the recipe was fine but regularly made thin, crispy cookies which are awful (sorry, not sorry). I spent many hours, tears, and pounds of butter throughout the last fifteen-ish years, tweaking the recipe slightly here and there to find just the right balance.

I can finally say I have achieve the most perfect cookie, and it's my first real recipe... as in, I created it! 

They are chewy and thick, with a crunchy edge and hold up their soft, chewy insides even after being left out overnight. Honestly, I even skip the cookies at the store because I prefer these.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup unsalted butter (1.5 sticks), softened
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
2 cups chocolate chips (or whatever mix-ins you prefer; I've done chopped chocolate, dark chocolate, semi-sweet, white chocolate, M&Ms, pretzels, and mixtures of all of the above... even the Costco peanut butter trail mix)
  1. In a stand mixer, mix the butter and sugars on medium for at least 2 minutes. You want it to look lighter in color and smooth.
  2. Add in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk.
  3. Pour in 1 cup of flour and mix on low until just combined.
  4. Combine 1/2 cup of flour, baking soda, and salt, and add it to the mixture. Again, mix on low until just combined.
  5. Add your last 1/2 cup of flour AND all of your chocolate and/or mix-ins of your choosing.
  6. You can mix this last bit by hand or use the mixer, but you don't want to mix for long. It's okay if the bottom of the bowl is still slightly crumbly.
  7. Place bowl in the refrigerator for at least one hour before baking. If you risk food poisoning like me, you can eat it immediately as dough or refrigerate it first, but if you are baking it, you must let it sit for at least an hour.
  8. After refrigeration, preheat oven to 400* F. Form somewhat rounded dough balls and place them about one and a half inches apart on a cookie sheet (lined or unlined).
  9. Bake for 12 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned. Allow cookies to rest on the cookie sheet for about one minute and transfer to a cooling rack
**For best storage results, store a piece of bread in the container with the cookies. We have gotten into the habit of making the dough and storing it in a food container to just make a few cookies at a time in our toaster oven. That way the cookies are always fresh and warm, and we don't need to heat up our whole oven. However I have noticed that since it is smaller and closer to the dough, the cookies bake faster so I do 400* for 10 minutes.

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