Chocolate Chip Cookies
These chocolate chip cookies have a crispy outside and a gooey center - sure to win over even your worst enemy! And they last - I like to store the dough in the freezer and pop them in the oven when it's time for a treat.
The history of the chocolate chip cookie is fascinating to me. It didn't arrive on our cooling racks until the early twentieth century! The recipe was first released by Ruth Graves Wakefield in the 1938 edition of her “Tried and True” Cookbook. This article in The New Yorker digs a little deeper into the somewhat mysterious origins. The cookie was originally named "Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cookie" and has evolved over the years into the crispy, gooey morsel that we know plain and simple today as the chocolate chip cookie.
Secrets for the Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
These cookies are crave-able by design! Here are my top tips to help you achieve a truly irresistible cookie.
Extra Vanilla
This is my number one tip for making baked goods that WOW. Vanilla actively enhances the other ingredients in your cookies, thus doubling the amount of vanilla will make your cookies a very "flavorable" experience. This sounds great, however, be careful not to go too overboard. Too much can lead to an alcohol taste if it is not balanced out with additional sweetener. Chocolate chip cookie recipes often call for a teaspoon, therefore adding a teaspoon extra is just enough to make the flavor pop!
Dark Brown Sugar
Most recipes do not specify wether to use light or dark brown sugar, thus we tend to default to light brown sugar. Though light brown sugar will do the job just fine, hear me out. Dark brown sugar has a higher amount of molasses than light brown sugar, which will give your cookies a deeper, richer flavor. Otherwise there is no real difference and you can swap them out pretty interchangeably at a one to one ratio. Pair with extra vanilla and you've got a cookie that will be unforgettable.
Underbake Slightly
My last tip is to take your cookies out one minute before they look "done." For example, you want to make sure the cookies are holding together and the edges are a light golden brown yet the middle may not appear done.
Hot tip: Most cookie recipes will call for a baking temp of 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Try bumping up your oven temp to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and lowering your cook time by a few minutes. This will produce a crispy cookie with a soft and gooey center.
Ingredients
2 1/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
1 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt
1 Cup Unsalted Butter
3/4 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
2 Eggs
2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
2 Cups Chocolate Chips
Course Sea Salt to sprinkle
Directions
Prep Ingredients
Let your eggs and butter stand at room temperature before baking. Before you start mixing ingredients together, set your oven to preheat at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the dry ingredients with a fork.
Cream Butter and Sugar
Once your dry ingredients are ready to go, cream your butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. I use a stand mixer set to medium (or level 6) to cream the butter for about 30 seconds and then add in the sugars and cream for about a minute. You can also do this with a hand mixer or by hand with a fork, it will just take a little more elbow grease. Add in the eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla, and mix on low in between each addition.
Add Remaining Ingredients
Next, mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. I do this gradually in a stand mixer by adding the dry ingredients in about three rounds and slightly mixing on low in between. Be careful not to over mix as that can cause the cookies to flatten or become more dense. Fold in the chocolate chips by hand with a fork.
Spoon Drop Them onto a Baking Sheet
Scoop about 1.5 inch sized balls of dough onto the pan, leaving at least 2 inches of space in between each. I like to use an ice cream scooper for this, but you can use just a regular old spoon if you'd like. Sprinkle a little course salt over the tops for an added burst of flavor and texture.
Bake at 375 Degrees Fahrenheit for Ten Minutes
Once the oven is preheated to 375 degrees Fahrenheit, place the pan in the oven and bake for 10 minutes or until cookies look almost done. This is critical - you want to pull the cookies out of the oven just before they look done. What I mean is, they should just barely look light golden brown on the edges and bottom.
Let them cool on a cooling rack or devour them right away! I can never wait...Enjoy!
-Jessie
