Recipes & Tips Blog

I have always had chocolate chip cookie baking inferiority complex because they never seem to turn out to be what I desired a chocolate chip cookie to be. I decided to conquer the chocolate chip cookie and search out the recipe of my dreams. After making dozens of different recipes and not finding what I was looking for I began to take various elements from one recipe or another to create my ideal cookie. It is soft and chewy with a nice crisp outside edge. It is not overly thick, not overly sweet, and not overly large.

photo by David Peterman

One of my favorite elements is a light sprinkling of flake salt on the top, an idea I learned from Jacque Torres’ comments in the New York Times article on the quest for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe. Another key change for me was to use my favorite chocolate rather than chocolate chips. I like a 62% chocolate made by Guittard, but as long as you use a chocolate you love to eat, even chocolate chips, I bet you will be happy with the results.

A couple of factors that can affect the end result is temperature, creaming time, and measuring accuracy. Make sure the eggs aren’t cold and that the butter is right around 66 degrees F. Too cold and it won’t get light and fluffy, too warm and it won’t hold volume. Taking the time to add the sugar gradually builds volume in the batter as does allowing the mixer to run for a full minute between adding the eggs. Just for kicks, time yourself after adding the first egg yolk. You will be amazed at how long a minute is when you are standing over the mixer ready to add the next ingredient. Be patient, wash a dish, clean up the kitchen, let the mixer run. Accuracy in measuring the flour and portioning the dough is important as well. I work off a cup of flour weighing 5 ounces. If you have a scale, use that instead of a measuring cup.

It really doesn’t matter what size you make your cookies as long as they are all the same size so they bake evenly. The baking time will change with the size as well as if you have refrigerated the dough or not, so it is really best to set the timer on the shy side and then watch them to determine when they are done to your liking.

Chewy and Slightly Gooey Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Makes about 35 cookies

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (11.25 ounces)
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
8 ounces unsalted butter (2 sticks), at room temperature about 66˚F
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk from a large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. water
10 ounces of semisweet chocolate, cut into chunks, or 1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
Flake salt or sea salt for sprinkling

Adjust oven rack to the middle position and pre-heat oven to 375˚F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.

If the eggs are cold right from the refrigerator, place them in a bowl of warm tap water to take the chill off.

Measure the flour, salt, and baking soda into a medium bowl and whisk to combine then sift the ingredients together and set aside.

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter for a minute and then with the mixer continuing to run, begin adding the sugars a tablespoon or two at a time. Stop and scrape down the bowl at least once while adding the sugar and then again once it is all added. Let the sugar and butter cream for two minutes and then add the egg yolk and continue to cream for another minute. Add the egg and mix for another full minute to thoroughly combine. Measure the ½ teaspoon of water and two teaspoons of vanilla into a small dish and then drizzle it into the butter mixture with the mixer running. Continue to beat the ingredients for an additional minute.

With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and stop mixing just before all the flour is mixed in. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the chocolate by hand which should finish incorporating the dry ingredients as well.

Drop large walnut-sized balls of dough (about 1.15 ounces each) onto the parchment lined sheet pan. Sprinkle each cookie lightly with flake or sea salt. Bake for 9-11 minutes watching for a nice golden brown color to develop around the edges of the cookies. The centers will look undercooked. Remove cookies from the oven and let them sit on the hot sheet pan for 2-3 minutes before removing them to a cooling rack. They are especially good the next day, it’s just hard to make them last that long.