My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies...because I love you

For the last year I have searched for my absolute favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I have tried more recipes that I can remember, I've made variations and combinations of multiple recipes, and I have taken in countless cookies to my coworkers. When I got close, I felt greedy and nervous. After all, I had done all of the work and I wasn't sure I wanted my favorite recipe given out. Then I got over it. Why shouldn't I share my recipe? It will only increase the cookie joy in the world.

2 sticks butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup Turbinado sugar (Sugar in the Raw)
1 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 lb chocolate bar







A couple notes: Use cake flour and not all-purpose flour. Seriously. Don't question it, just trust me. I had a patient that used to own a bakery. She passed along this tip to me and, to my dismay, it made a difference. For the chocolate, using a bar limits the wax that goes into chips. This melts the chocolate through the layers of the cookie. I prefer milk chocolate, hands down. I've tried milk chips, semi-sweet chips, milk & semi-sweet chips, combined milk & semi-sweet bars, and a milk chocolate bar. The milk chocolate bar wins without question. The bar vs. chips tip comes from notwithoutsalt.com which is actually where the foundation of this recipe comes from. My tweaks are the cake flour, baking time, and I don't top with salt. I wanted to prove her wrong about this being the ultimate cookie recipe and then I tried it. It was pretty good, but once I made the tweaks: perfection.

Cream the butter and the sugars until light. Add one egg at a time, making sure each is incorporated before adding the next. Add the vanilla. Make sure you're scraping down the sides of the bowl as you mix. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Then slowly add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined then, with a spatula, fold in the chocolate.





Drop onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 360 degrees (yes, 360) for approximately 9 minutes. The cookies should look like they're not quite finished. Remove from oven, but allow them to sit on the baking sheet for a couple minutes longer to complete the baking. (This helps them to be chewy and heavenly.)



When I tell you I've tried every combination, I'm not kidding. But to have a fair tasting, I made the four combinations at the same time. It's the kind of person I am. Some say OCD, I say...well, I say nothing because I'm too busy focusing on the details.


Milk chips


Milk & semi-sweet chips


Semi-sweet chips


Chocolate bar


My favorite part of baking is sharing the food with others. :)