Name: THE Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 150 min
Ingredients: 2 sticks unsalted butter, (softened); 1 cup granulated sugar; 1 cup turbinado sugar; 2 large eggs; 3 ⅛ cups all-purpose flour; 1 tsp kosher salt; 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp baking soda; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 2½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

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You know that my number 1, death-row, absolute favorite dessert is The Best Ever Brownies with ice cream. But these chocolate chip cookies with a glass of milk are a very close second. They took quite a few years to get just right. I’d make them in Alabama and they would be perfect, then try them in Nicaragua in high humidity and high elevation and only the only thing that I pulled out of my oven was chocolate-flavored dissapointment. My perfect cookie is chewy in the center, crispy on the edges, not too flat or thick and cakey. After lots of trial and error, I think I finally cracked the code and these are the result. Pools of melty chocolate, golden brown, and that perfect balance of crunchy edges with a soft, chewy center. For years, my request list items when I returned to the US for a visit were crunchy apples, baby spinach and chocolate chip cookies with milk. Other than my beloved Chick-fil-A, of course. Now, that list is a little shorter since I know I can make these fool-proof homemade chocolate chip cookies year round, no matter where I am.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Ingredients

Like most chocolate chip cookies, these start out by combining softened butter with two types of sugar. But let me tell you something about most of Central America. US-style soft light (or dark) brown sugar is both very difficult to find and expensive. As a result, I’ve tried substituting turbinado sugar in many baked goods with varying levels of success, since it is what is readily available in most grocery stores. It still has that molasses flavor we get from US-style brown sugar, but definitely does not have the same texture. In these cookies though, I am pretty certain it is the key to cookie consistency. You see, US-style brown sugar has moisture in it. That is why it clumps up and packs down so well. But, that moisture can also affect our finished product. Because baking is science, moisture percentages affect the amount of flour needed, as well as other ingredients. But, this sugar is dry. That means one less variable influencing how our cookies turn out. Let’s continue. Cream together the softened butter, granulated sugar and turbinado sugar for 2 minutes on medium speed. If you’ve got a stand mixer, go ahead and set it and forget it. Do you remember those infomercials? I always dreamed of one day having my very own rotisserie machine that I could set and forget. If you don’t have a stand mixer, a handmixer will be just fine.

The dry ingredients

While your butter and sugar are mixing away, in a separate bowl mix together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Mix it together with a fork to eliminate any lumps and fully distribute the baking powder, soda and salt. While we are talking about mixing and measuring dry ingredients, do you know how to properly measure flour? For some dry ingredients, you can pack it into your measuring cup. But, for flour we want to avoid packing things down. Why? Because it is the weight of the flour that counts and if we pack down our flour, we have more weight in our volume and BAM! Dry cookies, cakes, etc. First, be sure to use a measuring cup that you can get an exact measurement with. Never a liquid measuring cup. Next, use a spoon to fluff up your flour. Now using your spoon, scoop it loosely into your measuring cup. I like to hold it over a bowl or my flour jar so I don’t lose any flour. Once your flour is heaped up and your cup is overflowing, use a flat edge, like a butter knife, to scrape off any excess.

Cookie dough final steps

Once you have creamed your butter and sugars, add the eggs one at a time and the vanilla. Pause the mixer and scrape down the sides to be sure everything is well mixed. Then add a third of the dry ingredients, mix for 15 seconds, another third, mix for 15 seconds and the last third and mix until there are no dry spots. Again, be sure to scrape as needed. Now, it is time for the chocolate. I am a semi-sweet fan through and through and in these cookies, I think they are the right choice. But we aren’t going to just dump our chocolate chips into the dough. Oh, no. This is secret number two for how to make chocolate chip cookies that are perfect. Go ahead and grab your food processor and add in 1/3 of your chocolate chips. Pulse them until they are in very small pieces. Add your ground up chocolate chips and your whole chocolate chips to the cookie dough and mix on low until the chocolate chips are fully incorporated. That’s it. Dough is ready.

Chocolate chip cookie dough on a baking sheet

Baking and storing your chocolate chip cookies

Let me go ahead and apologize because this is when I deliver the bad news. You have just made your cookie dough and have maybe stolen a bite or two. You are now itching to pop some in the oven and enjoy the fruits of you labor. Sorry, but now you need to wait at least 2 hours. I know, I know. Just trust me. This is important. This waiting helps ensure you get those evenly cooked perfect cookies, just like in the picture. You can either pack all your dough into a container, cover it and pop it in the fridge until you are ready to bake. Or, my personal preference is to scoop my dough into equal portions, place them on a baking sheet, and cover with plastic wrap. Then I pop them in the fridge for a few hours or overnight and either bake them, or place my pre-scooped cookie dough into a freezer safe container and keep them in the freezer. My favorite trick is using a 3 or 4 oz ice cream scoop to portion out the perfect jumbo cookies!

To bake your cookies, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Place your cookies on a baking sheet at least 2 inches apart for jumbo cookies, or 1 inch for smaller cookies. For frozen cookies, allow them to sit out at room temperature for 15 minutes before baking. For refrigerated dough, you can place your cookies on the baking sheet and place them directly into the preheated oven. Bake jumbo cookies for 14-16 minutes or smaller cookies for 10-12 minutes. The cookies should be just beginning to brown on the edges and look slightly uncooked in the very center of the cookies for the perfect crispy-edge, chewy-center chocolate chip cookies. Let cool for 5 minutes and remove to a cooling rack. Or just eat them piping hot straight out of the oven. Who am I to judge. Store your baked cookies in an airtight container at room temp for up to 5 days or store in the freezer in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.

To make the most perfect chocolate chip cookies, this is what you need to do…..