A.B.’s Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Some things just don’t get old…..

For me, that list includes my Jack Johnson albums, watching “The Breakfast Club”,  Foster Farm Chicken Commercials, and perusing through the Sunday morning Target ads. Oh, and of course, Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Very few things beat the beautiful aromas of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies 🙂

So, when one of my Besties was driving through town on a road trip with her family, I thought I would pack them a little basket of snacks that would include a few cookies. If anything, I thought it would occupy her beautiful little daughter on the car ride down to the aquariums, too.

Now, everyone has their texture preference of a chocolate chip cookie. I prefer the slightly crunchy outside and chewy interior—with of course, TONS of ooey-gooey chips! I initially wanted to give the NY Times Best Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe a go but quite frankly, didn’t have the extra 24 hours to age the dough. Eh, there’s always next time.

I decided to give our boy, Alton Brown’s, recipe a try. With over 600+ reviews and a title of “chewy”, I figured it couldn’t be bad.

And it wasn’t.

That Alton. He always gets me. 🙂

True to form, crispy on the outside—chewy on the inside. With two…count them, TWO cups of chocolate chips. Mmmm….

A few things to note:

• I didn’t have Bread Flour on hand, so per Joy of Baking, I substituted with All Purpose Flour. Not exact but the ratios are pretty close.
• I had wanted to add a little Fleur de Sel over the cookies before they baked but had run out. So, I used a bit of course Kosher Salt but since it’s flaked—it melted into the cookie too much. Meh, now I know better 🙂
• Although the recipe said you can get 2½ dozen cookies, I only got 20. Pretty typical results for me actually—I never get the amount recipes quote.

And of course, while you enjoy them, don’t forget an extra large and icy glass of milk. 🙂

Cheers!

A shower of chocolate chips

I like to use an ice cream scooper for nice, round cookies

6 will fit on one Silpat covered baking sheet

These cookies took about 12 minutes–turning the sheet once half way through the baking time

Mmmm….Cookies….

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
From Alton Brown
Makes 20 Cookies

Ingredients
2 Sticks Unsalted Butter
2¼ Cups Bread Flour
1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
¼ Cup Sugar
1¼ Cups Brown Sugar
1 Egg
1 Egg Yolk
2 Tablespoons Milk
1½ Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
2 Cups Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda and set aside.

Pour the melted butter in the mixer’s work bowl. Add the sugar and brown sugar. Cream the butter and sugars on medium speed. Add the egg, yolk, 2 tablespoons milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Chill the dough, then scoop onto parchment-lined baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet. Bake for 14 minutes or until golden brown, checking the cookies after 5 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet for even browning. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

And to make them EXTRA special, package them in clear bags with a pretty little ribbon