Chocolate Chip Cookies

By Birgitta

Adapted from David Leite's recipe, published in the New York Times on July 9, 2008.

Text & photo: Chocolate & Zucchini

Ingredients

• 140 grams (5 ounces) butter, softened
• 230 grams (1 cup plus 2 tablespoons) unrefined light brown cane sugar
• 1 egg, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I used a little more of my homemade vanilla extract)
• 240 grams (2 cups) flour (I used organic T65 flour)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt (a little less if you use semi-salted butter, as I did)
• 280 grams (10 ounces) chocolate disks (see note), at least 60% cacao content (I used 70%)

Details

Servings 2
Adapted from chocolateandzucchini.com

Preparation

Step 1

Prepare the dough 24 to 36 hours in advance. In the bowl of a food processor, cream together the butter and sugar for 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat until well combined.

Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium mixing-bowl, and whisk gently to remove any lump. Add to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined; don't overmix. Fold in the chocolate. Place a piece of plastic wrap on the dough to cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, preferably 36 hours, and up to 72 hours.

If the dough is too hard to scoop, place on the counter for 20-30 minutes to soften slightly. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Using a sturdy spoon, scoop out even balls of dough, roughly the size of a ping-pong ball (about 40 grams or 1 1/2 ounces) and place them on the prepared baking sheet, giving them a little space to expand. (At this point, the original recipe says to sprinkle the cookies lightly with sea salt, but the dough seemed salted enough to me so I skipped that step.) Return to the fridge for 15-20 minutes to firm up again.

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Insert the baking sheet in the middle of the oven and bake for 14 minutes, until golden brown but still soft. Transfer the parchment paper or baking mat to a cooling rack immediately to stop the baking, and let cool to the temperature you like.

Repeat with the remaining dough on the same day or the next, reusing the same sheet of parchment paper.

You can also freeze the balls of dough once formed: freeze in a single layer, then transfer to a freezer-safe container when frozen. No thawing necessary before baking: place on the baking sheet on the counter while the oven preheats to 175°C (350°F), and bake for 15 minutes.

Note: Chocolate disks are round or oval pieces of couverture chocolate, which melt when baked and create a nice layered texture in the finished product. You should be able to find them at baking supplies stores or specialty grocery stores. (I bought a one-kilo box of these chocolate pistoles at G.Detou for 9€.) If unavailable, substitute roughly chopped chocolate, or the best quality chocolate chips you can find and afford.