Chocolate Chip Cookies - Thick & Chewy CC
http://www.cookscountry.com/recipes/7847-thick-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies?extcode=NPI0Z00KZ#
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Ingredients
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (10 2/3 ounces) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 cup packed (7 ounces) light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg plus 1 large yolk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups (9 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
Details
Preparation
Step 1
Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
From Cook's Country | April/May 2014
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WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Nowadays, chocolate chip cookies sold in gourmet shops and cafés always come jumbo-sized (think saucer plate). These cookies are incredibly appealing and satisfying—thick and chewy rounds loaded with as many chocolate chips as they can hold. We wanted our own version that retained the soft and… read more
MAKES 24 COOKIES
To keep the cookies chewy longer, store them in an airtight container with a slice of sandwich bread.
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in bowl.
2. Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add egg and yolk and vanilla and beat until combined. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 additions until just combined, scraping down bowl as needed. Stir in chocolate chips by hand.
3. Working with 2 tablespoons dough at a time, roll into balls and space them 2 inches apart on prepared sheets. Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until edges are set and beginning to brown but centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Let cookies cool on sheets for 10 minutes before serving.
Ten Steps to Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
1. PREP: Line baking sheets with parchment paper and heat oven.
WHY? Parchment keeps the cookie bottoms from over browning. Preheating to 325 degrees—slightly lower than the average temperature—yields chewier cookies.
2. COMBINE DRY INGREDIENTS: Using a whisk, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt.
WHY? Whisking will evenly distribute the leavener and salt in the dough. It also breaks up any clumps; sifting isn’t necessary.
3. MELT BUTTER: Microwave unsalted butter until melted.
WHY? We use unsalted butter to better control the salt in the recipe, and we melt it to produce chewier cookies.
4. BEAT IN SUGAR: Beat the brown and white sugars with the melted butter for 2 minutes.
WHY? Using twice as much brown sugar as white makes for chewier cookies. Beating the butter with the sugars ensures that the sugars dissolve completely.
5. ADD EGGS: Beat in an egg, a yolk, and vanilla extract.
WHY? The back-of-the-bag chocolate chip cookie recipe calls for two whole eggs. With one less egg white, our cookie is denser and chewier.
6. ADD DRY INGREDIENTS: Slowly beat in the flour mixture.
WHY? Adding the dry ingredients gradually with the mixer on low helps them fully incorporate and prevents the flour from flying out of the bowl.
7. ADD CHIPS: Stir in chocolate chips by hand.
WHY? Stirring by hand prevents overworking the dough in the mixer, which would make the cookies tough.
8. SHAPE COOKIES: Roll the dough into balls.
WHY? Rolling the dough, rather than dropping it in mounds from a spoon, will yield thick, even cookies.
9. BAKE AND ROTATE: Bake one sheet of cookies at a time, rotating the sheet halfway through baking.
WHY? Baking one sheet at a time and rotating the pan ensures the most even browning in any oven.
10. LET COOL ON SHEET: Let the finished cookies cool on the baking sheet briefly.
WHY? Taking the cookies out when they’re slightly underdone and letting them finish baking on the hot sheet ensures that they won’t be overbaked and dry.
Do’s and Don’ts
DON’T: STINT ON BROWN SUGAR
Brown sugar produces chewier baked goods than white granulated sugar does. Not only is it moister but it also contains invert sugar, which granulated sugar has little of. Invert sugar is very hydroscopic; that means it pulls moisture from the air, even after the cookies are baked, helping them stay moist and chewy. We use twice as much brown sugar as white in this recipe.
DO: MELT THE BUTTER
Many recipes for cakes and cookies call for creaming together softened butter and sugar, which beats air into the mixture and yields tall, light baked goods. But our goal is good chew, so we melt the butter instead. The water contained in the melted butter becomes available to combine with the flour and form gluten. Too much gluten would make the cookies tough, but melted butter boosts gluten formation just enough to promote chew.
DO: PLAN AHEAD
After you’ve made the dough, you can refrigerate it or roll the cookies and refrigerate the balls, in both cases for up to two days. For longer storage, shape the dough into balls; freeze them on a baking sheet; and store the frozen dough balls in layers, separated by parchment paper, for up to two months. Bake the cookies straight from the freezer, increasing the baking time by a minute or two.
Pro Tip: Faster Portioning
Our recipe instructs to shape each cookie by rolling 2 tablespoons of dough into a ball. This works well, but using a #30 ice cream scoop is a timesaver if you're baking a big batch.
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