Many of us have a favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies. Do you? This chewy, chunky, chocolatey, moist recipe highlights the reason the chocolate chip cookie remains a favorite today. The browned butter and cake flour give it richness and chewiness setting it apart from any other.
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There's nothing like fresh baked chocolate chip cookies warm from the oven. Can you smell those chocolaty chunks? Is your mouth watering right about now remembering their sweet chewiness? Oh, for a plateful to devour right now and chase down with a glass of cold milk!
The original chocolate chip cookie was invented by Ruth Wakefield, owner of The Toll House Inn in Whitman, Massachusettes in 1938. This cookie is as American as it gets and it doesn't matter if your Mama was Cajun like mine or not. Mamas from across America have been making happy memories by baking these for years and still are today.
It's Essential
I just happen to believe that everyone, not just mama, needs an excellent chocolate chip cookie recipe and I don't mean the one off of the chocolate chip bag, either. The cookie I'm talking about is distinctively better. It's tastier, richer, chocolatier and much chewier. (That's a mouthful!) Have you ever experienced one like that?
Well, let me introduce you to this one, but first, a few cookie baking facts I've discovered.
The Way to Better Chocolate Chip Cookies
I have researched and compared the ins and outs of all sorts of recipes to that classic cookie. Everything about its sweetness and texture, its make time, its bake time and even its chocolate chip kind. Also questioning (tasting) should you add nuts or not and which one is best.
After baking batch after batch, I have found the chewier, the more likable the cookie is, and my taste-testing grandchildren agree.
Here are the discoveries I've found that make a better cookie:
- The darker the brown sugar, the chewier the cookie.
- Cornstarch in the flour mixture adds tenderness to the dough.
- Egg whites make a crispy cookie, not what I'm looking for.
- Cake flour has less protein than all-purpose flour and yields a softer cookie.
- If a little vanilla is good, more is better.
- More salt, the trend today is salty/sweet.
- Dark chocolate adds more cholate flavor.
- Walnuts have a better bite after baking.
- Don't over mix dough after adding in the flour mixture.
- Be careful not to overbake cookies.
Another revelation I've had is the rich and nutty taste of brown butter. It's simple to make and much more flavorful than regular butter while adding the flavor of praline to the cookie. Now, who doesn't like that?
Chocolate Chip Cookies
This chewy, chunky, chocolatey, moist recipe highlights the reason the chocolate chip cookie remains a favorite today. The browned butter and cake flour give it richness and chewiness setting it apart from any other.
- Total Time: 2 hours 11 minutes
- Yield: 3 ½ hours 1x
Ingredients
2 sticks or 1 cup salted butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 ½ cups cake flour
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 cups dark chocolate chips
1 cup walnuts, rough chopped (optional)
Instructions
Place butter in a small saucepan and melt over medium heat, then continue to cook for 3-5 minutes until butter is browned.
Pour browned butter into a mixing bowl and allow it to cool down for about 30 minutes.
Cream together sugar and butter with an electric mixer.
Mix in one at a time the egg then the egg yolk incorporating well.
Add vanilla and continue to mix well.
In a medium-size bowl whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.
Add flour mixture to butter mixture a little at a time just until all of the flour is mixed in without over mixing.
Stir in chocolate chips and nuts by hand, again not overmixing the dough.
Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Drop rounded tablespoons of cookie dough onto paper 2 inches apart.
Bake for 11 minutes or just until the edges are slightly brown and the middle of the cookie is still soft.
Remove cookie sheets from the oven and move parchment paper with cookies still on them from the pans straight onto cooling racks.
Let them cool then store in an airtight container.
Notes
The longer the cookies stay on the hot pan, the more they will cook.
Browned butter adds more flavor than regular butter.
Keep dough refrigerated or freeze for future baking.
Defrost frozen dough 30 minutes before baking.
Hints for a chewy cookie:
- The darker the brown sugar, the chewier the cookie.
- Cornstarch adds tenderness to the baked cookie.
- Eggwhites make cookies crispy, so the egg white from the second egg is omitted.
- Cake flour has less protein than all-purpose flour yielding a softer cookie.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 11 minutes
- Category: Sweets, desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Together, these ingredients and baking tips make a better tasting cookie. They are not hard to make and so worth the extra effort. Well, get baking so you can devour that plateful of cookies while chasing them down with a glass of cold milk.
You know you want some!
“God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him”
John Piper
Linda Yarbrough
Going to try this for sure.
Louisiana Woman
Thanks, friend! Let us know how they turn out for you. I can’t eat just one. ?
Susan Williams
My grandma always kept cookies for us. She always used browned butter. Yum!
Louisiana Woman
That’s a good grandma! I’m excited to explore more about this golden goodness. Where has it been all my life?
Lequieta Endel
Kay, do you use salted or unsalted butter?
Louisiana Woman
Oh, good question! I use salted and I will add that to the recipe. Thanks for bringing that to my attention.