Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

me June 25, 2005 Adventures in the Kitchen, Desserts, Favorites

From American Classics, page 312.

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 18 large cookies

These oversized cookies are chewy and thick, like many of the chocolate chip cookies sold in gourmet shops and cookie stores. They rely on melted butter and an extra yolk to keep their texture soft. These cookies are best served warm from the oven, but will retain their texture even when cooled. To ensure the proper texture, cool the cookies on the cookie sheet. Oversized baking sheets allow you to get all the dough into the oven at one time. If you’re using smaller baking sheets, put fewer cookies on each sheet and bake them in batches. Follow the illustrated directions for shaping the cookies.

2 cups plus 2 T unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
12 T unsalted butter (1.5 sticks), melted and cooled
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 t vanilla
1 – 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Adjust the oven racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.
3. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the melted butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar at low speed until thoroughly blended, about 1 minute. Add the egg, yolk, and vanilla; mix until fully incorporated and smooth, about 1 minute, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary. With the mixer running on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, about 2 minutes. Do not overbeat. Add chips and mix on low speed until distributed evenly throughout the batter, about 5 seconds.
4. Roll a scant 1/4 cup dough into a ball. Holding a dough ball in the fingertips of both hands, pull it into two equal halves. Rotate the halves 90 degrees and, with the two jagged surfaces facing up, join the halves together at their base, again forming a single ball, being careful not to smooth the dough’s uneven surface. Place the formed dough onto the cookie sheet, leaving 2.5 inches between each ball.
5. Bake, reversing the position of the baking sheets halfway through baking (from top to bottom and front to back), until the cookies are light golden-brown and the outer edges start to harden yet the centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool the cookies on the sheets. When cooled, peel cookies from the parchment.

VARIATIONS
Chocolate Chip Cookies with Coconut and Toasted Almonds
Follow the recipe for Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, adding 1.5 cups sweetened dried coconut and 1 cup toasted sliced almonds along with chips.

Black and White Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pecans
Follow the recipe for Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, substituting 1/2 cup white chocolate chips for 1/2 cup of the semisweet chips. Add 1 cup chopped pecans with the chips.

My comments: Lots of work, but SO worth it. Yum.