Chocolate Chip Cookies
These chocolate chip cookies are the perfect balance of soft, chewy, crisp and chocolatey!
When I was in college, Jacques Torres has a show on PBS called Dessert Circus. I cannot tell you how much I loved this show. He made everything from simple candied nuts to the most intricate, elaborate, sweet masterpieces. A dream of mine was to go to New York and visit Le Cirque, where he was the head pastry chef. I never made it to NY, but in the late 90’s, I had the good fortune to see him give a demonstration near where I was living at the time, and I was lucky enough to get him to sign my cookbook.
This is his recipe and I take zero credit. A lot of times I get a recipe and make it, and then I’ll tweak it until I get it just so, and I’m happy with it. (OK, that’s a lie. Even when I’m happy with something, I’m still looking for ways to make improvements…it’s a sickness.)
But these cookies? There is no tweaking them. There is no improving them. They are perfection. They take a while because you have to rest the dough overnight (although I have made them without resting the dough and they are ALMOST as good), and they can be kind of a pain because they call for two types of flour, but they’re sooooo worth it.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups minus 2 tablespoons cake flour (8 ½ ounces)
- 1 2/3 cups bread flour (8 ½ ounces – trust me, the weights are correct – different flours have different weights)
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 ½ sticks unsalted butter
- 1 ¼ cups packed brown sugar (10 ounces )
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (8 ounces)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ pounds dark chocolate chips or chunks – I usually use a blend – you can also chop it yourself, which is what was originally called for
Instructions
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about five minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla. Scrape down the bowl, making sure to get the bottom.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix on low until just blended. Add in the chocolate and mix until just combined.
- Using an ice cream disher (mine holds roughly 3 tablespoons), scoop mounds onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. You don’t have to space them out at this point because the dough still has to rest. (Alternatively, you can cover the bowl and rest the dough without portioning out, but if you do, you’ll have to pull the dough out of the fridge about an hour before you’re ready to bake so it will be soft enough to scoop.) Cover tightly with plastic wrap and rest overnight in the fridge.
- When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment and space your dough balls about three inches apart. Sprinkle with a little kosher or sea salt and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown, but still soft. Cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Both the dough and baked cookies freeze beautifully. Baked cookies will keep at room temperature for a couple of days.
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