The BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies

I know that most EVERY ONE claims to have THE BEST chocolate chip cookie recipe. And I notice they just about ALL have something in common. They are VERY similar to the Nestle Toll House recipe. Even the way they make them is similar to the Nestle Toll House recipe.

BUT, I have discovered a few tricks that help you make THE BEST chocolate chip cookie recipe. While this is a bit more time consuming than just making regular chocolate chip cookies according to the recipe on the back of the chocolate chips, the results are so amazing that you will be glad you took the extra time! Especially when your new neighbors are so glad YOU moved in next door and bring cookies at Christmas time because they are the BEST they ever had! :D

Chill three cookie sheets in your fridge. And make sure you have parchment paper (NOT wax). I have three pieces cut to fit perfectly on my cookie sheets.

Preheat oven to 375. Make sure you have a stone on the lower rack. If you do NOT have a stone on the lower rack, wrap a brick in foil and put it on the lower rack. Having a stone in there will allow the oven to remain at a level temperature instead of rising and lowering during the baking process. TRUST ME! The STABLEness the stone adds to the temperature is a good thing!!!

Take one stick of butter and whip it. I usually just put it in my Kitchen Aide and turn it on and let it go until the butter is smooth and mostly on the sides of the bowl. Then add your sugars (3/4 cup brown and 3/4 cup white - if you have superfine sugar that is even better OR you can even run the sugars through your food processor first). Begin the creaming! :)

While all this is happening, melt one stick of butter. I LOVE using a SMALL cast iron pan to do this. It even has dips in the side of the pan for pouring out melted butter! MARVELOUS! :)

You want it JUST melted (There can even still be some small chunks in it). Be careful NOT to cook OR burn the butter! I usually just leave it on low. The butter is melting while the sugar is being creamed into the whipped butter in my Kitchen Aide. Then I SLOWLY add the melted butter as the Kitchen Aide is still creaming.

THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP! Let it cream the butter and sugars for a LONG time! Mine usually goes for about 30 or more minutes! This is a GREAT time to fold laundry! :)

Turn down the mixer to the lowest speed and add one egg. Allow to combine with creamed mixture before adding one more egg and making sure it is combined before moving on.

While your sugar and butter is creaming, mix your dry ingredients in a bowl. The recipe calls for 2 1/4 cups flour, but I use 2 1/2 cups (but I am at a higher altitude - you might want to do what the recipe suggests and then add 1/4 cup more flour IF NEEDED - i.e. your cookies are flat instead of plump). The recipe calls for 1 tsp baking soda BUT I use 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1/2 tsp baking POWDER. TRUST ME, this mixture is a good thing! :) And finally add 1 tsp salt (I use sea salt and it really does help to use a more minerally salt than regular table salt).

Once you figure you have creamed your butter and sugars long enough (the longer the better), add the dry ingredients SLOWLY! THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT STEP! I add about a Tbsp at a time SLOWLY and wait until it is integrated before adding more. BUT this is easily accomplished by putting the bowl of dry ingredients bowl on the edge of the Kitchen Aide bowl and just tapping and allowing the dry ingredients to fall in a little at a time, and before tapping again, wait until all the dry ingredient mixture has been incorporated. :)

Another important step is to add the vanilla (and please use the REAL stuff, NOT imitation) JUST BEFORE add the chocolate chips. The recipe calls for 1 tsp, but I usually add 2-3 tsp. Turn the mixer on high a few seconds to make sure the vanilla is mixed in well. Then fold in chocolate chips.

A word about chocolate chips here. DO NOT USE MILK CHOCOLATE! They will melt TOO MUCH and you will NOT have the cookies you desire! :) I love to use the mini morsels because you have TONS of chips in every bite. If those are not in your budget, just be sure to use semi-sweet.

Take your cookie sheets out of the fridge. Make sure parchment paper is on each cookie sheet. Drop by rounded TABLESPOONFULS onto the cookie sheet. (I use a melon baller and it works PERFECTLY!) DO NOT TRY TO FIT TOO MANY BALLS ONTO A SHEET! Better to have to cook one more sheet than have all your hard work ruined because you did not leave enough space between cookies for them to cook all around and breathe! :)

Put ONE cookie sheet in the oven and set timer for 8 minutes (if you are at a lower altitude, you might check after 7). Keep a close eye on them and once they JUST start to brown on top, take them out. Put in next cookie sheet for 8 minutes.

Set the cookies sheet you just pulled out down somewhere and allow cookies to stay on cookie sheet for two more minutes. They will continu to cook on the bottom during this time. Remove parchement paper with cookies to cooling rack.

When ready to pull next cookie sheet out of the oven, take the parchment paper (filled with cookie balls ready to cook) off cookie sheet number three and move onto the first cookie sheet. Repeat cooling process with second sheet and put first sheet (with new parchment paper and cookie balls) into oven for 8 minutes.

While second sheet is cooling, if necessary, put new parchment paper on third sheet and put rest of cookie balls onto the parchment. It is important to NOT put cookie balls onto a HOT sheet. Prepare them on parchment paper on the extra (third) cookie sheet and just move parchment and balls to a hot sheet JUST before putting into oven (always keeping the third sheet cool).

Repeat until done with cookies!

And don't forget (as seen in these pictures), one of the BEST parts for kids (beside helping to MAKE to cookies) is eating them fresh out of the oven!

AND, one of the best things to do when you want to make cookies during the HOT season when you DON'T want to turn on your oven?? Make the cookie dough and FREEZE it into logs. Then at the holidays (or on a cold day in winter) bring it out and slice and bake! :) OR make the recipes but without the egg and make into tiny balls for cookie dough ice cream (tastes just the same without the eggs, BUT you don't have to worry about raw eggs in the cookie dough since you are not cooking it!). :)

I am sorry I did not take more pictures, but I didn't think about it until AFTER I was almost done. :) LONG directions for cookies, but SOOOOOOOOOO worth the effort!