America’s most popular cookie is the Chocolate Chip Cookie. Ruth Wakefield, who was the owner of the Toll House Inn in Massachusetts, invented it in 1930. The story goes that she wanted one day to add to her cookie dough little chunks of a Nestle’s Semisweet Yellow Label Chocolate bar. For her clients, the ‘chocolate chip’ cookies became an immediate success.
You may use semi-sweet, bittersweet, milk, or even white chocolate chips for your chocolate chips. Or you could use a mix. You should fold in one cup (100 grams) of chopped walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts, even though I like my chocolate chip cookies without nuts.
This recipe makes around 7.5 cm (32-3 inch) cookies. If you do not want to bake all the cookies at once, the batter can be kept in the refrigerator for a couple of days. You should freeze this dough as well. Shape the dough into round balls, flatten them slightly to do this, and put them on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Freeze and then in a plastic freezer container, place the dough balls, seal, and freeze. When baking, simply put on a baking sheet the frozen balls of dough and bake as instructed. The baking time will have to be extended by a couple of minutes.
Preheat your oven to 190 degrees C (375 degrees F) and put the oven rack in the middle of the oven. Top the parchment paper with two baking sheets.
Beat the butter until fluffy in the bowl of your electric stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer). Apply the sugar and vanilla paste, white and brown, and beat until smooth and fluffy (about 1 – 2 minutes). Add the eggs, stirring when incorporated, one at a time. As required, scrape down the sides and bottom of the cup.
Whisk the flour with the baking soda and salt in a separate dish. To the egg mixture, add the dry ingredients and chocolate chips, and beat only until incorporated. If the dough is very delicate, cover it and refrigerate until it’s solid (from 30 to 60 minutes). (The batter can be kept for a couple of days in the refrigerator.)
Drop about 2 teaspoons of batter (35 grams) (can use an ice cream scoop) onto the prepared baking sheets for big cookies, spaced them apart by several inches (about 7.5 cm). Gently flatten each ball into a round using the palm of your hand. Press four to five chocolate chunks or chips softly into the batter if desired. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until the sides are golden brown, but the edges are golden brown.
Note: It’s possible to ice this dough. Shape the dough into balls, flatten them slightly, and put them on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Freeze and then in a plastic container, place the dough balls, seal, and freeze. When baking, simply put on a baking sheet the frozen balls of dough and bake as instructed. A few minutes longer than mentioned in the recipe, you will have to bake the cookies.
