Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies

Behold, the perfect chocolate chip cookie! Does one even really exist? Some people like thick and chewy cookies while others prefer thin and crispy cookies. Whichever you prefer, the folks at Cook's Illustrated claim they have created the perfect chocolate chip cookie-one with a crisp outside and a soft inside and a deep butterscotch flavor. In case you haven't notices, I'm by nature and name a doubting Thomas. I just had to find out for myself if the experts were stretching the truth just a bit.

I decided to follow the recipe exactly as written and see what happens. After all, that's why I write this blog, isn't it?

Find the complete recipe here, at Cook's Illustrated's website.

I started by measuring all of the ingredients, or "mis en place" as the professionals say. When translated, mis en place loosely means to put in place or make ready. I measured the flour as I always do, by lightly spooning it into a measuring cup and using the back of a butter knife to scrape off the excess. I then weighed the flour and found that I was tad on the scant side. The recipe calls for 1 3/4 cups or 8 3/4 ounces of flour. I was coming up short with just under 8 ounces. I added more flour to the scale until it read 8 3/4 ounces which turned out to be 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons.

Mise en place













With ingredients neatly measured out I was ready to get down to brass tacks by putting it all together. The recipe instructed me to heat 10 tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat until until it melts and turns a dark, nutty brown.











With the butter melting on top of the stove, I decided it was a good time to toast the walnuts. My oven was preheated so I tossed the nuts onto a rimmed cookie sheet and popped them into the oven for about five minutes. Talk about multi-tasking. I felt like a juggler in my own kitchen circus. Viola! Like magic, the butter darkened as I swirled the pan. Luckily I stopped the browning process before the butter burned.

I'm really liking this recipe, I thought. I added 4 additional tablespoons of butter to the browned butter and once melted, I added the sugars, salt, and vanilla. Next came the egg and egg yolk and then I whisked it all together. The aroma was heavenly. It looked and smelled just like homemade caramel-smooth, rich, and decadent. I couldn't wait to dive in to the batter with a spoon but I restrained myself. I added the flour next as the recipe directed and then the chocolate chips and the toasted nuts.

Ready for the Oven













Baked and Ready to Cool













I couldn't wait to try these large, perfectly shaped, picture perfect cookies. Would they truly be the best chocolate chip cookie EVER? I poured a tall glass of milk and broke apart one for closer inspection. The nut to chip to cookie ratio was excellent. I hate an unbalanced cookie! I bit in and savored the flavor. Wow, these cookies were amazing. With a rich, buttery, chocolate flavor these cookies are-dare I say it-are as close to perfect as perfect can be. Try the recipe for yourself. I already hear you making the yum noise as you reach for seconds.

Cookie press rating: 5 cookies (out of 5)

Crispy Cocoa-Walnut Ice Cream Sandwich Cookies

Many of you may be wondering where I've been for the last month or so since my last post back in late January. My life has been consumed by the stressful process of moving. Well, not just moving, but the whole real estate buying process in general. Moving in and of itself is stressful. Add that to a city co-op real estate transaction and it's enough to make anyone start taking Xanax. But all that's behind me and all that's left is unpacking a few boxes and deciding where to hang pictures. The fun stuff.

Needless to say, I haven't had much time to bake and I am going through withdrawals. Kind of like Charlie Sheen these days. Frankly, I'm a little scared to bake in my new oven. It's fairly old and so far the temperature dial is only a mere suggestion of what the inside heat might be. I stress the word MIGHT. Last night I made a meatloaf and set the oven for 350 degrees. About 30 minutes in I checked and the oven thermometer inside was 400! Luckily, I have a window next to the oven so when I do burn something I just open the window and wave the smoke out.

A few weeks before the move I made a special treat for Valentine's Day. Crispy Cocoa-Walnut Cookies admirably served as the outer shell enveloping creamy vanilla ice cream. Topped with chocolate sauce, this dessert was a magnificent ending to a merely average dinner.

Feel free to make these any time of the year. Summer would be an ideal time. Or now. How about right now? Who can resist an ice cream cookie sandwich? No one that I know.

The cookie recipe is courtesy of bon appétit's February issue. The ice cream part was my idea. I substituted walnuts for pecans but you can use any nuts. I think hazelnuts would be an excellent choice.


Crispy Cocoa-Pecan (Walnut) Cookies

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder (scooped, then leveled)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/3 cup (lightly packed) brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
2 tablespoons whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts)
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Stir butter, brown sugar, sugar, corn syrup, milk, and vanilla in another medium bowl until smooth. Stir in the flour mixture, then nuts. Cover and chill until firm, about 4 hours or overnight.

Position 1 rack in the top third and 1 rack in the bottom third of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees.

Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment. Measure 2 level tablespoons dough and roll between palms into a ball. Place on prepared baking sheet. Using the palm of your hand, gently press the dough onto the cookie sheet to form a 3-inch diameter disk. Repeat with remaining dough, spacing 5 inches apart.

Bake cookies 8 minutes, reverse sheets. Continue baking until cookies are flat and beginning to darken around the edges, about 10 more minutes. Transfer cookies on parchment paper to rack. Cookies will crisp while they cool.

Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature.

Form Ice Cream Sandwiches

Let ice cream soften for 5 minutes or so. Scoop one generous portion of vanilla ice cream onto the bottom of one cookie and then place another cookie on top, pressing gently. Remove any excess ice cream by gently scraping the sides of the cookie with a spatula. Top with melted bittersweet chocolate and serve immediately. Or place on cookie sheet and return sandwiches to the freezer until ice cream has hardened and chocolate has set. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Best eaten within 5 days.

Cookie Press Rating: 4 cookies (out of 5)

Brownie Squares

Christmas is just two days away and I have to say that I'm very prepared this year. My shopping is done, cards mailed, and cookie assortment completed and shared. I have just one gift left to wrap and a dessert to make for Christmas Eve. I think that's pretty darn great for December 23rd. I could get used to not working. But I really shouldn't.

A few years ago Gourmet Magazine featured a basic butter cookie recipe and many cookies that you could make using the butter cookie dough as a base and adding a topping or flavoring to make a whole new cookie. I liked the idea of adding a brownie topping to the butter cookie base since I don't consider brownies to be very festive in and of themselves. By pressing the delicious butter cookie dough into a 9 x 13 inch pan, baking it, and then topping it with a chocolaty brownie and baking it again the normally dull brownie gets a starring role as a cookie. Omit the nuts if you want, but I think they give the cookie some needed crunch.

Basic Butter Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.

Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 - 4 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture and mix until just combined.

Grease a 9 x 13 inch metal baking pan, then line with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on both ends. Then grease foil.

Press dough evenly into bottom of baking pan, using plastic wrap or wax paper on top to keep dough from sticking to your fingers. Chill until firm, about 20 minutes.

As crust chills, preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake crust until golden brown, about 20 - 25 minutes. Do not over bake. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack for 20 minutes. Leave oven on.

As crust cools, make the brownie topping.

Brownie Topping

1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter
10 1/2 ounce bittersweet chocolate, chopped (do not use unsweetened)
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped (toast walnuts by placing them on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 5 - 6 minutes. Check often and shake pan during toasting.)

Melt butter and chocolate with brown sugar in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Remove from heat, then whisk in eggs and vanilla until combined well. Whisk in flour, cocoa, and salt, then stir in walnuts (if using).

Spread brownie batter over cooled crust and bake until set, about 20 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack, about 1 1/2 hours. Lift from pan and using a heavy knife (Chef's knife), cut into 1-inch squares. Running knife under hot water and wiping dry will aid in making clean cuts.

Cookie press rating: 4 cookies (out of 5)

Accordion Cookies

I had never heard of Accordion Cookies before I received this recipe from one of my faithful blog readers. The foil is folded like the paper fans we all used to make in grammar school on the final days of school in June when it was blistering hot and no one was thinking about learning anything, except the way to the town pool.

The dough is easy to make. The recipe calls for walnuts, but you could use pecans, hazelnuts chopped fine, or almonds. Try substituting nuts for dried cranberries or add a little lemon zest to give the cookies a new twist.

Spoon the dough into each fold being sure not to overdo it. As the dough cooks, it spreads quite a lot into a cookie that looks very much like biscotti. The outer layer is crisp while the inside is soft, creating a nice juxtaposition of textures.

These cookies would be fun to make on a rainy afternoon with your kids or grand kids. Top each scoop of dough with sprinkles or M&M's for a fun and tasty treat.

I really like these cookies because they are fun to make and they taste great to boot. They freeze well and hold their interesting "V" shape. I gave my friend Victor a few and he called them "remarkable" and limited his friend Eileen to only three before cutting her off! Don't worry Victor, the recipe makes enough to share without limits.

And thanks to Deb J. for sending me the recipe. I love to try new cookies so if you have a recipe, send it along to my email address which is listed in the About Me section of this blog.

Cookie press rating: 3.75 cookies (out of five)


Accordion Cookies

Ingredients
2 sheets (approx. 1 yard) heavy-duty foil
1 1/2 sticks butter (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1) Heat oven to 325°F. Fold 1 sheet of foil in half lengthwise. Then fold the double thickness foil crosswise into 1-inch pleats to make an accordion-pleated pan. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat with second sheet of foil. Spray foil lightly with non-stick cooking spray.

2) In large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs; beat well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. Add flour and salt; mix well. Stir in walnuts. Drop rounded teaspoonful of dough into catch of foil. (Dough spreads during baking to form 2 1/2 to 5-inch long cookies)

3) Bake for 18 to 26 minutes or until golden brown. Remove cookies from foil and cool completely on rack.

4) Turn foil over for second baking. Repeat with second sheet of foil.

If desired, baked cookies can be sprinkled with powdered sugar or frosted with a powdered sugar glaze.

Dough Prior to Baking













Gently Remove Cooled Cookies With a Butter Knife














The Final Product