The Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie...

I have been on the hunt for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe for quite some time now, and I have tried many that have fallen short of my expectations. Chocolate chip cookies are one of those things where everyone likes them a certain way and many people differ in their opinions as to what the perfect cookie looks and tastes like. What are my expectations you ask? I expect chocolate chip cookies to be moist, chewy, and soft. I also expect them to not fall flat and thin, but to also not be puffy and cake like. I have done a lot of research on how to make a cookie not fall flat. I read that if you using shortening instead of butter, and baking powder instead of soda it will help. I also read that if you refrigerate your dough first, it will help from spreading too thin too quickly in the oven. Well, I tried refrigerating the dough of one recipe and it didn't help. It only made it very frustrating to work with. I have never tried a recipe with shortening because I guess I just feel a classic cookie such as the chocolate chip cookie should be made from real butter. The only other suggestion I was missing was to measure my dry ingredients. Well, when I started my hunt I didn't have a scale and so I thought until I buy one I just won't make anymore cookies. That is until I came across this recipe...


Vanilla Pudding Chocolate Chip Cookies...
I felt like I had finally hit the jackpot! These cookies looked perfect and tasted like a dream. Also, when kept in an airtight Tupperware container, they stayed soft. I didn't even have to measure my dry ingredients with this one! However, as much as I was sold on this recipe, Jay just thought they weren't exactly sweet enough. I honestly thought he was crazy, but I still continued my search for more good cookie recipes for him.

Recipe from All Recipes

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 (3.5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Add pudding mix, eggs and vanilla. Combine flour and baking soda; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Fold in chocolate chips.
3. Drop by tablespoonfuls (I used cookie scoop) onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Do not over-bake or they will become crispy! Let rest for only a minutes on baking sheet and then transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely.



These cookies were definitely kid approved! :)



After a couple more failed recipes, I decided to buy my first kitchen scale. I went back to a recipe I had tried before and this time measured my ingredients. Wow! What a difference it made.


Classic Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
This recipe is all over the internet, and seems to be a favorite among so many people, and now I know why. These cookies meet all of my expectations and still use all the classic ingredients. These were most amazing right out of the oven. I would even compare them to Sweet Martha's cookies sold at the fair every year! They also stayed moist when kept in an airtight Tupperware container.

Recipe from Brown Eyed Baker

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (10 5/8 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour (for a healthier version, use whole wheat pastry flour)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled for 20 minutes until warm
1 cup packed (7 ounces) light brown sugar
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Adjust the oven racks to the middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.
3. Either by hand or with an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed just until combined. Stir in the chips to taste.
4. Measure dough with tablespoon sized cookie scoop and line on baking sheet.
5. Bake until the cookies are light golden grown and the outer edges start to lightly brown yet the centers are still soft and puffy, 10-12 minutes. Cool the cookies on the sheets for 2 minutes. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets and cool on wire rack.



Kid approved again! :)


After having such success with two recipes now, I am just not sure which to decide as a my favorite, and so that is why I am just posting both. If you don't have a kitchen scale and you want something with less work and still great taste, make the vanilla pudding recipe. If you insist on only making a cookie with the classic ingredients, make the second recipe, but understand it is more time-consuming measuring your ingredients. Enjoy!