Playing Catch Up

So, it's not like I've been gone for a while. Oh wait, it is? Well, it's not like I completely overlooked all of the cooking I did during the holidays. What's that you say? That is exactly what I did? I see. Well, I have a feeling you'll forgive me. If you just make the recipe I'll be sharing with you now. I made this cookie, along with Espresso Double-Chocolate Chunk Cookies and Cheesecake Cookies, for my family's Thanksgiving gathering. I am most definitely not the first person to share this cookie recipe with you. It is the infamous chocolate chip cookie recipe that appeared in the New York Times. Molly has made it, Deb has made it, and the list could go on and on. The recipe, while not terribly hard, does require some effort and ingredients that I don't usually keep on hand. So, here's my somewhat dumbed-down version. Trust me when I tell you that these cookies, even in their remedial form, rock. And they aren't as overly fancy or fussy as the original recipe would suggest. My uncle gave me on of the best compliments I could probably receive- he said they tasted just like my grandmother had made them.

NYT Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe from David Leite in the NYT, Adapted by Moi














3 2/3 cups, minus 2 tablespoons, all purpose flour
1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons coarse salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 stick salted butter, softened
1 ¼ cups light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ¼ pounds bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks, preferably about 60% cacao content, such as Ghiradelli

• Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Whisk well; then set aside.
• Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butters and sugars until very light and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Reduce the mixer speed to low; then add dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. Add the chocolate chips, and mix briefly to incorporate. Press plastic wrap against the dough, and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. The dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.
• When you’re ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F. Remove the bowl of dough from the refrigerator, and allow it to soften slightly, about 30 minutes. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat.
• Scoop about 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheet, making sure to space them evenly. Bake until golden brown but still soft, 9 to 11 minutes. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then transfer the cookies onto the rack to cool a bit more.

My notes: You can view the original recipe through either of the links I posted in the paragraph above, but this recipe is my adapted version. My changes include using all-purpose flour, a mixture of salted and unsalted butter, Ghiradelli chocolate chips, and baking smaller cookies. The original recipe calls for baking 1/3 cup of dough and makes about 24 cookies. I made mine smaller and got somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 dozen. I baked 2 dozen for Thanksgiving, a few more the next day, and I froze a big ball of dough for later. I baked that a few weeks ago and it made a dozen more. To freeze I double-wrapped the dough in plastic wrap and then put it in a large freezer bag. I thawed it overnight in the fridge and let it sit out for about 30 minutes again.