After years of testing various recipes, I’ve finally nailed the perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies. The key, as what I tell my followers, is the type of vanilla, sugar, and chocolate chips used. Years ago, by accident, I made a batch with Sugar in the Raw granulated brown sugar. This accident turned out to be the staple in my cookie baking. It gives the cookies a wonderful, crunchy texture.
Using vanilla paste instead of vanilla extract is important. It adds an extra dimension to the flavor of the dough. I use Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste. Seeing the vanilla speckles also brings me joy. =)
Dee’s Tip: I bake this in batches, and freeze the remaining dough. When you’re ready for another batch, defrost the dough in the refrigerator. Cut into squares and follow the directions below. Believe it or not, the cookies taste better.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups unsifted all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup granulated brown sugar (I use Sugar in the Raw)
- ¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 1 cup (8 oz stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste
- 1 package of Guittard Chocolate Chips (I prefer either Guittard Real Semisweet Chocolate Baking Chips or their Extra Dark Chocolate Baking Chips)
- Optional: Peanut Butter Chips – feel free to add these along with the chocolate chips. The amount is up to you, but if you want a lot, reduce the amount of chocolate chips.
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375ºF. Line your cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
- In a large bowl cream butter, brown sugar and packed brown sugar until light. Beat in eggs and vanilla paste until smooth. Add flour mixture, one heaping spoonful at a time, until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
- Drop by well-rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 9-11 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove from the oven. After 1 minute, place each cookie onto a cooling rack.
