Crisp and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I think that my chocolate chip cookies are pretty delicious, but the photograph of chocolate chip cookies in the April issue of Martha Stewart Living made me want to give them a try.  Martha Stewart claims them to be the best crispy and chewy chocolate chip cookie, and they definitely live up to their title.  Last year, I thought I had the perfect texture, but after trying this recipe I realized how subtle changes in the sugar and flour proportions, as well as the size of the scoop of dough can make a big difference.  After comparing recipes and doing some calculations, I realized that Martha's recipe had 27 percent more flour than sugar compared to mine which only have 22 percent more flour than sugar (a 5 percent difference between the two).  She also flopped the brown sugar to granulated sugar ratio, the recipe favoring more brown sugar than granulated.  The other main difference between Martha's and my cookie, is that Martha's cookie is 3 tablespoons of dough and mine was only 2 tablespoons.  These cookies are much larger and it is important to space them out well, otherwise they end up looking like a Mrs. Fields giant cookie cake.  So watch out!  Also, please note that I allowed the dough to sit in the refrigerator for 72 hours to allow the flavors to fully develop and meld together.


Here are the ingredients for Martha Stewart Living's Crisp and Chewy Chocolate Chip cookie from April 2010 (makes about 20):
-2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
-1 1/4 teaspoons salt
-1 teaspoon baking powder
-1 teaspoon baking soda
-2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
-1 1/4  cups packed dark-brown sugar
-3/4 cup granulated sugar
-2 large eggs
-1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
-1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips


To begin, whisk flour, baking powder, and baking soda until combined.


Beat butter and sugars with a mixer on medium-high until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes.  Beat in eggs 1 at a time.  Add vanilla.  Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture.  Beat until combined.  Mix in chocolate chips.


Let sit in the refrigerator up to 72 hours, if you have time.


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.


Scoop a ball of dough, the equivalent of 3 tablespoons onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 3 inches apart.  Bake until golden around the edges but soft in the middle, about 15 minutes.  Let cool for 5 minutes.  Transfer cookies to a wire rack, and let cool completely.

Cookies Galore

Last year around this time, I became a human cookie factory for a weekend. I always think homemade gifts are the sweetest, plus it can be a way to save money during the most expensive month of the year. My coworkers always give each other gifts which I find to be really annoying (I am a total grinch), but since I like to bake I decided this could be both a nice gift and a fun activity. It ended up being a 4 day baking marathon. The first two days were dedicated to making dough and refrigerating it, and the final two was a non-stop bake-a-thon (literally 8 hours in the kitchen both days). By the end of it, I was completely exhausted and my feet were throbbing. I ended up making chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies with royal icing, chewy ginger snaps, snickerdoodles, peppernuts, Fleur de Sel toffee, and candied citrus peel (click on any of the links to get the recipes). In my opinion, people were not impressed enough - so this year I am not going waste my time going to that much work.

This year for my office gifts I order some tins of Russian tea from Kusmi Tea and I am planning to make peppernuts to go along with each tin. Tomorrow I am going to my boss' cocktail party so I decided to make the chewy ginger snap cookies. I know she likes them so well. I will post about them probably Wednesday. If you are looking for an alternative chocolate chip cookie - the chewy ginger snaps are so good and perfect for the holiday season.

Below are pictures taken from last year's cookie making. I got all the packaging from my favorite paper store called Paper Presentation.

Rolling out the peppernut dough.

Tiny peppernut slices.

Peppernuts baked.

Chewy ginger snaps cooling.

Sugar cookies with Royal icing and sprinkled sugar.

Chocolate chip cookies cooling.

Fleur de sel toffee.

Candied orange peel drying.

Making labels.

Packaging.

Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies

A couple people have told me that the chocolate chip cookies at The City Bakery are the best in NYC, in fact some go as far to say they are the best chocolate chip cookie they have ever had. I finally tried one a few months ago. To be honest, I was majorly disappointed and thought, "I can make a better cookie than this." Overall, the cookie had a strange aftertaste and greasy consistency. I couldn't figure out what kind of fat they baked the cookie with. The only props I could give the large cookie was for its great texture - a combination of crunchy edges and a chewy soft center. I wouldn't discourage one from trying the cookie, and I would definitely go back to the bakery for their hot chocolate, which I heard is like "drinking a liquid chocolate bar."