Puffy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am on a quest.

To find the perfect chocolate chip cookies.

And boy, this recipe is gonna be hard to beat. You see, I have very high standards for a chocolate chip cookie. It has to be soft, overloaded with chocolate chips, buttery, dense yet light, with a barely crunchy outside that leads to a gooey inside. No crumbles, hard cookies, or flatness allowed here. I don't even know if I have ever had the chocolate chip cookie of my dreams, but someday, I will find it!

As of right now, this is my husband's proclaimed favorite chocolate chip cookie ever and until (or if or when) I find something better, this is my favorite too! He says they are perfect, and I guess I can't really think of anything about them that isn't good, once they are baked that is. You see, I am a self-proclaimed cookie dough connoisseur (had to look up the spelling on that one!). I eat any and every kind of dough/batter that I make. It's true. And the one downfall of these cookies is that the dough isn't as delicious as other chocolate chip cookie doughs that I have made. The dough is actually on the dry side, which lends to the gorgeous puff once they bake.

I would say that these are the best chocolate chip cookies that I have ever made; but not the best cookie dough that I have tried. I suppose that considering the baked cookies are what you would be sharing, this is the recipe to go with! Alas, perfectly baked cookies and perfect cookie dough may not exist together, but perhaps this is the best of both worlds.

Everyone loves chocolate chip cookies, and everyone will be especially happy when they see one of the puffiest chocolate chip cookies ever! Make these cookies, and everyone will think you're a cookie-baking queen!

Puffy Chocolate Chip Cookies (Print)
recipe adapted from buns in my oven
Prep: 20 minutes / Bake: 10-13 minutes
Yield: about 2 dozen

1 stick (8 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg, cold
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Cut the butter into small cubes and place back into the fridge.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. In the bowl of your stand mixer (or large mixing bowl), beat the cold butter and sugar until barely combined. Make sure to use low speed and beat no longer than one minute. Do not beat until the usual creamed or fluffy! Overbeating will cause excess air and a tough cookie. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until just combined. The dough will look soupy and strange at this point.

4. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add them to the butter and sugar bowl, beat until combined. This will produce a stiff, lightly sticky dough. Add the chocolate chips and mix.

5. Scoop the dough into your desired size and place the cookies on the prepared baking sheet. I have a one tablespoon scoop; I made my cookies two scoops in size. I found that the cookies looked better after baking if you do not roll them into balls; rough scoops make prettier cookies.

6. Place the baking sheet in the fridge for 5 minutes. This prevents the cookies from spreading. Bake for 10-13 minutes or until the very outside edges are lightly browned. The cookies will set and look more done after cooling. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

My Review

• Preparation: 5
• This dough is simple to make and so much better than the store bought stuff!
• Taste: 5+
• My husband's favorite, he says they're perfect!
• Cost: 5
• Pantry staples for most of us. I have to plan ahead and buy chocolate chips. I can't keep those stocked in my pantry...that would be too dangerous!
• Clean-up: 5
• One bowl, and the parchment paper means you technically don't have to wash the baking sheet!
• Changes
• The original recipe said to use 1 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup walnuts. I like walnuts, but where a chocolate chip cookie is concerned, I'm not so sure. I took the liberty of adding extra chocolate chips in place of the omitted walnuts.
• Summary
• They're delicious, they're adorable, they're simple, and they just might make you the queen of cookies in your neck of the woods!