Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies from 100 Cookies

 Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies - made dough January 14, 2023 from 100 Cookies by Sarah Kieffer

2 1/2 cups (355 grams) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks, 170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar

3/4 cup (150 grams) brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

7 ounces (198 grams) bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped into chunks

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat on medium until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down bottom and sides of bowl to keep mixture even textured.
4. Add eggs and vanilla, mix to combine.
5. Add dry ingredients and beat on low speed until just combined. Portion into golf-ball-size dough balls and evenly space on baking sheets.
6. Bake for 8 minutes, then lightly tap baking sheet in oven and continue baking cookies another 2 to 3 minutes (10-11 minutes total). Give pan one final tap in the oven then remove from oven and let cookies rest on baking sheet until completely cooled.

I'm so glad to have discovered this baking book just for this recipe alone where, unlike the Snickerdoodles from the same book, this chocolate chip cookie recipe didn't spread much and stayed decently thick. Some cookies I don't mind being thin but chocolate chip isn't one of them.

These are a good, simple recipe for chocolate chip cookies. The dough came together nicely, not too dry or too soft/sticky. I'm learning to adapt to this world of potential butter issues, especially with chocolate chip cookies.

Despite my years of baking instincts to follow the recipe EXACTLY, those same instincts and years of baking experience says to adapt to how ingredients seem to be now and make adjustments as needed. For chocolate chip cookies, while I do like whisking dry ingredients together to disperse the leaveners and salt more evenly with the flour, I held back 1/4 cup of the flour and after the combined dry ingredients were added, I added the held-back flour until the dough was the consistency I wanted.

The good news is I've noticed the recipes from 100 Cookies tend to match my weight measurements more than other recipes. I do the scoop and level method to measure flour and when I measure ingredients and weigh them, other recipes always have a lower weight for flour than how I measure out. Not 100 Cookies; we match almost exactly. And the dough consistency was perfect without me having to make any adjustments after all.

I copied the directions as is from the book but I always, always chill cookie dough first. That helps prevent spread and concentrates the flavors better as the dough "ages" in the refrigerator. These were good, especially 10 minutes out of the oven.