chocolate chip cookies, take 1

With a cookie as classic as the chocolate chip, it's easy to get obsessed with finding the absolute perfect recipe. The New York Times even ran a spread on perfecting this beloved cookie. And who could blame them? The cookie is such a delightful blend of sugary, chewy, crispy, chocolaty goodness that it is no surprise how much debate has spawned over the "perfect" chocolate chip cookie.

Curious to join in on the hunt, I read up on recipes all over the place. Then, in my summer library cookbook frenzy, I found Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook. It's a small little book that I wouldn't have noticed had it not been placed next to the Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook(and how could you not pass that one by? SO CUTE). Between the cover photo, a seemingly mile-high stack of thin and crispy cookies, and Ina Garten professing in the foreward that these were the "best chocolate chip cookies you ever ate"...well, I had to try them out. And so, with Ina's words in my head, my search for the best chocolate chip cookies begins. It's not quite as serious as the NYT, but I'm determined to try out all those little variations on the cookie to find my favorite. It sounds like a fun challenge to me.

These cookies were pretty good. The flavor was absolutely amazing, the edges were crispy and the center perfectly chewy. I feel like I didn't quite do them justice, though. My cookies were extremely thin and I had trouble keeping some of them from crumbling apart. It may have had something to do with the fact that I didn't really try to make them uniform sizes, and I think this recipe really only works for cookies of the specified size. The ones that did end up being the right size were incredible.

yum, a bowl full of cookie dough...

Recipe
from Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook by Kathleen King (also available here)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup salted butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon water
1 teaspoon vanila
2 large eggs
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two cookie sheets or line them with Silpat.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In another large bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Add the water and vanilla. Mix the ingredients until they are just combined. Add the eggs and mix them lightly. Stir in the flour mixture. Fold in the chocolate chips. Don’t overmix the dough.

Drop the cookies 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets using two tablespoons or an ice cream scoop.

Bake them for 12 minutes or until the edges and centers are brown. Remove the cookies to a wire rack to cool.