Chocolate Chip Cookies - How to Make Them Chewier

Chocolate chip cookies are so popular. People are used to the Toll House cookie recipe. This one is so much better. The secret to this recipe's success in making them chewy is melted butter! This melted butter, combined with the softened butter and the rest of the ingredients give this cookie dough a crispness on the outside and chewy cookie on the inside that makes it a huge hit.

Ice cream scoops are important to use when making this chocolate chip cookie recipe. Ice cream scoops allow you to control the portion size which makes all of your cookies bake the same size evenly and allows you to be able to stack them to make cookie towers (wrap with plastic wrap and add a bow to give as a gift).



This recipe can be made ahead -- shaped into logs (use parchment paper instead of waxed paper), baked and frozen (don't worry about using separator wax sheets, they will pop apart when thawed) or put into decorative buckets and given as gifts for your family and friends to bake when they want (attach baking instructions). Let your imagination be your guide. You'll thank me later when you get the compliments. Enjoy!

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
(recipe can be easily doubled)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled a little bit (do not mix in while it's hot)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1-1/2 cups brown sugar (packed well into measuring cup)
1/4 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
2-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract (or you could substitute 2-1/2 tsp. Bailey's Irish Cream for a different flavor)
2 cups + 2 T all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (you would substitute milk chocolate chips if you like those better)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees before putting together ingredients. Use a hand mixer or heavy duty mixer to cream the softened butter, brown sugar and white sugar together until creamy. Slowly add the melted butter a little at a time and blend well until thickened. Add the eggs, one at a time, until blended well, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract or Bailey's Irish Cream. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure it's completely blended together. Set aside. In another bowl, sift (or use a whisk to aerate), the flour, baking soda and salt until completely blended together. Using a large spoon, sprinkle the flour mixture slowly into the butter/sugar mixture until it is all incorporated. Scrape down the sides to make sure that everything is blended well. Add the chocolate chips a little at a time until blended in. Use an ice cream scoop to portion out your dough onto a parchment covered cookie sheet. The cooking time will vary according to your oven.

When baking this recipe as regular cookies, always start with a parchment covered cookie sheet on the middle (not top) rack. Once the edges start to brown, move the cookie sheet to the top rack and then put another pan of cookies onto the middle rack. ALWAYS line the cookie sheet with parchment paper. This paper allows cookies to pop off the sheet and gives them all a uniform golden brown on the bottom. For the second batch, turn the parchment paper over and put on your cooled cookie sheet.

Variations:
Custom Chocolate Chip Cookies - This recipe is so easy to customize -- you can take one batch of cookie dough - once you blend in the flour, you can measure out a combination of chocolate chips, toffee bits, peanut butter chips, nuts or anything else you like to mix into your dough. You can also divide the dough up into three or four parts and then add different ingredients to each part to customize them for your family and friends.

Monster-sized Chocolate Chip Cookies - The monster sized versions of the recipe are always a hit with men and women (use the largest ice cream scoop you can find). Bake no more than 6 on a cookie sheet using the method above to start baking on the lower shelf and then continuing on the top shelf once the bottom is brown. They can be put in a 10" cake box or wrapped in plastic bags tied with ribbon to give as gifts.

Individual Chocolate Chip Cookie Cakes - Individual chocolate chip cookie cakes can be made using a 6" round, square or heart-shaped cake pan. Follow the instructions listed below.

Stacked Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake - What do you gift a person who loves chocolate chip cookies for their birthday? Make them a stacked chocolate chip cookie cake, and they will LOVE you! Double the recipe above and use regular cake pans sprayed with butter spray to make chocolate chip cookie cakes (I've used 6" round, 8" round and a 10" round to make a stacked cookie cake). You can use whatever sizes you have on hand. Use enough cookie batter so that the cake pan is half full. Don't forget to use spray butter inside your cake pan before putting in the cookie dough. These cookie cakes will bake at 350 degrees until done. You have to insert a cake tester inside to make sure they're done. They are usually golden brown when done. You can shake them out of the cake pan when cooled. For your own sanity, you can also put a parchment circle in the bottom of the cake pan.

Decorated Chocolate Chip Cookie Cakes - Chocolate chip cookie cakes can be decorated using pre-made frosting and decorations featured in the baking aisle at your local grocery store. This is a perfect project for little kids.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8099037