Saturday, July 12, 2008

amazingly good chocolate chip cookies



These are Derek's favorite cookies, and he doesn't even like chocolate. We are having a lazy summer day, and he's been dropping hints. So, I decided to make a batch. This recipe is also from The Pastry Queen Cookbook by Rebecca Rather. (I've got no shame in the fact that just about every desert I make has her name on it.) 

I've come to the conclusion that any recipe that starts out with 1 stick of butter + 1 cup of sugar is going to taste great in the end. So, the fact that this one starts with 2 sticks of butter + 2 cups of sugar (1 granulated, 1 brown) says it all. The smell of butter, sugar, and vanilla all creamed together warms my heart. Oh, and yes, that does say 3 cups of chocolate chips.

1 1/2 c walnuts
1 1/2 c pecans
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp
1 c firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 c granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 1/3 c all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 scant tsp salt
3 c chocolate cups

Preheat the oven to 350. Arrange the nuts on a baking sheet in a single layer and toast for 7-9 min. Cool and then coarsely chop.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or grease generously. Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and both sugars in a large bowl on medium speed about 1 min, until fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix on medium-low speed until incorporated.  Stir in the nuts and chocolate chips. Drop the dough in golf-ball size mounds, spacing about 1 1/2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 min. (It's okay if the middle still looks a little raw as long as the edges are brown.) Viola!



Photobucket

1 comment:

::LYNDSEY:: said...

mmmmm...i have got to try that recipe when i get home from colorado. i remember that recipe (the one that won over the anti-chocolate man that IS derek hall). give it up for the pastry queen!!! i miss you, too. hope yall are well!