Chocolate Chip Cookie Bliss. A Love Story.

***  This post is actually 2 years old.  It is one of the first things I ever posted on my site.  Since its rather a busy week for me and I didn’t get the marking guide I am working on finished… I thought I would post this… if in fact any of you haven’t seen this.  Today is a good day for you.

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This is a love story.

I am going to introduce you to your newest love of your life.  This chocolate chip cookie.

Finding the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe is the precise analogy to finding your spouse.  Or at least it was for me.  Just think of all of the time, money and dirty dishes you have invested in making the cookie in hopes that this “one” may just be it!  And sometimes it was “almost” it, and others it was definitely not it, and others you ate them anyway as long as you had a glass of milk around to ignore the poor quality of taste.  But you pressed on in your search because you just “knew” that cookie was out there.  You knew because you had seen it other places. You knew the potential.  You just believed.

Your search is over.  Meet your cookie.

 I call this a “Kitchen Cupboard Recipe”, because it is taped on the inside of one of my kitchen cupboard doors.  These are the yummiest, gooey-ist, crowd-pleasing-ist chocolate chip cookies around.  These may just send you into a chocolate chip cookie coma.  And you will be happy there.

But… as in all relationships, there are some very specific  instructions to earn the desirable results.  AND as in all baking… it is a science.  And rules must be followed.

You will see that this is not a cookie you can make in a snap.  This is a time commitment.  There are steps to take.  It takes time to reach our true potential.

Start ahead of time by setting out  your butter so it can reach room temperature

Then, into your mixer, add:

1 cup Shortening

1 cup Butter (room temperature)

1 cup Sugar

1 1/2 cups packed Brown Sugar

 

Mix and scrape the sides down

And then mix it like crazy

I mix it about 2 minutes.  Until it is fluffy and a very light brown – almost white.

Now add:

2 Extra Large Eggs

2 teaspoons Vanilla

And mix

In a separate bowl add:

4 cups of flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

And sift together.  I whisk.

Add the flour a little at a time at a low speed

And accept the fact that getting flour everywhere is worth the final result.  Relationships are messy man.

This is the cookie dough.  Look how light and fluffy.

And you will start to get excited because this is not like all your other cookie doughs.  This feels different.

Now is the time for the great debate.  Milk Chocolate or Semi-Sweet???  I have found a good solution.  Add both.  One bag of each.  You see, this recipe is actually doubled.  We always double it.   And I like a well-rounded cookie.

And use the good stuff.  Invest in yourselves and buy the big yummy chocolate chips.  It will not be the same without them.  Above you will also see the semi-sweet “chunks”.  I like the different textures of chocolate going on in one cookie.

And the dough finally meets the chocolate chips.  They are meant for one another.  And they fall in love.

And stand guard by your cookie dough.  Passer-bys will  test your “defend the cookie dough” skills.  Like they do when you make bacon.

And cover it and put it into your fridge.  With a threatening sign.  I didn’t need the sign because we went to bed – this was a good “protect the cookie dough” move.

After the dough is chilled, roll it up into balls.

And put them in your freezer.  THIS is one of my secrets.

Heat your oven to 375.  You see, I love a gooey chocolate chip cookie with a crisp bottom.  And this is how I achieve that.  Bake at a high temperature, without burning, and with a frozen dough – the inside doesn’t get too done.

Try it.

PLUS – you just take out of the bag as many cookies as you want to bake, and leave the rest in the freezer.

Then when people drop by your home, and you want to give them a treat, because after all – they are in your home, you can have these out of the oven in no time.  And they will say “wow you have the perfect cookie – you are so lucky”.

These are just barely out of the oven.  Take them out just as they are starting to brown.  I mean barely brown.   The bottom will be brown already.  I believe a very unfortunate fact of life is that most people over-bake cookies.

 Take them out and let them set on the cookie sheet.

Now – are you ready?  It is time…

Meet the cookie.

Just look at that crisp bottom crust.  And the gooey center.  And that chocolate.   Bliss.  You will never make another recipe again.  You and the cookie will be loyal to each other.

Until you make him for your friends and family.  And they will steal him from you.

Here is the recipe again:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bliss

In a mixer add

1 cup shortening

2 sticks butter at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

Cream together till light and fluffy

Add to the mixture

2 extra large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

Mix

In a separate bowl, sift together:

4 cups of flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

Add a cup at a time to the mxture

Add your chocolate chips

Refrigerate till chilled

Roll into balls

Put into plastic bag and freeze

Heat oven to 375

Bake 8-12 minutes or until they start to brown

Let set on cookie sheet

Control yourself

38 comments

  1. My “No Cookie Left Behind” Chocolate
    Chip Cookie is going to try the freezer
    dive! Also, I’m going to make your recipe
    in March… when I’m not sugar-fasting
    anymore… 🙂

  5. You need to know that I CAN’T cook or bake at all. I just made these and we are in heaven. They are definately worth the extra effort and if I can do it, anyone can. Thank you, thank you!! Plus I enjoy your light humor in your recipes. I am new to your website but I am loving it!

  6. Genius! Not to mention that I can now have cookies ready in a flash (if I don’t eat them all up too fast!). Thanks! So glad I found your blog!

  7. Love, love, love these cookies! This is my new favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe! Thanks for posting it! I have passed it on to all my family! They love it too!

  9. Oh my heavens! The-Best-Cookie-ever. And fresh out of the freezer…I cannot believe they cook so nicely….yum. Thanks so much for sharing.

  10. Wow!! We got these cookie dough balls from a friend for Christmas and we LOVE them. I had to con the secret out of my friend and she gave you all the credit. Awesome recipes!!

  11. So isnt shortening the same or substituted with butter??? I have always just used butter when it says shortening. Are you using oil for your shortening then or what??

  12. Bernice:

    you use BOTH…the room temp butter AND the shortening. mixing them and not using total amounts of just either is another one of the secrets…. if you use just shortening…cookies tend to spread too much, if you use just butter, they may tend to be to ‘cake’ textured.

  13. These where the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever baked. I skipped the freezer part only because my kids begged for them that night. I chilled them for close to 5 hours though and they were so fluffy and moist. Really great recipe and now it is the only chocolate chip cookie one I use! Thank you so much…

  14. I’m so excited to try this recipe, with all the directions just as you said. I also keep my very best go-to recipes taped inside the cupboard doors! I also pinned this on pinterest, so I would never lose it. I hope that is OK.

  15. Oh fun!! I am the official cookie baker in our neighborhood. I will try this recipe and see what the judges (all the neighbors) say. It sounds pretty good to me.

  16. Oh my…..

    I found your blog a few days ago through someone else. Can’t remember who though. I love it. I think I signed on to follow. You are on my blog list.

    And I happen to be a chocaholic. I just LOVE chocolate. I have had to stay off of chocolate among other things for the past month. Drs orders. Been back to normal for a few days now. 🙂

    I saw your post title and went nuts lol I was practically drooling all over my keyboard while reading this post. 🙂

    I will have to make these soon. My blogging friends know of my love of chocolate. I have recently posted about it (March and April).

    I’d like, in my next post to tell about this and link to your blog here in that post. Is that ok? Let me know ok?

    I like your posts on the scriptures and all. I have an LDS blog too. Both blogs are only a few months old. If you’d like to visit me I am at…
    http://throughthewoods2.blogspot.com
    http://latterdaysaintsarechristianstoo.blogspot.com

    Have a great day.

    Take care, Janet W

  18. Just made these cookies for friends last night and they were a huge hit!!! Thank you much for my new go-to choco chip recipe!

  19. Hi! My friend, Joni Hayes told me I have to try these! I am actually going to make them for a freezer meal group we’re in. Can you tell me approximately how many cookies this recipe makes?
    Thanks!

    1. Hi Heidi!
      You know cute Joni? Tell her hello for me! I saw her dad in the Temple a few months ago when we were doing family sealings.
      The recipe makes a good 35 to 40 cookies. It all depends on the size of your scoop.
      I hope you love it! I love the idea of a freezer meal group!
      Shannon

  20. Thanks so much for this recipe!
    I have just made a batch of these and OH MY….they are GOOD!!!

    Also, I want to thank you for your Youtube post on Scripture Journals….it has truly inspired me, and made me view things and areas in my life a little differently!
    Thanks again

  22. Have tried three stores and no luck finding choc chunks : (. Will chop up some bars, but not as uniform, and more work – what’s up w not finding them??

  24. First, I should say that I have my own “favorite” chocolate chip cookie recipe. And they’re awesome.

    Second, I copied your recipe down anyway the first time I saw it months and months ago, just because I figured that for a person to go as nutty about a recipe as you do about this one, it must be pretty cool, and worth a look. Sometime.

    Third, I finally made them! And not for a small occasion, either. I am sending a little-piece-of-home-in-a-box cookies to my 17-year old son who is across the country for 6 weeks this summer at a special music program. You see how crucial the perfect cookie is?

    He’s been gone a week and I know (because a mother does) that he needs these bad. And he does. We’re FedEx-ing them to him, as a surprise. The first sheet just came out of the oven and the results live up to all your descriptive bliss, thank you. At a time when I needed perfection and… well… bliss, this is it. I’m happy! My boy will be happy!

    And you are my new best friend 🙂

  25. I just made these today…I am six months pregnant and had a total pregnancy craving for chocolate chip cookies. Best recipe ever! Thanks!!!

  26. Just made these. Three words for you: I HATE YOU. These are the best darn cookies I have ever made and I can’t stop eating them! Dlicious! Thank you so very much for sharing your wonderful secrets!

  27. I finally tried this recipe today. It was one of the worst decisions of my life. How am I EVER going to learn to have self control with these cookies floating around.

    They are so absolutely yummy!

    Thanks!

  28. Oh dear I must have done something wrong!I tried to translate your American terms into British ingredients! What is shortening?

  29. I don’t know if I should love you or hate you. These cookies ROCK! I have to say that as much as I love chocolate chip cookies, I love chocolate chip cookie dough even more (I know, I know, the raw egg thing, but it doesn’t bother me. Ü). This dough is so crazy good I can’t stop eating it. It’s a dangerous thing having a freezer full of cookie dough balls.

    Thank you for sharing this recipe. I am so in love with these it’s ridiculous.

  31. The best chocolate chip cookie I have ever made! I gave them away at Christmas in gift baskets and had some left over in the freezer that I found this weekend. They were so good. I also ate some of the dough raw. Thats when I knew the recipe was going to be a good one!! Thank You!

  33. Thank you for this amazing recipe. I made these for our Girls Camp Fund-Raising Dinner. They turned out as amazing as promised. This has turned out to be a favorite recipe of our ward! Thanks again for sharing!

  35. Hi! We absolutely LOVE this recipe, and I’ve made it probably a dozen times. Mine never turn out quite as thick/fat as yours in the picture. Am I rolling the balls too big or not adding enough flour, etc? Any advice for getting them to the thick, chewy size in your pictures? Thank you!

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