The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Today, I’m sharing the best chocolate chip cookie recipe. I feel obligated to tell you that these chocolate chip cookies are the only thing that I can truly bake. Everything else comes out good, but these chocolate chip cookies will have you going back for another. And another.

Chocolate chip cookies are the perfect treat to have on hand for an after school snack, movie night treat, or just because it is sunny, or even not so sunny. When I make my cookies, I always use a scoop to ensure they are uniform in size – this helps with consistent baking. Be sure to level off your scoop, too!

What you’ll need

2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup softened butter {not margarine, not a substitue. The real deal.}
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract {not the imitation stuff. The real deal.}
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 package of your favorite chocolate chips {mini chips are fun, too!}
1 cup chopped nuts {optional. I opt not to use nuts in my cookies}

What you’ll do

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the sugars, butter and vanilla extract.
Add eggs and beat well. Make sure to thoroughly combine the eggs.
Add dry ingredients, slowly. You don’t want a big mess.
Fold in chocolate chips {and nuts, if that’s how you roll}. Scrape the sides of your bowl down to avoid waste.

Using a one-inch scoop, drop mixture onto ungreased baking sheets.

Reduce oven temperature to 375, this is important. Your cookies will burn if you bake them at a higher temperature. Bake chocolate chip cookies 9-11 minutes. Cool slightly on baking sheet before moving to cooling rack.

This recipe will make approximately 2 1/2 dozen cookies, if using a one-inch scoop.

I typically bake half of the chocolate chip cookie dough and freeze the other half for another day. If you want to do this, be sure to portion your chocolate chip cookie dough and freeze on a baking sheet lined with freezer paper. Once your chocolate chip cookie balls are frozen, remove them from the baking sheet and store in a zip top bag. Write the baking instructions on the bag, adding two minutes to the baking time. Frozen chocolate chip cookie dough is nice to have on hand if a babysitter is coming over or guests unexpectedly join you for dinner.

Do you make your chocolate chip cookies with nuts or are you a purist like me?