From August until early June, I am a special education teacher. I work with students who are visually impaired and have multiple disabilities. Each week, my class makes fresh chocolate chip cookies to sell to students and staff from our classroom store. I first made this recipe not too long after I received my very own copy of “The joy of cooking” cookbook from my parents this past year for my birthday. They came out perfect and were such a cinch to make. Me, absolutely loving to be in the kitchen, conjoined my passion for baking to my classroom curriculum. The result, a line out my door for chocolate chip cookies and infinite lessons in math, reading, job skills and independence. We typically sell out, so students and staff try to be the first in line at our class door because once they’re gone, they’re gone.

This brings me to now. It’s June and school is out, yet I had to make these cookies because my son, husband and father are HUGE fans of these cookies. I doubled the recipe and made tons of cookies. Once I had split the order, somewhat evenly, I had some leftover and thought I would bring them to my dentist appointment. I know what you’re thinking, “Bringing your dentist cookies?!” Yeah, I know, weird. But I must say, I have the BEST dentist with the most awesome staff. And besides, wouldn’t you want to be nice to the one with the drill? After handing over the freshly made batch of cookies to the women at the front desk, I went to the back to get some work done… a deep cleaning and CAVITY FILLINGS! So, as I sat there in the dreaded dentist chair with a mouth that had been shot up with Novocaine, I had one of the assistants ask me for the recipe and several others compliment the cookies as they passed my room. With a puffy mouth and maybe some slight drooling, I said “sure”. So there I was in the dentist chair writing the recipe down by memory. All this to say, this cookie is a winner. The cookies come out crispy around the edges, yet the center is soft and chewy. So whether you like crispy, chewy, or soft, this will please all of your cookie aficionados.

 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

“This recipe is a JOY classic, appearing in the book since the 1943 wartime edition.”

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees if using a light colored cookie sheet or 325 if using a dark colored cookie sheet. Explanation to follow in notes. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper (preferred method) or grease cookie sheets with non-cookie spray or butter.

 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup and 2 tbsp. of all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 cup (or 1 stick) unsalted butter–room temp.
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1 large egg–room temp.
• 1/4 tsp. of salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. of pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup of chocolate chips (I used mini’s–chips in every bite)
• (3/4 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans, optional)

 

METHOD:

In a large bowl, whisk the flour and baking soda and set aside.

Using a stander mixer or hand mixer, beat butter and sugars until well blended. Add the egg, salt and vanilla until you have a homogenous mixture.

Stir in the flour mixture until well blended and smooth.

Add the chocolate chips and nuts, if desired, and fold in using a spatula.

Place dough into a bowl or container, cover with saran wrap and place in the refrigerator for an hour or until set. –This is very important.

Using a tablespoon of measuring, scoop cookie dough and quickly shape into 1 inch uniform balls.

Bake cookies 8-10 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.

Place freshly baked cookies on a cooling rack for about 5 minutes. Store them in an air tight container or cookie jar in order to keep them chewy.

 

Some Tips From The Little Red Bird

1. Determining the oven temperature is crucial depending on the color of your  baking pans. The color will determine how much of the heat is absorbed and how it’s distributed to the pan, thus cooking your cookies too slow or too fast. The lighter the pan, the higher the temperature. The darker the pan, the lower the temperature.
2. Refrigerate your dough. Just do it. Like Nike says.You want your cookie dough to be firm. Otherwise you will end up with cookies that will spread and become VERY thin and no one wants an anorexic cookie.
3. Storage-store your leftover cookie dough in the freezer. It can last for up to three months! Nothings better than having fresh baked cookies at your finger tips. Leftover cookies need to be in an air tight container, otherwise you will end up with crispy cookies with no chew. Your call.

 

I hope you and your friends, family and dentists enjoy this cookie.

Leave a comment if you made this cookie and tell the world wide web what you thought!