Food: Chocolate Chip Cookies
Aug. 29th, 2010 05:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vcmwI am a born recipe-twiddler. The problem is that I never write the individual twiddles down (how much of what spice was that?) and so the perfect twiddle comes and goes to be replaced by the less perfect twiddle.
This is, however, fairly close to the top of the range on my twiddling with chocolate chip cookies. (Could have done with a minute smidge less sugar if I could be sure they'd still spread well.)
1 cup white flour (must be white, can't be white whole wheat, sorry... tried that, no good) + a scant couple Tablespoons worth
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon or more to taste
dash nutmeg
couple dashes powdered ginger
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla (must be real vanilla, please not to be distressing me with the fake kind made out of wood processing byproducts, thanks)
1/2 stick butter (by all means salted, cannot be margarine, unsalted butter would work fine though. do not waste your fancy 8 dollar/lb butter on cookies, but don't buy the cheap discount store stuff if you can afford better)
1/4 cup applesauce
8-10 oz of chocolate chips (NOT Nestle. At least, not US Nestle. Something where the chocolate chips are flavored with real vanilla, see note about vanilla flavoring above. Ghiradelli chips are available at lots of grocery stores and use real vanilla. Or substitute your own favorite, so long as its ingredient list does not include vanillin or "artificial flavors" - sometimes store brands like Shur Fine or whatever have actual vanilla instead of vanillin - it doesn't have to cost more.)
cream butter and sugar.
beat in egg.
stir in applesauce (these steps must happen in this order; if you add the applesauce before you cream butter/sugar and beat in egg, weird and less desirable textural things result)
stir in vanilla.
whisk all the dry things together in a big measuring cup or a 2nd bowl.
tip all the dry things in to the big bowl and stir wet and dry together until nicely blended. You shouldn't see big floury streaks. don't worry if there are tiny lumps or something.
stir in the chocolate chips. Don't put in a bitty 1/2 bag. You need the extra chocolate chip grease to make up for the reduced butter amount. 8 or 10 oz is about right. 12 is too many.
drop in teaspoon sized amounts onto lightly greased cookie sheet. back for 8 or 9 minutes at your normal temperature for chocolate chip cookies.
They will look moist and underdone. Pull 'em out anyway. If you're paranoid about it, let one cool a sec and snap it in half. It should look cooked all the way through.
Something about the applesauce makes the tops look permanently moist and shiny. The reduced butter will mean they don't brown as much.
On the plus side, they stay moist and fresh tasting for several days.
On the down side, if you like a buttery crackly taste to the bottom of your cookie, this is not the recipe for you.
This is, however, fairly close to the top of the range on my twiddling with chocolate chip cookies. (Could have done with a minute smidge less sugar if I could be sure they'd still spread well.)
1 cup white flour (must be white, can't be white whole wheat, sorry... tried that, no good) + a scant couple Tablespoons worth
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon or more to taste
dash nutmeg
couple dashes powdered ginger
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla (must be real vanilla, please not to be distressing me with the fake kind made out of wood processing byproducts, thanks)
1/2 stick butter (by all means salted, cannot be margarine, unsalted butter would work fine though. do not waste your fancy 8 dollar/lb butter on cookies, but don't buy the cheap discount store stuff if you can afford better)
1/4 cup applesauce
8-10 oz of chocolate chips (NOT Nestle. At least, not US Nestle. Something where the chocolate chips are flavored with real vanilla, see note about vanilla flavoring above. Ghiradelli chips are available at lots of grocery stores and use real vanilla. Or substitute your own favorite, so long as its ingredient list does not include vanillin or "artificial flavors" - sometimes store brands like Shur Fine or whatever have actual vanilla instead of vanillin - it doesn't have to cost more.)
cream butter and sugar.
beat in egg.
stir in applesauce (these steps must happen in this order; if you add the applesauce before you cream butter/sugar and beat in egg, weird and less desirable textural things result)
stir in vanilla.
whisk all the dry things together in a big measuring cup or a 2nd bowl.
tip all the dry things in to the big bowl and stir wet and dry together until nicely blended. You shouldn't see big floury streaks. don't worry if there are tiny lumps or something.
stir in the chocolate chips. Don't put in a bitty 1/2 bag. You need the extra chocolate chip grease to make up for the reduced butter amount. 8 or 10 oz is about right. 12 is too many.
drop in teaspoon sized amounts onto lightly greased cookie sheet. back for 8 or 9 minutes at your normal temperature for chocolate chip cookies.
They will look moist and underdone. Pull 'em out anyway. If you're paranoid about it, let one cool a sec and snap it in half. It should look cooked all the way through.
Something about the applesauce makes the tops look permanently moist and shiny. The reduced butter will mean they don't brown as much.
On the plus side, they stay moist and fresh tasting for several days.
On the down side, if you like a buttery crackly taste to the bottom of your cookie, this is not the recipe for you.
