The Ultimate All-American Creation: the Chocolate Chip Cookie

posted June 8, 2005

by Lauren Braun Costello

http://cooking.cdkitchen.com/TheCompetentCook/103.html

Chocolate chip cookies are as American a treat as you can bake. Most likely you have tasted hundreds of them over the years. But some of our nation's most heralded figures, like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt, never knew of our country's favorite cookie. Believe it or not, the chocolate chip cookie is just 75 years young, the result of a happy accident at a small country inn in Whitman, Massachusetts.

In 1930, Ruth and Kenneth Wakefield bought the Toll House Inn where Ruth prepared freshly baked treats for guests. One fateful day, Ruth ran out of baker's chocolate for her chocolate cookies. She decided to replace the ingredient with one of the semi-sweet bars that Andrew Nestle, of the renowned chocolate family, had given to her. She figured that the chocolate would melt and blend with the dough. Much to her surprise and to a nation's gratitude, the chocolate pieces held their shape and were not absorbed by the dough. Thus, the Toll House cookie was born.

The chocolate chip cookie grew popular over the years, so Nestle responded by producing chocolate bars the way Ruth had broken them – scored in small chunks. Eventually Nestle created semi-sweet chocolate morsels so that America's most popular cookie could be baked with ease. Whatever your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, the following tips will help you perfect your own version of this American classic.

Chewy or Crispy?
Everybody seems to feel strongly about whether chocolate chip cookies should be chewy or crispy. There is no right or wrong way--it’s just a matter of preference. The trick to making a cookie chewy or crispy is really quite simple. If you underbake your cookies by a few minutes so that the edges are golden and crisp, but the centers appear still slightly raw, you will have a chewy cookie. To make crispy chocolate chip cookies, bake them for a few minutes longer than the recipe calls for, and remove them from the sheet pan immediately to cool.

Batter Basics
Cookies made with butter will spread out as they bake because butter melts at a lower temperature than, say, margarine or shortening. Cookies made with margarine, shortening, or even oil will hold their shape more. The form the cookies take in the baking process will play a role in whether they will be flat and potentially crispy, or puffy and chewy.

Different sugars also yield various results. Using exclusively white sugar will make a crispy chocolate chip cookie, especially if paired with butter. Light or dark brown sugars will help to produce a chewier cookie, particularly if a fat other than butter is used with it. It is no surprise, then, that many chocolate chip cookie recipes call for a combination of sugars for balance.

Chocolate selection, of course, is also important to the kind of cookie you will bake. Semi-sweet tends to be the most popular, given the origin of the chocolate chip cookie. But using milk, dark, white or any combination thereof will certainly work. The size and quantity of the chocolate used will also affect the taste and flavor of each bite. If you are making small, bite-size cookies, consider using mini chocolate chips. For a rich, chocolate-dense cookie, use chunks instead.

Temperature and Equipment
Most chocolate chip cookies are baked at 350 degrees F. So, the more critical temperature consideration is that of the dough itself before you bake it. Very soft, warm dough will spread out when baked, whereas chilled, firm dough will keep more of its shape. If you chill your dough before baking, slice it or form it into balls, depending on whether you want the cookies to be flat or puffy, respectively.

Choose a cookie sheet that is of a medium weight and line it with parchment paper or a nonstick baking sheet to ensure even baking and easy removal from the pan. A thin sheet pan will likely burn the bottom of the cookies without evenly cooking the tops. Greasing a cookie sheet is a useful technique to prevent the cookies from sticking, but the additional fat causes the dough to spread, which is potentially problematic if you like your chocolate chip cookies puffy.

The best way to achieve your ideal chocolate chip cookie is to experiment with ingredients and techniques. Try using different fats and sugars. Make sure you have a good cookie sheet and invest in reusable nonstick baking liner. So, break out the mixing bowl, grab some chocolate and continue this quintessential American tradition!

Chocolate Chunk Cookies Recipe
http://www.cdkitchen.com/

Serves/Makes: 3 dozen
Ready in: < 30 minutes

* 3 cups all purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup unsalted butter
* 1 cup light brown sugar
* 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
* 2 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* 16 ounces bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking liners.

Combine the first three ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and beat well. Mix in vanilla. Add dry ingredients and combine well. Fold in chocolate chunks.

Form dough into 1 1/2 inch balls. Place each ball two inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Cool cookies on sheet for five minutes and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.