Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

* Exported from MasterCook *

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe By : Gail Nagele-Hopkins, Cooks Illustrated, J/F 96
Serving Size : 18 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Cookies

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/8 cup margarine (1 1/2 sticks) -- melted and cooled
1 cup brown sugar (light or dark) -- packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips -- (2 cups, optional)
1/2 cup pecans

Preheat oven to 325-degrees F.

Mix flour, salt, and baking soda together in a medium bowl and set aside.

Mix butter and sugars until well blended. Mix in egg, yolk and vanilla
extract.

Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Stir in chips to taste,
and nuts.

Form scant 1/4 cup dough into a ball. Holding the dough ball in both
hands, twist apart. Turn each hand up so the raw, jagged edge faces up,
and put the ball back together.

Place on parchment-lined* cookie sheet (remember the jaggy edge should face
up - don't smooth the surface), about nine dough balls per sheet.

Bake until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden,
yet centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes. Start checking at
13 minutes. Cool cookies on cookies sheets.

Makes 18 3-inch diameter cookies.

Comments: The dough can be refrigerated up to 2 days or frozen for up to 1
month, shaped or not. If baking frozen dough, an extra 1 to 2 minutes
cooking time will be required.

*A good substitute for parchment paper is a brown paper bag, cut to fit
your cookie sheet, greased with a solid shortening such as Crisco.



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NOTES : These cookies are excellent, and wonderfully chewy without tasting
undercooked. The original recipe calls for unsalted butter and no nuts. I
find that a high-quality margarine (hard!) works well and the cookies are
less inclined to burn. Walnuts work well also, but the flavor of pecans is
to die for.