{"id":397,"date":"2012-09-21T15:53:24","date_gmt":"2012-09-21T22:53:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.therowdybaker.com\/?p=397"},"modified":"2013-07-02T12:21:49","modified_gmt":"2013-07-02T19:21:49","slug":"chocolate-chip-cookies-in-search-of-perfection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.therowdybaker.com\/?p=397","title":{"rendered":"CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES – In Search of Perfection"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Chewy or crispy, we all love chocolate chip cookies!<\/p><\/div>\n

Pick a side here, folks. When it comes to chocolate chip cookies, it seems we have the \u201cthick and crunchy\u201d faction and the poor misguided souls who vote for \u201csoft and chewy.\u201d I guess you can tell which side of the fence I\u2019m on!<\/p>\n

I experimented with five batches, using three different brands of chocolate chips. The recipes on the packages were nearly identical, with just minor changes (probably so they don\u2019t waste their profits suing each other over recipe rights) like a little less salt or a little more vanilla, but essentially the same.<\/p>\n

My first batch was made by following the Hershey recipe exactly, and the cookies came out the way I like them \u2013 which is thick, soft inside, and a little crusty outside. This was a total surprise, because every time I\u2019ve actually followed the recipe on the package I\u2019ve gotten cookies that are flat, flat, flat.<\/p>\n

A few of them, however, had sunken centers, and some resembled cow pies (sort of a dark, rippled meltdown on the edges), but they still couldn\u2019t be considered flat.<\/p>\n

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First batch with craters and “cow pie syndrome”.<\/p><\/div>\n

Out of curiosity, I chilled some of the dough from the first batch for an hour and tried again. What a difference! There was very little spreading, and no sunken centers.<\/p>\n

For batch number two I used half shortening, half butter, with an extra 1\/2 cup of flour, an additional teaspoon of vanilla, and a teaspoon of baking powder. These tasted the same, but looked nicer than the first batch. No cow pies, no sinking. There is the \u201cick\u201d factor of using shortening, but I sometimes ignore that for the sake of the final product.<\/p>\n

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Second batch – much better!<\/p><\/div>\n

Batch number three was intended for those of you who prefer flat and chewy. I used softened butter, but otherwise followed the basic recipe. It was a little flatter, but not much. What the… Do you mean I can’t even make flat cookies on purpose? I\u2019m beginning to think it\u2019s because of my fresh eggs. Could it be that my girls lay such superior eggs that the dough refuses succumb? We’ll see about that.<\/p>\n

With the fourth batch I used very, very <\/strong>soft butter \u2013 almost to the melting point \u2013 and added 2 tablespoons of milk. Ta DA: flat and chewy.<\/p>\n

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Some like them flat and chewy.<\/p><\/div>\n

If you\u2019re wondering why the chips don\u2019t stand out of the cookie, it\u2019s because I ran out of regular chocolate chips and had to use the mini chips. But trust me, they\u2019re flat. There, I hope you\u2019re happy!<\/p>\n

For my final batch I used my favorite recipe\u2026one I\u2019ve tweaked and adjusted for years. It\u2019s never failed me, and produced cookies that are nice and moist but with a little crunch \u2013 the best of both worlds. Yes, it uses shortening, but you can make it using only butter as long as you use a good quality butter and keep it COLD!<\/p>\n

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cookies from my favorite recipe (shared below)<\/p><\/div>\n

Here is what I\u2019ve learned from all this:<\/p>\n