Some of the world's very best inventions were created by accident. Plastic was invented when scientist Leo Hendrik Baekeland accidentally created Bakelite in his search to find an inexpensive substitute for shellac. Engineer Percy Spencer invented the microwave oven when a chocolate bar melted in his pocket after exposure to a magnetron's radiation. Matches were invented when pharmacist John Walker accidentally made sparks while scraping a lump of dried chemicals off his mixing stick. But the very best, most wonderful accidental invention of all time is the chocolate chip cookie. Fresh out of baker's melting chocolate for her chocolate cookies, inn keeper Ruth Graves Wakefield chopped a chocolate bar into bits and mixed it into her cookie dough, hoping it would melt and make a chocolate cookie. Much to her disappointment, It didn't, but she served the cookies to the guests at her Toll House Inn anyway and the scrumptious new cookies were an instant hit. She gave Nestle the recipe for the cookies in exchange for a lifetime supply of chocolate (not a bad trade IMO) and the rest is baking history.
I could eat this entire platter (but I won't... probably)
In a quest for the very best, most perfect, unparalleled chocolate chip cookie recipe ever, I've done countless hours of recipe testing and modifying (it's a tough job, but SOMEONE has to do it). The perfect cookie is chewy but not too soft to support the chips. It's buttery, a bit salty to balance the sweet, packed with chocolate and crisp around the edges. Real butter is a must, as is using both granulated sugar (for structure and crisp edges) and brown sugar (for a butterscotchy flavor and chew). I like the idea and texture of nuts, but my kids don't, so I've added toffee bits to fit that bill. I snuck in just a little rolled oats to add some backbone and additional chew to the cookies but they are undetectable. And finally, a mix of both milk and semi-sweet chocolate chips and extra vanilla make for the best flavor combo.
My adorable sous-chefs (Elizabeth's cookies have white chocolate chips, a must for her)
This recipe is an amalgamation of the Double Tree Hotel's famous chocolate chip cookies, Toll House cookies, and Heath Bits o'Brickle cookies. You can play around with your chips (I did half the batch with white chips for my chocolate-hating daughter), but make sure to use good pure vanilla extract and real salted butter for the best flavor. The tiny addition of lemon juice helps activate the baking soda to produce a great crumb.
Oh so good - all you need is a glass of milk
Double Chocolate Chip Toffee Cookies (makes about 4 dozen)
Ingredients:
2 (1 cup) sticks salted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup toffee chips (like Heath Bits o' Brickle)
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Method:
Heat oven to 300 (yes, only 300). Cream butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for two minutes. Add eggs, vanilla and lemon juice and mix on low to combine then at medium for two additional minutes. Scrape down bowl occasionally to make sure even mixing.
Add oats, flour, baking soda and salt, and blend on low until just combined. Add in chips and toffee and stir to combine.
Using a cookie scoop (or a tablespoon), scoop onto parchment lined cookie sheets, leaving space between for spreading. Bake for 18-22 minutes until edges are golden brown. Cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes then move to cooling racks and cool completely.
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