One day my husband said to me, “You make a lot of really good desserts, but sometimes all I want is a chocolate chip cookie.” Ever since then, I have been making chocolate chip cookies pretty regularly to appease him. However, he likes his super soft (no doubt this is a direct result from eating too many Subway cookies in college) and I tend to prefer ones that have more texture. So consequently I’m always looking for new recipes that will satisfy the both of us.
My absolute favorite chocolate chip cookie is from New York City’s City Bakery. The cookies are huge and in my opinion have the perfect texture—crisp on the edges and soft and chewy in the center. A 2008 New York Times article gave me some insight into what makes the City Bakery cookies so yummy: 1) they chill the dough for 36 hours so that all the ingredients can meld together to produce a better flavored and textured cookie and 2) they make large 6-inch cookies to ensure that the cookies are both crisp and chewy. With research in hand, I have tried to recreate this cookie at home, but still haven’t quite got it. This thin and chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe is as close as I have gotten so far. If you are looking to try a new chocolate chip cookie recipe, I suggest you try this one out!
City Bakery Inspired Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Chowhound and Amateur Gourmet, with help from The New York Times
I used half all-purpose flour and half whole grain pastry flour in this batch, but the cookies are just as yummy with all all-purpose flour. Also, if you don’t want your cookies to get as thin or spread out as much, you can put the prepared cookie sheet in the fridge for a few minutes before baking.
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole grain pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cubed and cold
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 large egg, room temperature, lightly beaten
7-8 ounces good quality bittersweet chocolate (at least 60% cacao), chopped
Sift together the flours, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Place butter and sugars in a large bowl and cream with a hand mixer on low speed until smooth (this will take a few minutes since the butter is cold). Add the vanilla and egg and beat on low speed until fully incorporated. Add the flour mixture in batches, beating on low speed until just incorporated. Add the chocolate chips and stir them in with a wooden spoon. Refrigerate dough for at least 36 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Adjust racks to the lower and upper thirds of the oven. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats. Let the cookie dough sit at room temperature for 15 minutes or until it is soft enough to scoop.Use a 2-ounce ice cream scoop (or a 1/4 cup measuring cup) to measure out the dough and form them into hockey puck shaped discs. Place them at least 3 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Makes 10 6-inch cookies.
