Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Note: I am reposting my old food columns from Milford Patch. They originally contained step by step photos and accompanying instructions, which I hope to recreate at some point. Until then, I am posting the original text. This post originally appeared on Patch on April 3, 2011...

I have always made cookies from scratch, but from time to time I have purchased frozen cookie dough from fundraisers or the market. It seemed like a cool thing to have the dough on hand to bake up a couple cookies whenever the mood strikes without all the hassle - and waiting - of starting from scratch.

I am embarrassed to say how long it took me to figure out that since I a) know how to make cookie dough, and b) am in possession of a freezer, I could make it myself- with a little advance planning. Since that epiphany, I try to keep frozen cookie dough on hand.

You can do this with just about any cookie-jar type cookie, (In fact at Christmas, I try to make a different dough for the freezer every week to break up the huge Christmas cookie job.) but since chocolate chip seems to be universally beloved, that’s what I usually make.

This particular dough is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I have tried. It’s from one of my favorite cookbooks, Baked: New Frontiers in Baking. You can use your own favorite recipe, but there are a couple tips that can be applied to any cookie baking:

·         Start with good ingredients. I buy local eggs (Ferrucci, sold at Purchase St and Gene's markets) because I notice the difference in quality, but no matter what kind of eggs you use, the fresher they are, the better your cookies will be. Using real butter and vanilla is a must, and I’m loyal to King Arthur brand flours. This will be the biggest upgrade from store bought dough.

·         As in any baking, have all of your ingredients at room temperature before you start mixing them. This time of year, I leave the butter and eggs out on the counter for a couple hours to warm up. If it’s summer (or if any food safety people are around) I warm the eggs quickly in a bowl of warm water, and the butter in the microwave. Just take care that it doesn’t get melty. 

·         Rest and chill the dough for at least a few hours before baking the cookies. This is another advantage to starting with frozen dough, eliminating the chilling time. Sometimes if my kids can’t wait, I bake up a couple of cookies right away, but then put the rest of the dough in the fridge.

·         Bake the cookies until they are brown at the edges, and then take them out. They’ll cook a little more on the sheet after you take them out. If you overbake them, they’ll be crunchy instead of chewy.

The recipe:

2 cups flour

½ tsp salt (1 tsp if using unsalted butter)

1 tsp baking soda

2 sticks butter, softened

1 cup dark brown sugar (light brown is fine, too)

½ cup sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 2/3 cups chocolate chips (okay to cut back to 2 cups if you only want to use one bag of chips)

Cream the butter in the mixer then add in the two sugars and beat until the mixture is fluffy. While that’s mixing, whisk together the flour, soda and salt. Add the eggs, one at a time to the butter/sugar mixture. Scrape down the bowl, add the vanilla and beat for a few more seconds.

Add half the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix just until it’s mostly combined. Add the second half of the flour and do the same. Scrape down the bowl and add the chocolate chips. Mix by hand, or on very slow speed on the mixer until they’re distributed in the dough. Scrape down the bowl, cover the dough with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for a few hours. 

If you're making them for the freezer, scoop the dough in balls onto a parchment lined cookie sheet (no need to space them out) and put in the freezer to quick freeze. After 2 hours, transfer the dough balls to a plastic freezer bag for storage. Do yourself a favor and write the baking instructions on the bag with a sharpie.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Put the dough balls onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet, about one-inch apart, and bake for 12 to 14 minutes (add 1 to 2 minutes if cooking from frozen) until the edges are golden brown. Let the cookies cool on a cooling rack on the parchment (or the pan) for 5 to 10 minutes before removing them with a spatula.