Why are they so flat?!

You thought I was going to talk about boobs, didn’t you?! ;)

Nope, I’m talking about cookies – chocolate chip cookies to be precise. Slightly crunchy on the outside / soft and moist on the inside has always been my goal. I’ve baked dozens and dozens and dozens of chocolate chip cookies in my life. The recipe that follows is the result of all that experimentation. No, it’s not too different from the Nestle Toll House original cookie recipe (truth be told, most drop cookie recipes work with the same base)..but the couple of little tweaks I use make a world of difference in the outcome. To help eliminate the flat cookies phenomena you need less fat, a touch more flour, a good cookie sheet and maybe even a different oven. 

¾ cup butter (1.5 sticks), softened a bit but still cold and firm

¾ cup brown sugar

¾ cup granulated sugar

1 egg plus 1 egg white

1 tsp pure vanilla

2.5 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped, toasted pecans

Oven at 375F.

In a bowl, sift together flour and baking soda. (Giving it a few stirs with a whisk works wonderfully!) Set it aside.

Chop your butter into tablespoon chucks. In your mixer, blend butter with sugars on medium speed (the coarseness of the sugars will help break up the butter more evenly) until you achieve a smooth paste (any unblended butter bits will end up as unpleasant valleys in your final product).

Add egg plus egg white, blend completely adding vanilla along the way. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

On low speed slowly add flour mixture until just combined. Slowly add chocolate chips and nuts until just combined. Don’t overmix! (Dough should be just barely coming together.)

Drop by rounded tablespoons about 3” apart onto parchment paper covered cookie sheets. Use your finger to flatten the tops of your mounds slightly.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. YUM! 

On to the oven type…who knew? Electric ovens are generally fine for baking. In fact, I received satisfactory results out of the 30+ year old electric oven in my old kitchen. Gas ovens? Not so much. Without getting into the thermals, the heat source is just too concentrated in a basic gas oven. Some people have had good luck with higher quality cookie sheets (which you should definitely use!) or stones…but I never found that to be true. In fact, I’ve only had one gas oven in my entire adult life and I hated baking in it (though it was the lowest grade oven possible). Don’t even get me started on the broil ‘drawer on the floor’ concept. Who ever thought that was a good idea?!

When we redid our kitchen a few years ago, we opted for a dual fuel range – one of the best decisions I’ve ever made! Love!!! ‘Dual fuel’ means electric convection oven with a gas cook top…truly the best of both worlds. The more even heating of the electric elements combined with the convection fan is sooooo perfect for the perfect cookie!

If you do have a gas oven and experience problems baking cookies…try moving your grate up a notch – further away from the burner. I hope that helps!!

Enjoy your cookies!

Peace, hp