Yes, they are the best chocolate chip cookies ever.

The finished product.

My boyfriend sent me a link to this great article about one man’s quest to bake the perfect chocolate chip cookie.  Since I have baked every version of “the best chocolate chip cookie ever” for the last many years I do feel qualified to say that he has actually made a cookie that I personally will bake for the rest of my life. Every person I have given one to is in agreement. If you ever need to make an impression, bring a plate of these cookies. They are my ideal, crisp edges, chewy middle, fabulous depth of flavor.  I too have been experimenting with the difference between melted butter and room temperature and feel that this is the key to making these work.

I always bake a new recipe exactly as written. I will change things after I fully understand the initial recipe. The only thing I did differently with this recipe is that I used mini semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of chopped chocolate. They were in the cupboard and I have been enjoying the way they disperse more evenly through the cookie dough. I feel that the small chips also give a nicer proportion of chocolate and cookie dough per bite. The next time I make the cookies I will use some nice chopped chocolate and see what I think.

If you want to make them for yourself, here is the recipe separate from the original article.

A few helpful hints: I weighed all the ingredients as recommended.

Weighing the ingredients

This is how the eggs, sugar and vanilla appear after whipping for 4 minutes. There was a nice thick ribbon that fell from the beater.

Eggs, white sugar and vanilla after beating for 4 minutes

It is important to let the dough rest overnight as the author suggests. This the tastiest cookie dough imaginable. Try not to eat too much!

Refrigerated Cookie Dough

I weighed my dough balls. If I made each cookie 1.3 -1.4 ounces I was able to get 28 -30 cookies. I find that weighing is a better method as you are more consistent with cookie size. I made all the dough balls before I started baking the first pan so I could pay close attention to the baking process.

Weighing the dough balls.

I found it was very important to rotate the pans as stated and also to remove the cookies from the oven when the edges were golden brown. Most of the centers will still be puffed a bit when removed. I let them cool on the sheets for 2-3 minutes even when I wasn’t adding the salt. I found that the sprinkled sea salt was interesting but you might like to make half without for those who are more traditional in their tastes.

The snowmen approve.

Gratitude to J. Kenji Lopez-Alt for this amazing cookie recipe.