Chocolate Chip Cookies-- The Traditional Way

Chocolate Chip Cookies are a native of America and while there have been many variations to the recipe including the addition of oatmeal or nuts or different kinds of chocolate chips, the cookie still remains one of the most delicious cookie ever baked. There is very little chance that you can go wrong with this recipe as it is so easy and quick and by the time you realize, you will already be biting into a piece of warm crispy crunchy edged soft and buttery cookie!! Mmmmmmm....

Recipe adapted from Joy of Baking

Ingredients 

1 cup butter room temperature but not melted 

3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

11/2 tsp Vanila extract 

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cream of tartar (optional)

2 1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 cup chocolate chips(I used a mix of white and brown)

You can add any chopped nuts of your choice optionally 

Direction 

Cream the butter and sugar together till smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and beat. Sift the flour, salt and baking soda. Add it to the butter mixture and fold in. It is advisable not to use the electric beater at this stage. Lastly add the chocolate chips and any chopped nuts if you are using. Mix well. 

Pre-heat the oven at 180 degree celcius and line a baking tray with parchment paper. With the help of an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop half scoops into the prepared tray. Two things to note here. Firstly, do not flatten the balls. Doing so, you will end up with joined edges as the cookies will flatten out on their own while baking. Secondly, do not place the cookies too close to each other. You can bake the cookies in batches and keep the dough covered in the refrigerator while one batch bakes. Over crowding will ruin the shape of your cookies. Lastly, bake fewer cookies in the first batch so that you get an idea on the perfect quantity of dough to be put in the tray and the spacing to get those perfectly rounded cafe like cookies. 

Once you have arranged all the dough balls in the tray, top it up with some more chocolate chips and bake in the pre heated oven for 10-12 minutes. The subsequent batches will take lesser time and so keep a close watch. Remove the cookies from the oven when you gently press down on a cookie and it springs back. Cool on a wire rack completely before transferring to air tight containers. While baking the subsequent batches, let the baking tray cool down completely (if you do not have a spare one) before putting in the next batch of dough balls.