Mollie Bakes: Friday Cookies
What better way to start a weekend than with fresh-baked cookies? While I took a bit of a baking break during the summer, my chocolate supply has been re-stocked and I am now consistently buying pounds of butter. Baking days are back! And what have I got for you today? Just the best little chocolate chip cookie to make your weekend just the sweetest.
I have featured this recipe previously, but I keep coming back to it again and again any time I want a reliably awesome, straightforward chocolate chip cookie. This is also one of the recipes I bake that’s most-requested by family and friends. In fact, I have a list of (very patient) people who are waiting on a batch…
Yes, the recipe calls for three types of sugar (white, light brown, demerara), but I promise you that’s as “complicated” as it gets. Creating the dough couldn’t be easier and once you let it chill (or not), you’re not far off from sinking your teeth into a really delicious, satisfying chocolate chip cookie.
Why do I call them Friday Cookies? Because I love baking on Fridays. It’s a sweet way to begin the weekend and before Saturday even begins, you’ve got a fresh-baked batch of cookies ready to eat and share. :)
Now, let’s get to the recipe and tips for baking your best batch yet.
Recipe and Source
Salted Chocolate Chunk Cookies from Smitten Kitchen by Deb Perelman.
Make It Gluten Free + Baking Tips
The only substitution necessary to make these cookies gluten free is to use gluten free flour in place of regular. Most of the time I use Cup4Cup Gluten Free Flour; if not, I also use King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour. For this particular batch, I used Cup4Cup. As always, be sure to use gluten free ingredients throughout the recipe.
I’d recommend following the recipe as written, but here are my baking notes and tips for the most scrumptious cookies:
I usually make these with bittersweet chocolate to balance the flaky sea salt on top. However, semi-sweet is excellent, too.
Hand-chop the chocolate! Buy the fancy Guittard baking bars and chop it yourself. Your tastebuds (and the cookie recipients) will thank you.
As instructed, stir in the chocolate chunks with a wooden spoon or spatula. Make sure to get chocolate pieces throughout all of the dough.
Be sure to make every ball of cookie dough approximately the same size and as round as possible. A specific amount is listed in the recipe, but I probably made them slightly smaller than the instructions. These are somewhat small cookies (great for gift-giving!).
Chill the dough in the fridge for one hour before baking (not required, but I think it makes for a better-quality cookie). Place six balls of cookie dough spaced evenly apart on each baking sheet. Remember: gluten free cookies spread more in the oven!
Bake time: I baked these cookies at 360F (yes) for nine minutes. Then I checked them very quickly, and then added one extra minute. Yes, it’s a total of ten minutes, but checking them after nine is a good idea. Total time will vary by oven.
The cookies may not look totally “done” when you remove them from the oven. This is OK.
While the cookies cool, sprinkle a tiny amount of flaky sea salt on each one. Alternatively, you can add the sea salt before baking (which is how the recipe is written).
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for around seven or eight minutes. This time allows the cookies to settle and firm up so moving them to a cooling rack won’t become a big mess.
The recipe makes about 23-25 cookies as long as you make each one about the same (small) size.
Definitely eat one fresh and hot from the oven (how could you not?), but the good news is that these cookies remain delicious for up to three or four days (if they last that long).
Final Review
I’ve made a lot of chocolate chip cookies over the last few years and hands-down, this recipe is truly my favorite for a last-minute sweet surprise for family and friends. It’s also my go-to for quick cookies for my kitchen table. They’re classic cookies, but way better, if you ask me.
I’m not sure if it’s the majority brown sugar, the half-pound of chopped chocolate, or the very specific baking time that makes these cookies so darn irresistible, but I just really love them. I hope you bake a batch this Friday (or any time, really) and give them to your favorite people. Just make sure to save a few for yourself. ;)
Enjoy!
