The Sixth Day of Christmas Cookies: The New York Times (Jacque Torres) Chocolate Chip Cookies

Not all chocolate chip cookies are created equal.

I’ve only started making this recipe in the last few years – after stumbling upon an article about a supposedly killer Jacque Torres chocolate chip cookie recipe made famous by the New York Times. I’ve had lots of really good chocolate chip cookies over the years, so I was equal parts skeptical and curious about claims that *this* recipe was the end-all-be-all for this most ubiquitous cookie.

But after making these cookies (repeatedly), I can at least attest that I haven’t yet been able to falsify that hypothesis. I can also say that, with all my years of baking, no other cookie has made me quite as many friends as this one.

This recipe admittedly requires some extra planning and effort, both because it requires some out-of-the-ordinary ingredients (e.g., cake flour, bread flour, bittersweet chocolate disks) and because it asks you to make the dough 24-36 hours before baking.  

It’s all worth it.

To really make this recipe work, make sure you also have a kitchen scale to properly measure out the ingredients and apportion the cookie dough.

I will note that the original recipe calls for sea salt sprinkled on top. I tried that, but I found the cookies were already salty enough (Michelle also thinks we don’t have the right kind of sea salt).

At the recommended 3.5 oz of dough per cookie, these cookies are big without being gaudy – in my mind the perfect size to feel truly contented with just one. There aren’t many homemade cookies I can say that about.

New York Times (Jacque Torres) Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons cake flour (8.5 ounces)

1 2/3 cups bread flour (8.5 ounces)

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter (2.5 sticks)

1 1/2 cups light brown sugar (10 ounces)

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (8 ounces)

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract

1 1/4 lbs. bittersweet chocolate disks or feves (I get these locally at Winco Foods)

Directions

1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

2. Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light. About 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well and scraping down the sides after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients until just combined – about 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them (trying not to break them). Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate 24 to 36 hours.

3. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat (nonstick baking mat). Set aside.

4. Scoop six 3.5 ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto a baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Bake until golden brown but still soft (16 minutes for me, though the original recipe calls for 18 to 20 minutes). Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough (makes 18-19 cookies).