Email to Kim Shook      

Jacques Torres’ Chocolate Chip Cookies

Source of Recipe

BRIT+CO, on the internet


Recipe Introduction

Jacques is EXTREMELY particular about how you make these cookies and I think he’s right. I’ve never found ANY chocolate chip cooky that truly knocks my sock off and, to be honest, these were very, very good, but not orgasmic. I still think that my PB cookies and Dream cookies are better. However, these were the very best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had and Mike and Jessica and Mike’s co-workers needed a cigarette afterwards. Oddly enough, I actually preferred these once they had cooled. The chocolate is very important – it is about half the cooky, so the flavor has to be really good. I didn’t use terribly expensive chocolate (my experts at eGullet said it would be a waste if I was baking it) – 2 bars of Moser Roth 70% dark and 3 bars of Choceur 49% both from Aldi). Kerry Beal at eG said I could even use Trader Joe’s Pound Plus Dark. I cut the bars up too small – the pieces of chocolate should be about the size of the cooking discs that you can buy. They are HUGE cookies – 3.5 oz. per cooky. One of the recipes on the internet mentioned making them smaller (2 tablespoons) and I might try that with a shorter baking time. These cookies baked so evenly – absolutely perfectly browned and crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside – even when cooled. NOTE: The dough for these is ‘cured’ in the refrigerator for 24-72 hours. I didn’t test this out – I trusted it and let mine rest for 24 hours. I’ll do more next time.

Recipe Link: https://www.brit.co/chocolate-chip-cookie-recipe/

List of Ingredients

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 ½ ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate disks or fèves, at least 60 percent cacao (see my notes above)
sea salt (optional)



Recipe

Sift the flours, baking soda, baking powder, and the salt into a bowl (I just dump it all in and whisk well).

Place the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Cream for about 5 minutes – the mixture should be light and fluffy.

Add the eggs, one at a time and mix well after each. Mix in the vanilla.

Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture. Mix just until combined – DO NOT OVERMIX.

Add the chocolate pieces and stir in without breaking them up, as much as possible.

Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 24 to 72 hours.

When ready to bake heat the oven to 350F. Scoop 3 1/2-oz. balls of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet (YES, I weighed them) – six per sheet. If there are any chocolate pieces poking up vertically, push them down flat.

Sprinkle lightly with sea salt, if you want (you DO!!!), and bake until golden, but still a bit soft (they should be starting to firm up a little around the edges) - about 18-22 minutes. Cool, on the baking sheet, on a rack for 10 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely.

Makes about 18 cookies.