Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

One of our family's favorite cookies from the Central Market Bakery in Austin is their ...uh, uh...oops, I'm not sure of their real name!  I just see them and grab the package.  They used to not sell them in the summer time because they said it was too hard to keep the ingredients from melting.  It is rife with chocolate chips and pieces of toffee and reminds me of a Heath Bar doing an impersonation of a cookie.

I've made this recipe a few times, adding chunked up Heath candy bars to my traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe - my favored Toll House recipe.

This time, however, I found some Heath Milk Chocolate Toffee Bits right on the baking aisle.  They may have had them for years - I just have never seen them - I've seen just the toffee bits, but not the ones with chocolate...actually chopped up candy bars!  I have always just determinedly chopped up Heath Bars and tried to keep them corralled on my cutting board.  I sense this will be soooo much easier - all the work is done.

Seems like several new ingredients are on the shelves this year...or again, maybe I haven't been very observant!  I'm digging this bit of ease though!  I hope they are as good - they are quite a bit smaller than I chop the candy bars when I do it by hand.

I'm making a lot of dough today and tomorrow and I'll bake a few...for quality control of course...and the rest will be portioned and frozen for baking right before Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  My boys will be pleased :-)  This cookie is buttery and laden with chocolates and hidden bits of toffee....ummm, pretty darn delicious!  (Is it bad of me to say, now that I taste it, I like my hand-chopped candy bars more?  These bits are too bitty...but still very good.)

If you look closely, you might see
the bits of toffee melted between all that chocolate!

TOFFEE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup white granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter - softened to room temperature
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup Milk Chocolate chunks (I used El Rey discs)
3/4 cup Milk Chocolate morsels (I used Ghirardelli)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels (I used Ghirardelli)
1 1/3 cups Heath Milk Chocolate Toffee Bits (the 8 ounce pkg)

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Prepare baking sheets with Silpat or Parchment Paper.

Set up cooling racks.

In medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda - set aside

In bowl of stand mixer, cream butter and both sugars until lightened. Add vanilla extract. Beat until blended.
Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition.

Lower mixer speed and add the flour mixture by thirds, incorporating after each addition.

Remove beater and hand mix in chocolates and toffee bits. Use a sturdy spoon...I kid you not!  I have broken more than one spatula doing this.

That's a very stiff dough!

Using small to medium sized cookie scoop, place 1 dozen cookies on each baking sheet. Place in oven for 9 to 11 minutes.

The sample batch was rich and buttery and awesome!

40 scoops of dough in the freezer for fresh Christmas cookies

Today, I used a medium scoop and I had enough cookie dough for 52 cookies.  I baked off a dozen and put the other 40 scoops of dough on a baking sheet into the freezer.  Once they are solid, I will move them to a gallon Ziploc and return them to the freezer.  When I get near the 24th and bake off the rest of the batch, I'll take it as part of my cookie trays for the family Christmas.


Happy Holiday Baking my foodie friends....it's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas... despite the fact that I've only bought a couple of gifts and my house isn't decorated.  I'm feeling a little Grinchy this year for some reason.  However, I think I'm starting to feel the spirit.  I've been really tired lately and it's hard to push myself to bake, cook, blog about it, and keep up with everything else I have going on....and stay on the teen to study, study, study for semester finals.  Senior year is a bitch challenging time.  Senior boys in my family are like horses eyeing some really good green grass on the other side of the fence and I swear this one is ready to bolt!   Focus is not primary in his life...and despite it being decades ago, I remember exactly what it was like myself.  I've made it through two other teen boys ...I know I can make it through this one.  I think I can, I think I can, I know I can, I know I can!

The front of my Christmas cards...if I ever get around to getting them sent!
Got them at The Rusty Pelican in Port Isabel - just love them.

Keep the South Padre Island Flip Flop Foodie in your thoughts, prayers, or any other good juju...I'ma needin' it this year!


Bon Appetit, Y'all!!!

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