Three-Kinda-Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yesterday afternoon my son walks into the kitchen and notices a pound of butter out and softening, some vanilla bean paste out, and a few eggs laying on the counter coming to room temperature.  His eyes lit up and he said "what are you making Mom?".  When I said "cookies" - he smiled and asked what kind.  I knew that smile would dim when I said I was decorating cookies...so I decided, instead, on the spot, to make some cookies that the men of the household would pounce on.  They tend to hold off from pouncing on the decorated sugar cookies.  Neither are overly fond of royal icing at this point.

I slid over to my stash of chips and found a bag of chocolate chunks, a 3/4 bag of milk chocolate morsels, and a bag with about 1/3 of it filled with white chocolate morsels.  I grabbed them all and decided to just make a "dump in what I have" cookie!

I've said before, and I'll say again, I like the base mixture of a Toll House Cookie - really, it's hard to beat!  So, you'll notice the basics of this cookie are just that...with a few tweaks that really, IMHO, make it special.

Here it is:

THREE-KINDA-CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Adapted from Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe


Printable Recipe Here

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups Unbleached All Purpose Flour (I am a King Arthur flour fan)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (brings a wonderful warmth to the cookie)
1 teaspoon baking powder (Toll House recipe uses baking soda - but I went from memory and didn't check and already had the baking powder out for my sugar cookies...it seemed to work okay!)
3/4 tsp. fine sea salt (I don't use kosher salt in these cookies)
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened (I use salted butter - usually do, because that's what I grew up with)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp vanilla bean paste (needed a stand-up-to-the-chocolate flavor)
2 large eggs - room temperature
12 ounces Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks - Nestle Toll House brand
8 ounces Milk Chocolate Morsels - Nestle Toll House brand
4 to 6 ounces White Chocolate Morsels - Ghirardelli brand (I didn't measure and would have been happier with 8 ounces - to equal the Milk Chocolate volume)

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  Prepare baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.  I prefer the mats.

Whisk dry ingredients in large measuring cup and set aside.

In bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and both sugars until fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, while beating, and then add the vanilla bean paste and the vanilla extract.

With mixer on low, add the whisked dry ingredients about 1/3 at a time, mixing between each addition. Stop mixer to add chips and chunks.

Add the chunks and, on low, mix just until barely combined.  Stop and add the other two morsels and pulse a couple of times to mix gently.  Remove the beater, scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl and gently mix a couple of times with a sturdy spoon.

This batch made 2 dozen that I baked...and I froze twenty balls of cookie dough for later use.  I used a medium size cookie scoop to get that number of cookies.

Bake 12 at a time on the baking sheet and bake 10-12 minutes for a chewy cookie.  For the frozen ones, I will generally bake at 350 for 11 to 13 minutes from a frozen state.  I don't thaw or put in fridge first.  They turn out beautifully straight from the freezer.

Frozen bag of cookie dough balls are great to keep in the freezer.
I allow to freeze on a smaller cookie sheet in the freezer,
then remove them to a freezer zipper bag.
Remove as much air as possible before freezing.
Double bagging won't go amiss! 

The men in the house were very pleased and I notice there are less than a dozen left...that's a good thing!

Dark, Milk, White...a great combination of chocolate with
the underlying cinnamon and vanilla flavors.
Made a really tasty cookie!

Holiday Chocolate Chip Cookies

In October I first laid eyes on the Nestle's Toll House Limited Edition Holiday Chocolate Morsels...and I instantly grabbed two bags.  Like so many other products, the size was now 10 ounces instead of 12 ounces.  I've been thinking about what I wanted to do with these ever since.  My family does love the Toll House cookies....but we like LOTS of chips in those cookies...and they have to be chewy, not crisp.  So, I elected to stick close to the original Toll House recipe but to  make it 1 1/2 times the amount listed on the bag and use both bags of chips.  They are red, green, and semi-sweet chocolate.

You might remember my insanity last Spring in searching for pastel colored morsels...finally ending up making my own.  Whew, that was labor intensive.  My heart jumped when I saw these this year.  They certainly were not in the Wal-mart last year (at least that I saw), so I'm thinking they must have read my blog (ROFL!!!) wherein I wondered why the heck no one was marketing colored baking chips?   I've seen the swirled chips before, and the mint chips - but never this particular package.

Here's the recipe I came up with (including my frequent addition of cinnamon to things with chocolate).

Holiday Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Nestle's Toll House Cookie Recipe
(click here for printable recipe)

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups unbleached AP flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp fine sea salt (I have found Kosher salt is not as good in these cookies - I end up with salty bites here and there)
1 tsp. ground cinnamon

3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) butter - softened
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs (room temperature)

2 ten-ounce packages Nestle's Holiday Morsels

Method:

In separate mixing bowl (or 5 cup measuring cup) combine the dry ingredients (flour, soda, salt, and cinnamon) - whisk to incorporate - set aside.

In bowl of a stand mixer, whip softened butter and both sugars until fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition, and finally the vanilla extract.  Mix until combined thoroughly.  Scrape bowl.

Add the dry ingredients, mixer on low, about 1/3 of the amount per addition.  Scrape bowl between additions if needed.  Definitely scrape all the way to the bottom at the completion of this step.

Add the first package of morsels and mix a couple of rounds on low.  Remove the beater and hand mix the second package of morsels so they don't get broken up.  Use a very sturdy spoon to do this - I broke a large spatula with a plastic handle trying to mix this amount of dough.  Moved to an industrial size metal mixing spoon!  Now is the time to add pecans or walnuts if you like nuts in your cookies... we prefer nut-free except for my husband.  (I make him special ones from time to time)

I have scooped them all up with a medium-sized cookie scoop and have them freezing on a couple of trays.  I scooped out 63 cookie dough balls with this recipe.  Once they are frozen firmly, I will store them in Ziploc bags in the freezer for baking as Christmas time draws near.

I like to get ahead of the game, and when I do this, not a soul knows that I wasn't in the kitchen mixing up a batch of cookies that morning (well, except for you guys).  It really cuts down on the overwhelm that occurs that last week before December 25th!

When it is time to bake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, place cookies, directly from freezer bag, at least two inches apart on a parchment or Silpat covered baking sheet.  (no need for them to thaw - just pop them right in the oven)  Bake for 11 to 14 minutes and allow to cool on a rack before moving to serving tray. 

Obviously I had to bake off a few to ensure they were not poison.  I think they taste and look quite delicious!  This will be a colorful and tasty addition to your holiday platters of cookies!

I baked six and tasted one...yummy...and you-know-who will
be happy to be a taste tester as well... "ohhhh Ian...guess
what I have for youuuuu!"

Bon Appetit, Y'all!!!

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Whole Wheat Oatmeal Chocolate Chippers

I first made these cookies about a year ago...and maybe once since then.  Mr. Flip Flop is the lover of oatmeal cookies... where I have been obsessed with decorating sugar cookies.  The last few episodes of cookie baking have all been sugar cookies and decorative icing.  So as he was on the road home, I decided I wanted the house to smell like warm oatmeal cookies when he arrived.  What else is more welcoming???

Here's the link to the recipe, and the photos are from this batch.  The first thing he did was sit in his comfy chair and inhale 1/2 dozen of these cookies!  Yes, it's true - six cookies down the hatch.  He had seemed all grumpy when he got home (it's a 6 hour drive and he didn't stop for lunch...uh oh) but by the time my cookies had worked their magic and he had a brief nap, he came into the kitchen for kisses and hugs.  I should rename these Magical Happy Cookies.

While I wouldn't term them "healthy" cookies - they are made with whole wheat flour and oatmeal.  I deem them "healthier" than the standard cookie...but, still, you know there is butter and sugar in the blend!  Chocolate is medicinal, so, "healthier" cookies!  This batch has both semi-sweet chocolate chunks as well as milk chocolate chips.  They really are delicious.

After a nice (early) steak dinner with sides of baked sweet potatoes, steamed broccoli, crescent rolls, and fresh pineapple chunks for dessert, all was well in his world again.  He sighed in contentment and we curled up on the couch together to watch Criminal Minds.  What?  Doesn't sound romantic?  Serial murderers and other horrible stuff?  You're right, it isn't, but we both like the show and it's too scary for me to watch while he's out of town.  So, we had two DVR'd and it made for a good Saturday night of viewing.  It's always good when Mr. Flip Flop is home.  He told me the ladies at work think he's like a burnt marshmallow - all crusty on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside.  That is such the absolute truth! 

Glad to have my gooey guy home :-)

Bon Appetit, Yall!!!

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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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