Jane and the Giant Cookie...

For quite some time I have known Jane has been hunting for her "perfect chocolate chip cookie". Now to define what makes a "perfect" Chocolate Chip Cookie to Janey.....it must NOT be one of those flat, crispy, chewy, buttery jobs! Bite your tongue!! And it CANNOT be a hard, crunchy excuse of a cookie! I knew all of the things that her "perfect cookie" WAS NOT, but it was not until we were sitting in a coffee shop one night, and the waitress brought out a chocolate chip cookie that I finally knew what the cookie WAS. This cookie made Jane's eyes light up. She glowed! The object of her affection was a large, cakey, thick, crispy, soft chocolate chip cookie.

It just so happened that I tried the following recipe for the first time the following week. When they came out of the oven I KNEW I had stumbled upon Jane's Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.....or at least until a better one comes along. I hope you will try the recipe and enjoy it as much as we have!

Jane's Giant Cookies

2 1/4 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 tsp salt

14 TBSP (1 3/4 sticks) butter

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 TBSP vegetable or canola oil

8 oz good quality chocolate chips - bittersweet or semi-sweet, bakers preference1 cup toasted nuts, optional

Directions:

1. Mix flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl and set aside. Mix eggs, vanilla and salt in a small bowl; set aside. Microwave butter until just melted, but not hot. This will take about 30-45 seconds.
   
2. Mix sugars in a large bowl. Add butter and oil, and stir until smooth. Add egg mixture; stir until smooth and creamy. Add dry ingredients, and stir to form a smooth dough. Stir in chocolate and nuts, if using.


3. Using a 1 1/2 ounce (3 TBSP) spring action ice cream scoop, spoon 16 dough balls onto a pan that will fit in your freezer. Don't fuss if the balls are crowded. They will pull apart when frozen. Freeze until dough is hard, about 30 minutes. At this stage you can freeze the balls in a freezer bag until you are ready to use them. They will keep for about 3 months.


4. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Working with half batches, place 8 frozen dough balls on a cookie sheet. Do not press them down. Bake until set but not brown, 8-10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Continue to bake until cookies are golden brown around the edges and lightly brown on top, about 10 minutes longer. Let cookies cool completely on sheet. Repeat with remaining dough balls. Enjoy!!!!