These chocolate chip cookies are rich, beautiful, and delicious. Their texture is really interesting, and something I’m quite proud of: light, balanced between a hint of crunch and a hint of chewy, with a remarkable melt-in-your-mouthiness.

These cookies distinguish themselves in being impressively beautiful, somewhat refined, generously proportioned, and quite delicious. I both can and can’t use words like “chewy” and “crunchy” to describe them. They have both those qualities, but they have an overreaching delicateness that you have to factor into those representations. They do have a subtle chew. And they do have a subtle crunch. Mostly, though, they have an amazing melt-in-your-mouth quality that morphs into richness without ever feeling dense.

Social Learning

Cream of tartar acts as a stabilizer, helps prevent sugar crystallization (which in turn inhibits crunchiness), provides a bit of leavening, and supplies acidity without the use of additional liquid.

I should mention that I keep my safflower oil in the fridge. I don’t use it regularly, and refrigerating it dramatically increases its shelf life. Normally, I wouldn’t want to use it straight from the fridge. In fact, in the fridge, it semi-coagulates, so I have shake it quite vigorously before measuring it out. As an alternative, I might set it into the sink with several inches of very warm water; it will un-congeal in just a couple of minutes. If you’re not in a rush, it will also come right back to its normal state if you leave it out for a while on the countertop, but because I intend to chill the dough once it’s made, I’m fine using a straight-from-the-fridge oil. I mention all of this in part to give you some tips about keeping oil around, but also because if you use a room-temperature oil, you may need more time to initially chill the dough. I’m sure the dough’s temperature will affect spread.

An ice cream disher is critical for this cookie’s appearance. (That’s the kind of scoop where you squeeze the handle to force the ice cream off the scoop.) The disher’s action will rough up the dough. Resist the urge to smooth the dough balls out. Their roughness will translate to a beautiful cookie.

I should add that the majority of the Make It Like a Man! crew likes – even prefers – these cookies when they’re slightly underbaked … baked just to the point that they’re fully cooked, but haven’t yet browned or have barely started to. This emphasizes their delicateness in spades. They seem like the tenderest shortbread cookies you could ever imagine. I like them the way I’ve written the recipe, however, because I think the texture is more varied, which translates to more interesting, and cookie is prettier.

The Backstory

I can go from “I think I’ll make chocolate chip cookies” to “the dough is in the fridge and the kitchen’s all cleaned up” in an easy, breezy half-hour while drinking a cappuccino. I feel like I hardly did anything, which is not something I can say about any of the other cookies I like to make. Now, of course I say this as a seasoned baker, which comes into play not because there are any special skills required by this recipe, but because I have a well organized kitchen, excellent equipment, and I know what I’m doing.

I remember the days when making any kind of cookie from scratch would’ve been a significant event. If that’s you: try these cookies. As from-scratch cookies go, they’re very easy and the result is stellar.

To many, baking seems to involve secrets and special skills. I’ve been baking for a long, long time, and I’d say that although there are secrets and skills, the main bulk of success comes from:

• Doing absolutely everything in a way that makes it perfectly and precisely repeatable
• Not getting sucked in by equipment that is unnecessarily expensive or fancy. Do some research to see if you can find out what professional bakers actually use. Usually, you’ll find that it’s well made, but not incredibly pretty or pricey.

A stand mixer is an obvious exception. They’re expensive, and I – as someone who bakes on a constant, regular basis – consider one to be necessary. However, light-colored, insulated, cookie sheets without fancy or non-stick coatings and Silpats that fit nicely onto them; flexible, heat resistant spatulas; restaurant-quality oven mitts … none of these things are huge investments, but they’ll make your work so much easier, make success more likely, and last the rest of your life.

Adult Lunchbox

If you want them to stay intact, pack them in a rigid container. Wrap them individually in wax paper, and pad the container with crumpled wax paper.

Rich, Beautiful, and Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookies

Credit for images on this page: Make It Like a Man! unless otherwise credited. This content was not solicited by anyone, nor was it written in exchange for anything. Thank you, Kesor. Make It Like a Man! is ranked by Feedspot as #16 in the Top 30 Men’s Cooking Blogs.

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