Chocolate Chip Birthday Cookie

Ingredients

2 cups Imperial light brown sugar

2 teaspoons flaked sea salt

2 sticks salted butter

½ cup whole milk

2 ¾ cup bread flour, divided

2 large eggs, cold

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

1 ¾ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

2 cups semisweet chocolate, 60% - 65% cocoa content, chopped

NOTE:  If you’re decorating this for a birthday, you’ll need store bought frosting, or a recipe of buttercream. 

Instructions

Chop chocolate bars sideways into medium size chards/pieces.  Set aside. In large mixing bowl, combine brown sugar & salt.

Using a heavy saucepan, melt butter on medium-high heat.  Stir often; it will take about 8 – 10 minutes to brown the butter.  After it starts to turn golden, be sure to continually stir and remove from heat once it reaches a golden color.   Pour immediately over brown sugar, making sure to get all the little brown bits out of the saucepan.  Stir vigorously to combine, which helps dissolve the brown sugar.  The mixture will be a bit lumpy and not smooth.  Set the saucepan aside that you browned the butter in. (You will use the same saucepan again). 

Add 3 Tablespoons flour and the milk and whisk until smooth.  Place the saucepan over low heat and cook the mixture, stirring continuously until it’s thickened, almost a paste-like and starts to come together in one big lump, about 2 – 3 minutes.  Remove from heat and add to bowl with butter and sugar.  Whisk until mostly smooth.  It’s ok if some lumps remain.

Add the eggs and vanilla and continue whisking until smooth.

Weigh or measure 2 ½ cups flour plus 1 Tablespoon but gently spooning into a cup, then leveling off the top.  Add the bread flour to the bowl with the sugar and butter.  Add baking powder and baking soda.  Using a whisk or spatula, stir until well combined and all dry ingredients are incorporated. 

Place the bowl, uncovered, in the refrigerator and allow it to cool for 10 – 15 minutes. 

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and fold in the chopped chocolate.  Cover the bowl and let set in refrigerator for a couple hours.  Remove and using an extra large cookie scoop, scoop into balls. Balls should be about 2 ½ inches in diameter.   Place back in large bowl, cover and refrigerate for24 – 72 hours.  This allows the flavors to intensify.

 

Remove from refrigerator; preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheet with parchment.  Place 5 cookie balls on each baking sheet.  Bake for about 18 - 22 minutes, or until done. The edges should be golden and crisp and the middles should be slightly soft.  Remove from oven and let set on baking sheet for about 5 – 10 minutes.  Remove and finish cooling on wire rack.

Cool completely and store in airtight container.

NOTE:  If you are baking one single large birthday cookie, arrange cookie balls on 10” round cookie/pizza pan or stone.  Press down evenly all around edges and in the middle.  Bake for about 22 minutes; check for doneness and finish baking another 3 – 4 minutes, or until done.  Let cool completely before removing from pan.  TIP:  you can use a Spring form 10” pan, which will make it easier to remove from pan in one piece.  You can also use an aluminum pizza pan and cut around the edges to remove cookie from pan; using a cake lifter, remove and place on a cake circle or a cake plate, or decorate in same pan cookie was baked in. 

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Chewy Brownies

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French Onion Chicken Casserole