Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am sharing one of my favourite chocolate chip cookie recipes today! I've used this recipe for over 5 years, and it has never failed me. It's simple, straightforward, and uses ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup butter, extra softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated (white) sugar

1 egg

1 tsp clear vanilla extract*

1/2 tsp salt (or 1 tsp if you like saltier cookies)

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp cornstarch

1 tsp baking soda

1-2 cups of chocolate chips**

*You can use any vanilla you prefer. However, I use clear vanilla extract to give my cookies a unique flavour.

**You can use use this as your chance to experiment; feel free to add any mix-ins (milk chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, m&m's, whatever you like)!

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place the softened butter in a mixing bowl. Using either a wooden spoon or a mixer, add in your sugars and mix.

2. Add in your egg and vanilla. Mix until combined.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together your flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda. Then, add this mixture into your bowl with the butter, sugar and eggs.

4. Mix until the dough is combined.

5. Add your chocolate chips and/or any mix-ins you want to add.

6. Once your dough is combined, portion your dough into balls. I like to use a cookie scoop to ensure my cookies are all the same size. Alternatively, you can use a kitchen scale and weigh out the cookies to 60g. Freeze your cookie dough balls for 30mins, and if you can, overnight. (TRUST ME ON THIS)!

7. Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees Celsius.

8. Place the cookie dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet. You'll want to leave 3 inches between each cookie.

9. Bake for 10-14 minutes or until cookies are firm but NOT browned. It's natural to want your cookies to have this browning on top, but I promise you, the best cookies are just slightly under baked. The edges should be browning, but not the entire cookie. Plus, this ensures that they are soft and chewy hours later!

10. Let the cookies COOL COMPLETELY, approximately 5–7 minutes, before enjoying. (I promise it's worth it. You can do it!). If you manage to have leftovers, you can store these in an air-tight container for maximum freshness.

NOTES:

1. If you want to have cookie dough on hand at all times, you can prepare your dough and freeze it for later use! To do so, follow this recipe until step 6. Then, instead of baking the cookies, pop them into an air-tight container or Ziploc bag and throw them in the freezer for up to 6 months. When you feel like having cookies, place the frozen cookie dough balls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and continue following steps 7-9.

2. If your cookies are spreading more than you'd prefer, or you want thicker cookies, try refrigerating or freezing the dough for 30 minutes prior to baking.

3. If your cookies are not spreading at all, try to ensure that you are accurately measuring your flour. You'll want to add flour into the measuring cup by the spoonful rather than dunking the measuring cup in a pile of flour. Trust me: For some reason, this makes for more accurate measurement.

4. If you don't have brown sugar, don't fret. Fun fact, I don't actually have brown sugar on hand at all times. Instead, I substitute the amount of brown sugar for white sugar, and add 1 tbsp of molasses into the dough. Example, this recipe calls for 3/4 cup of white sugar and 3/4 cup of brown sugar. Instead, I'll add a total of 1 1/2 cups of white sugar and 1 tbsp molasses. Make sense? This makes brown sugar without you having to go out and buy it!