I tested out Eric Wolitzky's recipe for chocolate chip cookies for two reasons:
1. I liked him very much on Top Chef: Just Desserts, Season 1. I liked that he called himself a baker, not a pastry chef. He was unquestionably skilled at making delicious desserts. At the same time, he was very relatable, whereas this past season, with the heavy focus on showpieces, felt completely removed from any kind of baking I'm capable of.
2. The recipe was recommended by Adam, the Amateur Gourmet, and I love his recipes. (NB: it's great fun reading about his new adventures in LA, since I've actually eaten at some of these restaurants, unlike the ones he talks about in NY!)
They were very tasty! Nice and rustic and chewy, probably due to having twice as much brown sugar as white. I was stymied by the lack of vanilla in this recipe, since I always think it's such an important component in baking. Since I usually weigh my ingredients, working with weights in this recipe didn't faze me, but I'm accustomed to ounces, not grams. Out of curiosity, I measured in grams, then translated the measurements into ounces (no fancy math - I used the g/oz button on my kitchen scale). Not surprisingly, the amounts are pretty standard, and I'll share them below. The recipe is actually pretty similar to the Cook's Illustrated Thick and Chewy Cookies - my old go-to recipe: both have an egg and an egg yolk; the sugar measurements are the same; and both call for melting and slightly cooling the butter.
I liked these a lot and would make them again, but I don't know if they quite topple my favorite recipe. Still, they are totally worth a shot, so give them a try if you have a free hour. Oh, and what's written below is half the recipe, which makes a lot of cookies!
Eric Wolitzky's Chocolate Chip Cookies
Forgot to count how many it makes - probably two dozen?
170 grams (1 1/2 sticks; 6 ounces) butter
100 grams (1/2 cup, 3 1/2 ounces) sugar
200 grams (1 cup, 7 ounces) brown sugar
10 1/2 ounces (2 1/2 cups) flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 egg
1 egg yolk
10 1/2 ounces chocolate chips (1 3/4 cups) (I used a combo of Trader Joe's semi-sweet and Whole Foods dark mini chunks)
Preheat the oven to 325F.
Melt the butter and let it cool slightly. Use the mixer to cream the sugar, brown sugar, and melted butter until just incorporated.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
Add the egg and egg yolk to the butter/sugar mixture, one at a time, until they're incorporated. On a very low speed, add the flour until almost fully incorporated, and then add the chocolate. Mix until just combined.
Scoop the dough onto a parchment- or silpat-lined baking sheet. Try baking one cookie first and see how well they are spreading. You may want to flatten the dough slightly with damp fingers to achieve the right thickness and spread.
Bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.
Print this recipe.
1. I liked him very much on Top Chef: Just Desserts, Season 1. I liked that he called himself a baker, not a pastry chef. He was unquestionably skilled at making delicious desserts. At the same time, he was very relatable, whereas this past season, with the heavy focus on showpieces, felt completely removed from any kind of baking I'm capable of.
2. The recipe was recommended by Adam, the Amateur Gourmet, and I love his recipes. (NB: it's great fun reading about his new adventures in LA, since I've actually eaten at some of these restaurants, unlike the ones he talks about in NY!)
They were very tasty! Nice and rustic and chewy, probably due to having twice as much brown sugar as white. I was stymied by the lack of vanilla in this recipe, since I always think it's such an important component in baking. Since I usually weigh my ingredients, working with weights in this recipe didn't faze me, but I'm accustomed to ounces, not grams. Out of curiosity, I measured in grams, then translated the measurements into ounces (no fancy math - I used the g/oz button on my kitchen scale). Not surprisingly, the amounts are pretty standard, and I'll share them below. The recipe is actually pretty similar to the Cook's Illustrated Thick and Chewy Cookies - my old go-to recipe: both have an egg and an egg yolk; the sugar measurements are the same; and both call for melting and slightly cooling the butter.
I liked these a lot and would make them again, but I don't know if they quite topple my favorite recipe. Still, they are totally worth a shot, so give them a try if you have a free hour. Oh, and what's written below is half the recipe, which makes a lot of cookies!
Eric Wolitzky's Chocolate Chip Cookies
Forgot to count how many it makes - probably two dozen?
170 grams (1 1/2 sticks; 6 ounces) butter
100 grams (1/2 cup, 3 1/2 ounces) sugar
200 grams (1 cup, 7 ounces) brown sugar
10 1/2 ounces (2 1/2 cups) flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 egg
1 egg yolk
10 1/2 ounces chocolate chips (1 3/4 cups) (I used a combo of Trader Joe's semi-sweet and Whole Foods dark mini chunks)
Preheat the oven to 325F.
Melt the butter and let it cool slightly. Use the mixer to cream the sugar, brown sugar, and melted butter until just incorporated.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
Add the egg and egg yolk to the butter/sugar mixture, one at a time, until they're incorporated. On a very low speed, add the flour until almost fully incorporated, and then add the chocolate. Mix until just combined.
Scoop the dough onto a parchment- or silpat-lined baking sheet. Try baking one cookie first and see how well they are spreading. You may want to flatten the dough slightly with damp fingers to achieve the right thickness and spread.
Bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.
Print this recipe.
Comments
It should be a simple page, limited formatting, and it should allow you to print by doing CTRL-P. So strange! I checked it in Chrome and IE, and the link seems to be working okay... I'm sorry you had trouble!
BTW, I used a small Farberware cookie scoop and got around three dozen.