Chocolate Chip Baking Week 3: Brown Butter Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Wow. This is just wow. I can’t even begin to explain it. These have come the closest so far to kicking my original favourite off its high horse.

Where do I begin with these cookies? They are so different to any other recipe for one thing when it comes to classic chocolate chip cookies – I mean let’s see, they:

• Contain a little bit of cream in the batter (which actually resembles a thin brownie batter)
• Has browned butter in it (really? I had not noticed :P)
• Has a mix of milk and dark chips (oh dear, watch out all you chocolate snobs :P)
• Has a very different ratio of white to brown sugar – 1 tbs:1/4 cup where as in my limited experience, half or a little under is the norm

I do believe all these differences aid in creating a wonderful complexity in this cookie. There is a slightly nutty depth to them due to the browned butter and the aroma from this cookie is actually intoxicating.
Once more, they have a tendency to be on the puffier and softer side similar to the Nestle Tollhouse cookies but in comparison, when it comes to the chewiness, these ones are the CLEAR WINNER! And therefore unfortunately move the Nestle Tollhouse cookies in the delicious but normal category and take over as the owner of the ‘Soft and Chewy’ section.

I also realised that the only reason these do not beat my favourite recipe is because of the after-crunch of over sweetness which is the thing I love about Mrs Field’s  Cookies and yet couldn’t replicate for the recipe! Aah, the coincidences in life of a chocolate chip lover!

I must also note that this dough was one of the slickest (Grease lightning!) and moistest I have ever come across – when it came to stirring in the chocolate chips, I was actually having a little difficulty since they just would not embed themselves in!

Any changes or tips I made or have?

• I would decrease the amount of brown sugar due to the overwhelming sweetness to approximately 1 cup and 2 tbs instead of an extra 1/4 cup
• The recipe claims to wait 12-15 minutes for the baking time but mine were done in 8 minutes (less than all other cookies)
• It is true, these do not spread much, but I literally flattened it by the lightest feather touch and they turned out exactly the shape I desired
• When browning butter: I believe it to be a little bit like making caramel – let the butter melt and bubble and keep swirling occasionally so it doesn’t stick – once the butter is foaming and you cannot see its liquid, run a spoon through to see if it has turned brown – it should also have a distinct nutty aroma which is why these cookies made my kitchen smell like heaven!
  My first brown butter recipe: Brown butter berry bars

Find this recipe right here! 🙂
Up Next: Eggless Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies

P.S – Sorry there is no photo of the browned butter but it can burn in the blink of an eye and I cannot multitask so yet!