Lazy girl’s chocolate chip cookies.

Eugene & I are going over to a friend’s house tonight, so yesterday {after seeing chocolate chips on sale at Aldi} I decided to bake some cookies to take with us. Now, mind you, it was already 9:00 pm by the time I got home & started, so I was feeling tired & not too willing to follow detailed instructions. So, I chose to make the Lazy-Girl version of America’s Test Kitchen’s Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies. This meant, not really measuring any ingredients, not following the instructions, ignoring the hard parts of the recipe, and hoping they tasted okay in the end!

Lucky me – they turned out great! Soft, chewy near the center, but still slightly crispy edges. Delish. {They hit the spot…I had 3 for lunch – oops!}

So, here’s the real recipe with my lazy changes in parenthesis.

Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour {I didn’t really measure, just heaped & hoped!}
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 14 tablespoons unsalted butter {I used 1 stick of salted & 2 tbs of “buttery spread” aka cheap margarine from my fridge…didn’t brown like I think it was supposed to, but it tasted fine in the end!}
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar {I used what I had – light brown sugar}
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon table salt
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract {I used my Mexican vanilla & it gave it a strong vanilla flavor & I liked it.}
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk {too lazy to separate it, so I used 2 large eggs!}
• 1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips {considered adding more, but I’m glad I didn’t…this was plenty.}
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts {I didn’t measure, just threw in some chopped pecans.}

Adjust your oven rack to the middle position & preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray your baking sheets. Whisk the flour & baking soda together.

Heat your butter in a nonstick skillet {they recommended not using a dark pan} until it’s melted, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking, swirling the pan constantly until the butter is dark golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 1-3 minutes. {Mine never got dark golden brown, prob. because of the “buttery spread” but oh stinkin well.

Transfer the melted butter to another large mixing bowl & add your vanilla, sugars, & salt.

Whisk until it’s blended well, then add your eggs.

Whisk until it’s smooth and no sugar lumps remain, about 30 seconds. Let the mixture stand 3 minutes, then whisk 30 more seconds & do this trick twice more.  It’ll become thick, smooth, & shiny. Ta da…

Add your flour mixture…

Use a spatula to mix this together just until it’s combined.

Add in the goods – chocolate chips & nuts.

Place cookies on your baking sheet, about 2 inches apart.

Bake until the edges have begun to set but the centers are still soft, 10-14 minutes. Transfer to wire cooling rack to cool to room temperature.

I loved that these were a bit thick, not the pancake flat cookies I sometimes get.

YUM.

Oh, and my wondrous thing today is how sparkly the snow is today. “Sparkly” sounds like a princess’s made-up word, but that’s the best way to describe it. I tried to snap a pic. using my phone while taking the pup for a lunchtime walk, and it shows just slightly {more if you click the picture to enlarge it}, but God’s glitter is way better in person!

It’s the best kind of bling!