Best Chocolate Chip Cookies :)

Don loves chocolate chip cookies. While he was doing his BOLC training at Fort Sill he would often ask me to make him some, and then he'd have one or two when they came out of the oven. I wondered why he wanted me to make these cookies for him if he didn't eat more than a few right away! Well...he'd eat them for breakfast :) Sadly, I can't make cookies for Don for the next two months, but I can share a great recipe with all of you!

My favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies used to be out of my Mrs. Field's cookbook, but I have a new favorite: King Arthur Flour's Chocolate Chip Cookies! My sister, Julie, made this recipe the day I drove back to Colorado, & she had them fresh out of the oven when I walked through the door, tired from the long day's drive. Great way to come home!

I just love the King Arthur Flour Company! I have their baking cookbook, which has centuries old recipes, making it a lot of fun to look through. If you don't know about this company, here's a little blurb from their website:

Started in Boston in 1790 and now based in Norwich, Vermont, America’s oldest flour company has grown from a regional staple to a brand known nationwide not only for its high-quality flours but for our passion in sharing the joy of baking; from a small mail-order business with five employees in 1990 to the premier baking resource with nearly 200 employees today; from a family-owned operation for five generations to a 100 percent employee-owned business. King Arthur Flour - the Baker’s Catalogue offers more than 1,000 professional-grade baking tools and ingredients through its catalogue, online at kingarthurflour.com/shop, and at The Baker’s Store in Norwich, Vermont.

But to get to the point, here is the cookie recipe for all of you who might enjoying baking as much as Don & I do :)

King Arthur Flour's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients
2/3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, right from the fridge, or at room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vinegar, cider or white
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg
2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets. 1) In a large bowl, combine the sugars, butter, shortening, salt, vanilla and almond extracts, vinegar, and baking soda, beating until smooth and creamy. 2) Beat in the egg, again beating till smooth. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure everything is thoroughly combined.

3) Mix in the flour, then the chips.

4) Use a spoon (or a tablespoon cookie scoop) to scoop 1 1/4" balls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2" between them on all sides; they'll spread.

5) Bake the cookies for 11 to 12 minutes, till their edges are chestnut brown and their tops are light golden brown, almost blonde. Remove them from the oven, and cool on the pan till they've set enough to move without breaking. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Bon appetit! xox