The Chewy is Alton Brown's recipe hack for perfectly soft, gooey, and cake-like chocolate chip cookies — just like Toll House, but better.

Course: Sweets

Keyword: Baking, Comfort Food, Desserts, Hacks, Snacks, The Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie

The Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie

A chocolate chip cookie overflowing with lots of chocolate & broken open to show fillings.

ACTIVE TIME: 20

TOTAL TIME: 1 50

Yield: 2 dozen cookies

These soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies are just like the childhood classic, but far, far better.

This is essentially a hack of the most famous chocolate chip cookie recipe in the world, which we all know from the back of the Nestle “morsel” bag. Extra chewiness is attained by substituting bread flour for regular all-purpose, replacing one egg white with milk, and changing the ratio of brown to white sugar.

I don’t recommend half or double batches. Instead, make a whole batch, bake what you want, portion, and freeze the rest.

Both U.S. standards and metric measurements are listed, but for consistently delicious results, go metric.

This recipe first appeared in Season 3 of Good Eats.

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16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter
12 ounces bread flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 ounces granulated sugar
8 ounces light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons whole milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

ACTIVE TIME: 20

TOTAL TIME: 1 50

Yield: 2 dozen cookies

Procedure

Heat oven to 375°F and place the racks in the top third and bottom third of the oven. Line 4 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside.
Melt the butter in a 2-quart saucepan over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly.
Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda onto a paper plate.
Pour the butter into the bowl of your stand mixer. Add the sugars and beat with the paddle attachment on medium speed for 2 minutes.
Meanwhile in a separate bowl, whisk together the whole egg, egg yolk, milk, and vanilla extract.
Slow the mixer to “stir” and slowly work the egg mixture into the butter and sugar. Mix until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds.
Using the paper plate as a slide, gradually integrate the dry ingredients, stopping a few times to scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Once the flour is worked in, add the chocolate chipsI'd suggest chopping your own dark chocolate chunks in the 68% cocoa range.. Chill the dough for 1 hour.
Scoop the dough into 1 1/2-ounce portions and place on the half-sheet pans, 6 cookies per sheet.
Bake two sheets at a time for 15 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking.
Remove from the oven, slide the parchment with the cookies onto a cooling rack, and wait at least 5 minutes before devouring.