What could possibly be a better way to spend the summer than learning way too much about American culture? That is exactly why I spent this past summer researching the intricacies of the best thing to come out of this great nation—the chocolate chip cookie.
And no, I am not referring to the Chips Ahoy! of the world, or what I think is an abomination of this earth, Crumbl Cookies, but instead to the Cadillacs of the cookie scene. Despite its historical ties to the black-and-white cookie, New York City has recently become the epicenter of the chocolate chip cookie scene. Levain, La Mercerie, Culture Espresso, From Lucie, Chip City, and Maman are the Guccis and Louis Vuittons of the cookie world. Of course, it was my duty to try each and every one of them in this incredibly erudite research journey.
Amidst the garnishes of flaky sea salt and an entrancing toffee aura of brown butter, I realized two things. First: the endeavor to crown a singular chocolate chip cookie as “perfect” is utterly impossible, because while I might love the bitter notes of a 65% dark chocolate chopped bar, some people would die on the hill that a chocolate chip cookie should be made using actual chocolate chips. My second discovery, after spending my summer weekends coursing around New York City taste testing cookies, was that I am completely capable of making an amazing chocolate chip cookie myself. Thus, my chocolate chip cookie master document was born, and I am here to share the findings of my research, so you may also have every tip and trick you need. Instead of a recipe for the “perfect chocolate chip cookie,” I’m offering the information necessary to create a personalized quintessential cookie.
Oversimplified: A chocolate chip cookie is made up of fat, sugar, binding agent (eggs), leavening agent(s), flour, and add-ins. The final product will depend on how you adjust the ratios, temperatures, and additional ingredients.
Ratios: Perhaps the most important quality of a chocolate chip cookie is its texture, which depends largely on the ratio of fat to flour. Take your baseline recipe and, for a cookie reminiscent of Levain, with a cakey and almost scone-like texture, add some extra flour. (Bonus points if you include a high-protein flour like a bread or whole wheat one!) On the other hand, if you want more of a thin, crispy cookie, use a larger quantity of fat in your recipe. Without a strong structure to hold the shape, it will spread more.
Quick mini-tip: Add an extra egg yolk or a couple tablespoons of heavy cream for a chewier cookie!
Another aspect affecting the overall consistency of the cookie’s crumb is the ratio of the leavening agents responsible for the rise of the cookies: baking soda and baking powder. Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, is a leavening agent which can only be activated in the presence of an acidic ingredient such as brown sugar or honey. When used for cookies, baking soda delays the setting process during baking, allowing the cookies to spread more, and its presence encourages and speeds up the Maillard reaction, producing more browned cookies. In short, baking soda will give a chewier, denser, thinner, and darker cookie. Baking powder, on the other hand, is a combination of baking soda and an acidifying agent that activates this rise. Using more baking powder will give the cookie a more emphatic rise—almost a cakier texture. In cookie dough, some ingredients are acidic and others aren’t. Most recipes will call for both baking soda and baking powder so the cookies rise properly and completely.
Of course, it is important to note that factors like chewiness, spread, and rise are all equally influenced by the aforementioned ratios, as well as the methods by which they are treated. I would consider baking soda and baking powder as supporting characters in the tale of chocolate chip cookies, the main ones being the ingredients, temperatures, and mixing processes.
Temperatures: Cookie doughs made with identical ingredients and methodology can still turn out dramatically different depending on the temperature at which they’re baked. A good baseline temperature is about 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Exceeding it will shorten the baking time and lead to a thicker and gooier cookie, whereas lowering it will require a longer bake time, resulting in a more spread out, crispy cookie.
Another key step is to freeze your dough before baking. Roll into balls and freeze for at least an hour. The longer you freeze, the better. This will not only result in a thicker and chewier texture (it solidifies the fats in the dough, which prevents the cookies from spreading too much), but will also allow the actual flavors to intensify—almost like marinating meat! Not to mention, it’s very convenient to take a batch of pre-prepared dough from the fridge and throw it in the oven whenever you have the urge for a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie…
Quick tip: The temperatures of both the ingredients and the oven can have major impacts. Using melted butter will lead to a richer, gooier cookie with a stronger toffee flavor, and using softened butter in a more emulsified state will allow you to cream the sugar and butter, adding air and leading to a fluffier texture.
As you can tell, the recipe for a simple chocolate chip cookie is complicated enough, but don’t let that stop you from making it even more complicated with some unique mix-ins. Here are some ideas for how you can do exactly that:
Cream of tartar: If you want an extra chewy cookie, cream of tartar prevents the sugar from crystallizing, leaving you with a less crispy, but ultra-soft cookie (sort of like the red Chips Ahoy!).
Miso: If you’ve been following baking on Instagram Reels, you have likely seen at least one miso recipe. When used in a chocolate chip cookie, its saltiness and umami balance out the sweetness with a uniquely earthy flavor that plain salt lacks.
Pumpkin purée: ’Tis the season! Pumpkin pie spice in a buttery chocolate chip cookie is what my fall, personally, is all about.
Olive oil: Both heart-healthy and vegan! If you’ve ever had an Italian olive oil cake, this is a similar twist on a chocolate chip cookie. You can take it one step further by incorporating some freshly grated orange zest to flavor the cookie dough!
Applesauce: The superior egg replacement in a chocolate chip cookie. One could argue that it actually produces a better texture than eggs.
Espresso powder: A personal favorite—it’s no secret that chocolate and coffee bring out the best in one another, and including it in your dough will really highlight the chocolate notes in the cookie!
Vanilla extract: There’s no such thing as too much vanilla extract. In a chocolate chip cookie recipe, it is the cherry on top of an already intoxicating aroma! This also applies to any other extract you might like, such as almond or maple—or even some Italian Amaretto if you’re feeling extra adventurous!
Now that I have given you all a synopsis of my life’s work—at least during this past year—I must confess: I did not exhibit a predisposition towards chocolate chip cookies in my childhood. My signature cookie was a snickerdoodle. This may come as a shock to many, but I actually used to not like chocolate chip cookies. I had thought that they were quite boring, and simply didn’t understand the appeal of chocolate being in a cookie. Now, I think that “chocolate chip cookie” has genuinely been my most stated phrase this past year. To answer the question that all my friends visiting New York City have asked me—“Kat, where can I find your favorite chocolate chip cookie in New York City?”—the answer is Culture Espresso! Their cookies have puddles of perfectly distributed, perfectly bittersweet chocolate. #TheyDefinitelyUseChoppedChocolate
Now, if you hate sea salt, and are a die-hard chocolate chip fan, you will not like this cookie. Alas, that is why I say to you all who have no semblance of baking skills: the world of chocolate chip cookies is still open for you to hyperfixate on. Let me leave you with one tip—don’t waste your time with Crumbl Cookies. The best cookies you find will be from an independent bakery with its own quirk that you will fall in love with (although an Insomnia cookie does not sound half bad at all…).
Kat Hernandez can be reached at khernandez@wesleyan.edu.