Description
These homemade Nestlé chocolate chip cookies have crispy golden edges and soft chewy centers loaded with semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Ingredients
Dry Stuff:
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour (don’t use self-rising, learned that mistake)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt (table salt works fine)
Wet Stuff:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks, leave out for an hour)
- ¾ cup granulated white sugar
- ¾ cup packed brown sugar (light or dark, doesn’t matter)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (real stuff, not imitation)
- 2 large eggs (medium works too)
The Good Stuff:
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (Nestlé obviously, but store brand works)
- 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (totally optional, my kids hate nuts)
Instructions
Set oven to 375°F. Actually wait for it to preheat completely – that little beep means it’s ready. Don’t rush this part.
Get your small bowl and dump in the flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk it around good so there aren’t any lumps of baking soda hiding in there. Set aside.
In the big bowl, throw in your soft butter, both kinds of sugar, and vanilla. Beat the crap out of it for 3-4 minutes until it looks fluffy and lighter colored. Don’t rush this – properly creamed butter and sugar is what makes these cookies amazing instead of just okay.
Crack one egg in, beat it really well until totally mixed. Then crack the second egg and beat again. Don’t dump both in at once or the batter might curdle and look weird. Still tastes fine but looks gross.
Add your flour mixture about half at a time while mixing on low speed. Stop mixing the second you can’t see any white flour streaks. Seriously, stop. Overmixed dough makes tough chewy cookies that nobody wants.
Switch to a wooden spoon and fold in the chocolate chips and nuts if using. I always save a handful of extra chips to press on top of each cookie before baking. Makes them look bakery-perfect and gives you more chocolate.
Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto ungreased baking sheets. Leave about 2 inches between each one – they spread when they bake. I learned this when 12 cookies became 3 giant cookie monsters that hung off the sides of my pan.
Press those extra chocolate chips on top of each cookie. Trust me on this.
Slide into oven for 9-11 minutes. Set a timer. Don’t open the door to peek – it drops the temperature and screws up the baking. They’re done when the edges look golden brown but the centers still look slightly underdone and soft.
This is the hardest part. Let them sit on the hot baking sheet for exactly 2 minutes. They’re still cooking from the hot pan. Then move them to wire racks with a spatula. If you try to move them too soon they’ll fall apart and break your heart.
Notes
Never open the oven door while they’re baking. Temperature drops and messes up the whole batch.
Want thicker cookies? Chill the scooped dough balls in the fridge for 30 minutes before baking. They won’t spread as much.
Use parchment paper on your baking sheets. Makes cleanup easier and cookies brown more evenly.
My biggest mistake for years was overbaking them. Take them out when the edges are golden even if the centers look underdone. They keep cooking on the hot pan for those 2 minutes.
Rotate your pans halfway through if your oven has hot spots like mine does.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American