As the election drew near in November, it seemed like everyone I knew was feeling stressed and anxious. That's one reason I've been making so many chocolate chip cookies of late; I feel like they are one of the ultimate comfort foods. So for boxes of baked goods that I was going to distribute the day after the election -- when I knew we would likely still be waiting for a winner to be declared -- I decided to include some edible comfort in the form of Sarah Kieffer's "Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies."
Aside the need to brown butter, this recipe is straightforward and you can make it by hand (although I used a mixer because I was making a quadruple batch). You brown butter; transfer the brown butter to a bowl with additional butter and stir until that butter melts; add brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla, and salt; whisk in an egg and egg yolk until the batter is glossy; let the batter sit for two to three minutes and whisk again; incorporate the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and baking soda); and stir in chocolate chips. I used Callebaut 2815 callets, which are made of very fluid 57.9% bittersweet chocolate.
I used a #20 scoop to portion out the dough, getting 18 cookies per batch, and chilled the cookies for 24 hours to help develop the flavor before baking. I sprinkled the cookies with Maldon salt while they were still warm from the oven.
The cookies spread nicely but were not too thin, and I liked the puddles of melted chocolate throughout. While this was a perfectly good, definitely above-average cookie, it didn't wow me. Don't get me wrong, no one is going to complain if you serve them one of these cookies. But the memory of the Whiskey and Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies I had baked just the week before was fresh in my mind, and I thought that those cookies had a more interesting, complex flavor. I'm not afraid to admit that I have really high standards for chocolate chip cookies.
However, I can say that on the morning after the election as I kept an eye on my Twitter feed, nervously waiting for more election results to come in, I ate one of these cookies and it absolutely made me feel better. So it worked exactly as intended!
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