I found this recipe on the chocolate chocolate and more web site. The recipe looked perfect to me so I didn’t change a thing. OK, I did specify unsalted butter, unbleached all-purpose flour and kosher salt in my version because that’s what I almost always use in every culinary endeavor I undertake. Granted, regular bleached flour can certainly be used, and is preferred by some bakers. I just haven’t the time or energy to have one more type of flour in my pantry. So even though bleached flour has a whiter color, finer grain, and softer texture, I’m sticking to my guns (like I own any guns!) on this one. It’s unbleached flour for me all the way! Unless of course the recipe calls for whole wheat, bread, rye, self-rising, etc. etc. flour. Then there is really no choice to be made. Same goes for butter. If you prefer to use salted butter, go for it! However if you use table salt rather than kosher salt, you might want to cut back the amount to ¾ teaspoon. But back to these incredible cookies.

I guess the first thing I should say about these cookies is that they are really yummy. I chose to use large Guittard milk chocolate chips for my first batch because I thought the milk chocolate would go well with the darker cocoa flavored dough. And the flavor combination worked perfectly. However, for presentation sake, you might want to use smaller chocolate chips.

As you can see in the picture, the cookies came out quite thin. That’s great because they are very crispy. And I love crispy cookies. But the larger chips stick out so much you might draw a similarity between the look of these cookies and what lays on the ground in a field of cows. (No offence intended towards cows.) But it does give a whole new meaning to cow chip cookies. (If you aren’t from the Seattle area, Cow Chip Cookies is a local company that makes and delivers truly delicious cookies. So any reference to or mention of cow chip cookies is only made in the most positive way.)   

Anyway, even though lovely presentation is probably not going to be the first remark out of your mouth, these are still truly delightful cookies. Just give them a lot of room on your cookie sheet. Even though the dough is chilled, the balls of dough still seem to take pleasure in cozying up to their neighbors as they bake. But then, shouldn’t we all try harder to adopt that kind of “get closer to our neighbors” behavior. The world would sure be a lot better off if everyone expended just a bit more effort in that direction. Peace, love, and chocolate chip cookies to all.

• 1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 c. brown sugar, packed
• ½ c. granulated sugar
• 2 eggs, room temp.
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• ½ c. good unsweetened cocoa powder
• ¾ c. malted milk powder
• 2½ c. unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 12 oz. (about 2 c.) milk, semi-sweet, or mini chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla, beat until well combined. In a separate bowl, whisk the cocoa powder, malted milk powder, flour, baking soda, and salt together. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture blending just till combined. (Remember to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl periodically.) Stir in the chocolate chips.

Refrigerate dough for about an hour. Using a small ice cream scoop, place cookie dough balls on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet at least 2-inches apart. Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until set and beginning to look crackly on top. Don’t overbake. Remove from oven and transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.