the "chewy" : brown butter

Do you like the new fall colors to the blog? Well, it may undergo even more changes in the near future. Not only the color but even bigger. Gasp, I may be changing the name. I don't mind the current name but I'm not the biggest fan of it either. I have an idea but if you have one also, I'd love to hear it.

I'm convinced that anyone who's heard of or watched Alton Brown has made/ate his delicious, chocolatey, soft chocolate chip that's simply known as the "Chewy". After baking countless number of recipes to discover the perfect chocolate chip cookie with a crispy edge, soft and tender interior, I had found it at last. Fast forward a few months and I run across what I hate to admit is possibly...better...and more delicious...than the Chewy.

That's right, I had come across the widely popular chocolate chip cookie recipe by Jacques Torres in the NY Times. I was skeptical to say the least - 72 hours for a batch of cookies? But curiosity overcame laziness and the cookies were made. Long story short, that's my go to and my only chocolate chip cookie recipe that I use.

I came across a brown butter "Chewy" recipe on TasteSpotting a couple weeks back and I knew it was time for me and good ol' AB to reconnect. The result was a nostalgic goodness that warped me back to memory lane. Slightly nuttier than the original Chewy but the cookie still retained the crispy edges and that ever soft interior.

Chewy, I'm sorry for neglecting you the way I did. You and JT's recipes will forever remain in my heart - and stomach - as the only chocolate chip cookies I make. (Whoever is going to AB's Good Eats live this week in Atlanta: I'm jealous!)

The "Chewy"
Originally by Alton Brown, Adapted from RecipeGirl

Ingredients:
- 2.25 cups bread flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 sticks of unsalted butter, melted until brown
- 0.25 cup granulated sugar
- 1.25 cups dark brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon of milk
- 1 tablespoon of heavy cream (you can omit this and use 2 tablespoons of milk)
- 1.5 teaspoons of vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 cups of chocolate chips (I used bittersweet Ghirardelli)

1) Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. Set aside. Tip: if you don't have a sifter, just whisk together everything for awhile to break up any lumps.
2) Melt the 2 sticks of butter in a saucepan over low heat. Keep melting down and cooking the butter until browned.
3) While the butter is browning, mix the 2 sugars together. Once the butter is browned, add the butter to the bowl with the sugars. Whisk together until incorporated well.
4) Add the milk, heavy cream, vanilla extract and then the eggs one at a time.
5) Add in the flour mix, a third of the mixture at a time until all mixed in. Do not overmix. Stir in the chocolate chips and mix again. Tip: I add the chocolate chips right before the dough becomes complete to prevent overmixxing.
6) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours. I did 24 hours but overnight is fine as well.
7) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Take out the bowl 10 minutes or so before baking to thaw the dough out a little bit.
8) On a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, scoops the dough with an ice cream scoop or roll the dough into balls with your hands.
9) Bake for 10 - 12 minutes until the edges are browned. This is key when making chocolate chip cookies. The cookies will finish baking as it cools outside the oven. If you bake the cookies until it's completely browned, you'll end up with a tough, tanned and sad cookie.
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Hunger and curiosity overcame me while I was preparing these cookies. How do they differ in taste/appearance if I bake them with 2 hours of fridge time vs. 24 hours? The results?
This was the cookie that came out when the dough was chilled for 2 hours. After you compare, you can see that it was a little lighter in color. Yes, they were baked for exactly the same amount of time: 12 minutes.
And this cookie was the 24 hour batch. Darker in color but still delicious. The verdict?

The 24 hour batch I felt was a little sweeter and more "developed" in flavor vs. the 2 hour batch. There was a color difference also that was instantly noticeable. If you have the Bread Baker's Apprentice, you'll notice that - to be generic - a sponge is made and left to develop for flavor overnight. I can only guess that this adopts the same principle - but with eggs included. Really though, the point is this: it's delicious and should be baked ASAP.