One finger swipe up through my text thread with Dad will tell you weโve been on a cookie bender lately.ย The dust up dates a few weeks back to January of this fine year when King Arthur Baking announced their recipe of the year. A supersized and super soft, as they would describe it, chocolate chip cookie made with bread flour (GASP, truly) and a procedure list so intense I basically had to Phone A Friend โ Dad.
A few days later Dad sent me a photograph of a bag King Arthur Baking Bread Flour sitting on their kitchen counter which could only mean one thing.ย It’s ON.ย Well… two things really.ย It also meant that mom was going to call me from her garden to tell me Dad is making cookies again.ย ย It doesnโt take much for us to spiral, especially where brown butter and chocolate chips are involved and this cookie recipe was an all-hands situation for the Wilsons.
The questions we had were these:ย ย
Will this labor intensive, long rested cookie dough really make for a superior chocolate chip cookie?ย
Will these cookies knock Dad’s Best Chocolate Chip Cookie off the pedestal we keep the cookie jar on?ย ย
And we filled the fridge with cookie dough to find out.
Here are the ingredients we used to make KAB’s Supersized, Super-Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies:
โขย unsalted butter, melted to browned and used warm
โขย light brown sugar, and no granulated sugar which is different from traditional CCC recipes
โขย bread flour, which has a higher protein content than its all-purpose counterpart
โขย whole milk, to heat and whisk with bread flour to create a smooth paste or a tangzhoung starter
โข baking soda and baking powder
โขย semisweet chocolate wafers, finely chopped for lot of chocolate bits
With recipe in hand, we tackled this dough.
First, we whisked together the brown sugar and salt.ย By now we’re familiar with browned butter.ย We whisked that liquid gold, still warm, into the brown sugar.ย The warm butter helps dissolve the sugar slightly but still leaves a bit of a sandy sugar mixture.
After addressing the butter and sugar, we made a smooth paste of warm milk and bread flour.ย This process of adding milky flour paste to baked goods is called the tangzhoung method.ย I’ve seen this method most often in Chinese and Japanese baking to make the fluffiest loaves of bread that don’t stale quickly.ย The process of gelatinizing stabilizes some of the flour, preventing it from crystalizing after baking.ย Helps keep baked goods soft and not stale.
I had never used this recipe in a humble cookie recipe.ย It always felt more appropriate for more intensive bread recipes but, sure – I’ll try anything in the same of a soft cookie.
We added the flour paste to the sugar mixture and continued to trust the process.
Next up were cold eggs and vanilla extract, followed by bread flour, baking soda and baking powder.ย There’s no need for a mixer around these parts, as this dough felt more like a batter to me at this point.
After a 15 minute rest in the fridge (I think to ensure the dough wouldn’t melt the chocolate), we stirred in the chocolate bits and pieces.
At this point we curbed any CCC cravings we had.ย Reluctantly.ย This dough requires a 24 to 72 hour rest in the fridge to intensity the flavors.ย ย At this point I was ready to snack on any chocolate scraps we might have had left.
After their dedicated rest, we scooped the cookie dough into generous and precise 50 gram balls that baked for about 15 minutes.
They emerged from the oven golden brown and pleasingly wrinkled around the edges.ย They look so different than dad’s cookies which bake to a pale golden and hold large pools of chocolate instead of shards.ย After a brief cooling time, we couldn’t wait to dig in.ย I mean… we really earned it!
My thoughts?ย There’s really no such thing as a bad chocolate chip cookie. Respectfully, this is not my favorite chocolate chip cookie.ย Is it worth the effort? Honestly, no.
There is an intensity to this cookie that I don’t need from a chocolate chip cookie. I attribute this to the large amount of brown sugar balanced, in a valiant effort by the large amount of table salt.ย The texture is bendy, chewy, and a bit cakey.ย We’ve got bread flour and baking powder to thank.ย If chewy cookies are your passion, this is a worthwhile bake.
In my opinion, these cookies are the pour-over coffee of the cookie baking world.ย Sometimes you want a project. Sometimes you want to use a very specific grind of coffee, with a very specific temperature of water, to stand over coffee pitcher with a stopwatch… just for a cup of coffee.ย That’s a vibe. This recipe is a similar vibe.ย A project of a cookie.
When I want a cookie, I’m looking for familiarity and simplicity. Dad and I have our perfect recipe and after weeks texting and days fussing over a cookie that might/could be better, we sat down on the couch with dad’s tried-and-true cookies and a knowing nod.ย Dad’s recipe reigns supreme.
Have you bakedย King Arthur Baking’s Super-Sized Super Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies? Sound off in the comments! We want to know what you think!
58 Responses
I decided to make world peace cookies once I had a look at the extensive preparation required for KAB’s cookies, it just seemed like too much work. So I am thrilled to hear that I’m not missing out on the cookie of my life. Thanks for your over and above dedication to cookie monsters everywhere!
I am sticking with the Jacque Torres recipe, always get grand reviews.
I too didnโt think they were worth the effort with the resulting cookie with pools of chocolate (not chocolate chips). Honestly I like a good chocolate chip cookie, I am kind of over with the burning of the butter, adding salt, resting the dough for days, and all the other special processes people dream up to make their cookie different. I like ATKโs recipe.
I really liked the KAF CCC. I’ve made the dough a few times since I found the recipe. Mine don’t turn out as wrinkly as yours. In fact, they look more like your Dad’s recipe when I pull them from the oven. Maybe because mine are larger at about 90g/cookie. I’ll try your Dad’s recipe and see which I like better, but right now I’ve got to use up the tub of batter I made last week.
I wanted to try this new methods and recipe. I baked a double batch of KA and a batch of my gold standard chocolate chip cookies. I work at a university where I enlisted 48 faculty and staff to blind taste test. Results, while everyone said bith cookies tasted great – 42 preferred my cookie, 6 liked KA. KA is cake like but they liked the browned butter taste.
I’m sticking with my recipe.
I made the King Arthur cookie of the year also. My husband and brother and I thought OK. But my favorite recipe is your dadโs (though I thought were yours). Also available at King Arthur Baking website and my go to recipe. I make a double batch of browned butter and freeze til needed.
I wouldnโt describe the KAF CCC as a chewy cookie at all. Itโs very cake like andโฆ I did not like it at all. Not worth the effort. Unlike say their recipe of the year for cinnamon rolls a few years back using the same tongzang method. Go check those out!
I saved the recipe to make it at future time, but now I think I will make your dadโs recipe. Thanks for testing it.
I did also had to try the King Arthur recipe, I wonโt be doing that again. Your dadโs chocolate chip cookie recipe remains my all-time favorite and Iโm sticking to it. Thank your dad.??
I also tried King Arthur’s recipe of the year and was more disappointed than I can say as they were nowhere near the chocolatey goodness of my own favorite recipe. I trust King Arthur for many baking ideas, but this is not one of them.
I made the King Arthur cookies: They taste very good, maybe the browned butter and brown sugar combo. The tangzhoung step IMHO is not worth the effort but the baked texture is uniquely soft and pliable. The cookies were way too big at the KA recommended size, esp since they spread and flattened a lot while baking! (Could be due to 5000’+ altitude I was at) The chewiness and flatness did make them perfect for ice cream sandwiches but I’ll keep the Joy recipe for usual baking!
I have been reading the comments thinking to myself, “why go to all the trouble”, but if they make good ice cram sandwich cookies – that would be the answer. It isn’t easy to find a good ice cream sandwich cookie!!
King Arthurโs were sad. Iโm a cookie baker and Iโll never make those cookies again โ โ cannot figure out how that won the cookie of the year. Iโll try the new ones and see โ โ Iโll let you know.
I’ve been hearing about the KAF cookie and figured that I need to give them a try. I’m not a fan of cake-like cookies, so you and your Dad have saved me the trouble. I did read your Dad’s recipe a few weeks ago and it is most definitely on my list of CCC recipes to try. I’m looking forward to it!
I’ve made the KAF cookie recipe 3 times, and every time I thought they were fabulous. I don’t understand how so many people are getting “cakey” results. The insides of my cookies were very chewy, almost like the famous Levain Bakery cookies, whose insides border on cookie dough. I haven’t tried your father’s recipe, so I can’t compare them. But, IMO, the KAF cookie rivals the Jacques Torres recipe, which was my go-to CCC recipe for a long time. Also, the baked cookies froze very well.
I had the same experience. Chewy, chocolatly and delicious. I have made them 3 times because my family loves them.
Just here to comment that the story-telling is fantastic. And like everyone else, I am now opening the link to your dad’s recipe. Thank you Joy for your service!
We tried the recipe. Baked them up and the cookies looked amazing. Tasted super bland, no flavor. A real disappointment for cookie of the year. Pass on this one !
I also made the recipe as printed. I chilled half the recipe for one hour and the rest for 24 hours. No difference to my cookies. I will not bake these again as I was hoping for something over the top and they did not deliver.
I have tried them, and they werenโt the greatest at all. I am a pastry chef, and have all kinds of chocolate chip cookies. I make mine with 1/2 bread flour, and they are spectacular. I decided to do it for fun, but was disappointed. Sorry King Arthur, sometimes your recipes arenโt the greatest!
So sende YOUR recipe. I’m dying to check it out! LOVE me some awesome cookies!
Send it to laramieplain@gmail.com
Thanks!
Cynthia
( In Laramie) Nothin else to do here ;)
Loved this comment because I also thought whatโs all the fuss over this recipe? It was more time-consuming to mix up for not an improved taste. How can you improve on perfection, really! But I was glad I gave the recipe a good โole try!
I baked KAF CCC recipe and really like them. Love the browned butter taste and the chewyness. I wouldn’t bake them every time we want CCC but they are worth the extra effort.
Iโve baked the KAB recipe and your Dadโs recipe. I like them both very much. However, I think the KAB cookies stay fresher tasting longer.
I respect you went through the whole process and then gave your honest opinion that it wasn’t for you. Refreshing. Keep it up.
Absolutely chill the dough for at least 24 hours. I spread it flat and placed on a cookie sheet in the freezer for 1 hour then 5 more in the fridge. It worked ok but not as well as a 24 hour slow chill. Great recepie…I add double vanilla and a few drops of almond extract to mine and they turn out perfect.
I have made both, and I think that your Dadโs are the best. A few years ago, I entered them into our state fair and they won first place in the chocolate-chip cookie category. There were at least 16 other entries so I was chuffed. Thanks to your Dad for sharing his recipe!
I made the KAF ones and my girlfriend banned me from ever straying from your Dadโs again. Fierce fans around here.
HAHAHAHAHHAHA. I understand Cara, they were worth a shot but your girlfriend is right.
Wow, these are the perfect chocolate chip cookies.
I made these too, and thought they were a pretty solid “meh.” To me, they definitely were not worth all the extra steps and dishes to, and I’m a person who loves complicated bakes. I wasn’t a fan of the texture, and for all the effort to build flavor, we found them oddly bland. Jacques Torres’ chocolate chip cookie recipe in the NYT still reigns supreme in our house.