Yes, I made even making a chocolate chip cookie, nerdy!
I mean I cant just jump off into the abyss of chocolate chip cookieness without some education.
1. The Google Search
So, I searched and researched a few topics and kept coming back to the same answers (which frankly is a really good way to get a solid answer as far as I’m concerned!)
-most popular chocolate chip cookie
-most searched chocolate chip cookie recipe
-perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe
-top chocolate chip cookie recipes
And every time I went to Google, my preferred search tool, I was led back to the same top 3 recipes with a few that rotated in and out of 4th and 5th place.
2. Crowd sourcing
last week, I put out on my blog Facebook page and twitter to ask for input on “what makes the perfect chocolate chip cookie” I got some really good advice – someone else making them, chilling the dough, browning the butter and butter flavored shortening. All items I’ll consider as I move forward.
Crowd Sourcing round #2 consisted of asking for the “perfect” recipe. I wanted to see if there was a consistent go to. I got some good input. One very specific set of instructions and I’ll be keeping those in mind for sure…especially since they came from a cookie queen!
3. The NPR article and research of the “science”
First, I love when you put something on someone’s radar because when people see anything about cookies, they have been sending it my way, and I LOVE it. Last week an article circulated, “trended” if you will, on Facebook – it was the NPR article about the science behind your chocolate chip cookie and it was exactly what I needed to begin to understand all the “whys” associated with cookies. Flour, sugar, butter, chocolate, powder, soda….. I loved it. I even found this little gem, an infographic about the science behind the ingredients. There is so much stuff out there…It got overwhelming so I kept it to these two basics and will use them a reference when I jump into round 2 of baking.
4. Asking the question
So, I did a little Sunday lunch survey. I don’t get to eat lunch with my family on Sundays very often so last week when I “called in” and they were all sitting at the table, I went around the room and gathered the answers to “What makes a perfect chocolate chip cookie?”
Dad- stands up, buttery taste, not flat, Janna Beall’s recipe
Mom – crisp edges, chewy inside
Zak- no chips, ice cream on top
Maresa – lots of chocolate chips, that are not melted yet and still have their shape, thick and chewy
so, with those things in mind, I made a decision – I picked 4 recipes to start with and I made a prediction…
(For the record, finding 4 basic cookie recipes to try was very overwhelming. Everyone thinks their recipe is “the one”. I’ve got to work on a name besides “perfect”, “ultimate”, “best”. Any thoughts?!?!)
