February 13

I have spoken at length about why and how much I suck at baking cookies and the tips I follow to suck a little bit less. Anyway, I think with this batch of cookies (the first one since my last) I can stop pretending that I don’t like making cookies. I don’t think I have become leaps and bounds better but with the right recipe, you can’t go wrong, right?

Often, when I ask my boyfriend for a sweet blog idea he just asks for my banana bread, which isn’t helpful at all since it was one of the first things that I posted up here! The second request is usually cookies but nothing more exciting than ‘chocolate chip’. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against a good chocolate chip cookie. In fact, in many ways there is nothing better.



However, when I saw this recipe on top with cinnamon, I knew that it was going to be my starting off point for a chocolate chip cookie recipe. I was intrigued by the ‘twist’. In the end, I adapted the recipe a bit, and in my version, the ‘twist’ is infusing the browned butter with grapefruit zest and basil. Personally, I had no idea how this would taste (which is half of the reason why I wanted to try it). I think that once you taste the final product, it is pretty much impossible to guess what the ‘interesting’ taste is, although you can definitely tell that it’s not a run of the mill chocolate chip cookie. If anything, you can taste a vague citrus note but other than that it’s a mystery.

If you’re feeling the classic route,  it would be exceedingly easy to leave the basil and grapefruit out. You’ll end up with a cookie that’s crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, and packed with chocolate. Definitely a crowd pleaser (and begging to be dipped in a cold glass of milk).

Other than the interesting flavours, the other thing that was interesting with this recipe was the fact that it called for you to chill the dough in the refrigerator for 1-72 hours. Not only was this a huge window, but the recipe claimed that the taste and texture of the cookie actually improved the longer you kept the dough in the fridge. Well, I definitely had to test this out. Surely, I have no interest in a baking sheet sitting in my fridge for three days if it doesn’t make a difference. Well, I threw one cookie in the oven after about an hour of chilling in the fridge, and it was completely tasty. However, I do have to admit that both the taste and texture improved with age. I actually ended up baking the next batches after 24 hours and then after 72. On top of it being nice to have three different batches of freshly baked cookies (can’t complain about that right?) they actually tasted better the longer I waited. The biggest change however was after the first 24 hours. I encourage you to chill the dough for at least 24 hours and you’ll taste the difference!

**Why the difference you ask? Well, according to the original New York Times article that inspired this cookie, letting the dough rest allows the egg to be soaked up evenly in the dough, leading to a better consistency. The article claims that many professional bakers let their chocolate chip cookie dough rest for this very reason!