Truth be told there’s nothing like a perfectly baked chocolate chip cookie! It’s comforting and familiar. And if you’ve ever stayed at a DoubleTree Hotel you more than likely have been welcomed by their signature chocolate chip cookie, I know I have. Last month they finally made the recipe for their iconic cookie available so at-home bakers can bake up a batch themselves to find some comfort in these crazy & unfortunate times.
There are quite a few reasons to love these cookies. First and foremost they are delicious. They only require 1 bowl (no need for mixing the dry ingredients separately and then incorporating it into the dough) and they have walnuts! I love chocolate chip cookies with walnuts!
As I mentioned they only require 1 bowl. So, I began by creaming together the butter with the sugars and then adding in the eggs, vanilla and lemon juice. Yes, you read that right. Lemon juice in a chocolate chip cookie. Don’t worry, the cookies will not have a lemon flavor whatsoever, what the lemon does do is brighten the flavor of the cookie. I continued mixing until the dough was light and fluffy. Next, I added in the dry ingredients – flour, oats, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. After mixing the dough on low to incorporate these ingredients I then used a rubber spatula to fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
Now, these cookies aren’t your typical chocolate chip cookies that use about a tablespoon of dough, these require about 3 tablespoons of dough. I ended up using an ice cream scoop to scoop the dough. Since my ice cream scoop is slightly more than 3 tablespoons I ended up with less cookies than the recipe indicated; 20 as opposed to 26. I placed the mounds of cookie dough on parchment lined baking sheets 2 inches apart.
I then baked them for 20 minutes in a 300 F preheated oven and once I removed them from the oven I placed the baking sheet on a wire rack for an hour so the cookies could cool right on the sheets. The cookies were golden brown around the edges and quite soft in the middle when I removed them from the oven, but, as they cooled they firmed up nicely.
Once cooled it was time to enjoy them. And they definitely did not disappoint. I know I will be baking these cookies up for years to come. Also, they are sturdy and large enough that they could be the base for the perfect ice cream sandwich.
DoubleTree Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup rolled oats*
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt**
Pinch of cinnamon
2 2/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips***
1 3/4 cups chopped walnuts
*These are the old-fashioned oats, not the quick-cooking ones
**I used kosher salt
***This is about 16 oz. of chocolate chips
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 F. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large bowl cream together the butter and both sugars using a handheld mixer on medium speed for about 2 minutes.
Add the eggs, vanilla and lemon juice to the butter mixture and mix on low for 30 seconds and then on medium speed for 2 minutes, or until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Add the flour, oats, baking soda, salt and cinnamon to the mixture and beat on low speed for 45 seconds. Don’t overmix.
Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula.
Portion the dough with a scoop (about 3 tablespoons) onto the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 23 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown and the center of the cookie is still soft.
Remove the cookies from the oven and place the sheet on a wire rack to cool for 1 hour.
Recipe from Hilton
Bead Yarn & Spatula 