Redgate Kitchen

Next best thing to getting an actual hug from Ina Garten (who doesn’t need a hug from the Barefoot Contessa these days?)

People have been asking me to recommend cookie recipes without bread flour (hard to find these days) and without tehina (also can be tough to get your hands on). My heroine of the kitchen is Ina Garten. I have been watching her and cooking her always-successful recipes for many years. A highlight for me was meeting her about 5 years ago (see pic below!). We obviously talked about Jeffrey and she was every bit as fabulous as you might imagine. Below is her recipe for chocolate chunk cookies (I skip the nuts and use dark chocolate chips in mine). Also, Ina doesn’t recommend chilling the dough for a million hours! You can bake right away, which I always appreciate.

ingredients

• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 extra-large eggs at room temperature
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1-1/4 pounds semisweet chocolate chunks

steps

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350℉.
2. In a stand mixer, cream the butter and two sugars until light and fluffy.

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3. Next up, add the vanilla, then the eggs, one at a time and mix well.

4. Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt and add to the butter with the mixer on low speed. Mix until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chunks or chips with a spatula.

5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and drop the dough balls on using an ice cream scoop or tablespoon. Bake for exactly 15 minutes (the cookies will seem underdone). Let them cool slightly on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.