Just Because Chocolate Chip Cookies...
Is there really a wrong time for Chocolate Chip Cookies? If you answered yes, please stop reading this blog immediately. Seriously, I am doing you a favor by telling you this. From here on out, I talk only about the healing powers of chocolate and if you feel that this is a bunch of malarky but choose to continue on, just remember that you have been warned.
So, after publishing Spring's Beginning and Summer's Repose, my blog has been a mecca of questions regarding the baked goods and savory dishes that make their appearance throughout the story. Truth be told, like Nissa, I have a true love for creating something delicious not just because I enjoy it, but because of the joy it brings to others. You know it when you see it. That first bite into warm chewy chocolate chip cookies, eyes closed, that first lick of your lips covered in chocolate, the careful scrutiny of where the next bite will be (Mom). Yep, pure chocolate Nirvana. It takes you to a place of comfort and brings back memories of times less complicated. For me, I'm transported back to my house in Galesburg, curled up in a blanket on the living room couch, fire roaring in the hearth, rain pinging off the windows and...you guessed it, hot chocolate with chocolate chip cookies perched on the coffee table and the collection of Sherlock Holmes in my lap. It was bliss.
I think that is why I put so much emphasis on sustenance in the book because with all the conflict going on for Will in the Season's Series, he needed an escape, something to call him home and remind him of easier times. It's something we all can relate to whether you are a chocoholic or barbecue connoisseur...a shout out to all the inquiries from down south.
One of the questions posed to me was why I don't write a cookbook to go along with the series. My answer was, why not? Genius!! I need to refer to one of my previous posts about making the time, right? But combining my two loves of writing and baking seemed like the right idea and more importantly, the right time. Bringing the books to life could be fun and told from Nissa's point of view, well, what sweet story telling and magical concoctions will manifest, only one can tell.
But back to the subject at hand...Chocolate Chip Cookies. See, I even capitalize here because this is a beautiful thing AND because it has earned its right. Many a bad mood or skinned knees have been made better simply by placing so few ingredients into a bowl. No need for antiseptics or band-aids when the timer goes off and the oven opens, revealing the brown sugary smells of deliciousness.
In Spring's Beginning and Fall's Descent, Mr. Chocolate Chip Cookie played an important secondary character in making difficult situations better so I began playing around with the perfect recipe that would make Mr. Chocolate Chip Cookie nothing less than a confectionary shaman for healing emotional wounds. It is a perfect combination of crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle with lots of chocolate in between. Did I say lots of chocolate? I mean milk chocolate and semi-sweet just to make sure that there was no skimping anywhere. Try them out. You won't be sorry.
INGREDIENTS for 'Just Because' Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 cup butter
1 ¼ cups light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups flour
1 cup uncooked rolled (or old fashioned) oats - not quick oats.
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup roughly chopped, toasted pecans
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until melted. Remove from the heat.
2. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and stir until sugars are incorporated and smooth. Chill the mixture for 10 minutes. You don't want the eggs to become scrambled when you add them. Just saying!
3. Remove from the refrigerator and stir in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla.
4. Add the flour, oats, baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt, and cinnamon and mix together.
5. Stir in the milk chocolate chips, chocolate chips and pecans. Now don't cheat and skip the part of toasting the pecans. Toasting them brings out their nutty flavor. If you don't like nuts, then just ignore me here.
6. Roll by hand into medium-size balls or use a scoop, and place on sheet pans. If desired, tuck extra chips and pecans over tops of dough mounds for a gourmet appearance. It looks better in pictures. Seriously, those are really my cookies in the pictures.
7. Chill, on sheet pan for 30 minutes.
8. Preheat the oven to 325˚F. Remove the cookies from the refrigerator and bake for 14-18 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool for several minutes on pan, then transfer to cooling rack.
Now, enjoy! Put on some music and curl up with a good book. The Season's Series are good, I hear!
