Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

My daughter Olivia is the cookie queen at our house and she can whip up a mean batch of chocolate chip cookies. We've been snacking on lightly toasted walnuts these days not only because of their recently touted heath properties but because they are so crunchy and delicious as any nut fan will tell you. Olivia decided to add some whole walnuts to her favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe and the result was outstanding. While so many recipes call for ground or chopped nuts we like to keep them whole or as large as possible for great crunch.

As with any good chocolate chip cookie, it is very important not to over bake them, in fact it is preferable to under bake them if you have to. Individual differences in oven temperatures and baking pans can be critical when trying to achieve the perfect chewy crunchy cookie so experiment with baking times by underbaking by a minute or two if necessary and noting the difference it makes. Bake only a few at a time until you find the right balance for your baking pans and oven. I recommend aluminum bake-ware lined with parchment paper as the best for baking perfect cookies.

Ingredients:

1 &1/3 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract or butterscotch flavoring (or both! Hint, hint.)

8 oz semisweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup lightly toasted whole walnuts

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium sized bowl whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and combine thoroughly.

Add the flour mixture to the sweetened butter. Mix only enough to incorporate flour. Do not over mix. Fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts.

Form cookies by dropping a rounded teaspoon of dough on the prepared cookie sheet two inches apart. Bake until light brown around the edges, about 12-14 minutes, depending on cookie size.

Over baking is the biggest problem with most chocolate chip cookies. Your oven temperature and the type of cookie sheet you use will vary the baking times considerably. When they are golden brown around the edges is the time to remove them from the oven even if the middles fall when removed from the oven.

Cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before removing to a wire rack to cool thoroughly.