When Rice University released a chocolate chip cookie recipe in their alumni magazine a couple of months ago, two of my friends immediately forwarded the recipe to me. The recipe was developed by an alumna and a science faculty member who teaches a course called The Chemistry of Cooking.
Lesa Tran Lu's perfect cookie is "crispy on the outside and thicker with a chewy, gooey cake-like middle. Since I agree with all those traits of a perfect cookie, I couldn't wait to test out her recipe.
The Recipe: The Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie from Lesa Tran Lu of Rice University.
Recipe Notes:
- only ONE stick of room temperature butter is needed
- uses both baking soda and baking powder
- uses both light and dark brown sugar
- needs a refrigeration of the dough overnight
- oven temperature is high: 400 degrees
- makes only one dozen cookies (65g weighed dough balls)
The Results: My first batch of cookies browned way too quickly after following Lu's timing suggestions. But a quicker bake helped my second batch; HOWEVER, when I turned down the temperature from 400 to 375 degrees, the cookies were more my ideal: not too browned nor too crispy.
These cookies aren't super sweet and are thicker than your average home-baked chocolate chip cookie (reminds of a smaller Levain cookie). These puffed up and browned kind of like bread. It had a smoother, yet cracked surface rather than a craggly top that I've gotten used to with most of the cookies I've baked. I realized that I don't prefer such a thick cookie since it doesn't yield a chewier texture. These are tasty yet very average---not quite perfect. 🍪🍪
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