Kitchen-Sink Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe by: Elinor Klivans | from The Essential Chocolate Chip Cookbook: Recipes from the Classic Cookie to Mocha Chip Meringue Cake

Cookstr

Course: Dessert

Total Time: Under 1 Hour

Skill Level: Easy

Cost: Moderate

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There are chocolate chip cookies that have only chocolate chips and those that also include nuts, but these cookies have the whole shebang. There is just enough dough to hold the heaps, and I mean heaps, of chocolate chips, pecans, walnuts, and almonds together.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup packed light brown sugar
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups (18 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup (4 ounces) pecan halves
1 cup (4 ounces] walnut halves or large pieces
1 cup (4 ounces] blanched whole almonds, toasted (see Notes) and chopped roughly in half

Directions

Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 or 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until smoothly blended, about 1 minute, Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing, Add the egg and vanilla and mix until blended, about 1 minute. The mixture may look slightly curdled. On low speed, add the flour mixture, mixing just until it is incorporated, Mix in the chocolate chips, pecans, walnuts, and almonds until evenly distributed.

Use a tablespoon to drop well-rounded tablespoonfuls of dough (about 2 tablespoons each) onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies 2 inches apart.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the edges are lightly browned and the centers are just slightly colored, about 14 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 10 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Choices

You can add 1 cup of raisins, dried cranberries, or chopped dried apricots to the dough with the chips and nuts. White, bittersweet, or milk chocolate chips, or a combination, can be substituted for the semisweet chips.

Notes

New crops of nuts appear in supermarkets from October to December, so autumn is a good time to buy a year’s supply. I seal the nuts tightly in heavy-duty freezer bags or plastic freezer containers and freeze them for up to 1 year. It is easy to remove just what you need for a recipe. Defrost nuts before baking with them, so they do not turn batters cold and thick.

Toasting nuts improves their flavor. Taste a toasted nut, and you will see the difference. To toast nuts, spread them out in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake them in a preheated 325°F, oven. Shake the pan once or twice during baking to help them toast evenly. Bake walnuts and pecans for about 10 minutes, until fragrant; sliced or slivered almonds for 12 to 15 minutes, until they become golden; and blanched whole almonds and hazelnuts 15 to 20 minutes, until golden and fragrant. Just before the nuts are ready, you will smell a pleasant aroma of toasting nuts. Check them often at the end of baking to prevent burning.