My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

Josh and I discovered the original recipe while staying at a bed-and-breakfast on Whidbey Island. This recipe is literally tried-and-true... and loved! The story behind this recipe is that the original owner of the b&b loved chocolate chip cookies and set out to create his own "perfect" recipe. Using a panel of 12 people, he tested different ingredients and ratios of ingredients.  Over the years, I've made a few changes to make it my own. I've found the best combination is 1 stick of Imperial margarine and 1 stick of butter. I also only use Ghirardelli's 60% cacao chocolate chips. These cookies also freeze very well. I often roll out the entire batch into walnut-sized balls and freeze them on a cookie sheet. Then, I stick the frozen cookie balls in a freezer ziploc bag so I'll always only be 12 minutes away from freshly baked cookies.

Here is my recipe:

4 oz Imperial margarine

4 oz butter
6 oz granulated white sugar (3/4 c)
6 oz brown sugar (3/4 c packed)
2 lg eggs
1 tsp vanilla
18 oz flour (3 1/2 c unsifted)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
12 oz chocolate chips (Ghirardelli's 60% cacao)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a separate bowl mix the flour, salt and baking soda and set aside. Cream the margarine, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Add the vanilla and eggs and mix until just smooth. Gradually add the flour mixture and mix well. With the added amount of flour mixture and mix well. With the added amount of the flour in this recipe, the batter will be stiff. This stiffness is what keeps the cookie from going flat in the oven. Stir in chocolate chips.

Form into walnut sized balls and place onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 minutes. Let cool for several minutes but remove while still warm onto a rack for cooling. (Do not fully cool on cookie sheet as they will continue to cook.) Makes approximately 5 dozen cookies.