Milk & Cookies Bakery Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

Who has a favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe? Every now and then I like to venture away from my trusted, fool proof Nestle Tollhouse recipe. It makes amazing cookies time and time again, and I often get  requests for my cookies for holiday/family events. I can't help but tell them -- in all honesty -- its just the recipe from the back of the chocolate chips bag.

But while living in New York, we were wandering around Greenwich Village one evening looking for something sweet (the story of our lives) and came across Milk & Cookies Bakery on Commerce Street. We took four cookies home from this adorable little tucked away shop -- chocolate chip, M&M sugar, oatmeal raisin, and peanut butter -- and devoured each one. Lucky for us, the recipe for their chocolate chip cookies are online. We stumbled across that and decided to attempt to recreate the magic. Because a good chocolate chip cookie and a tall glass of milk is magical, isn't it?

How cute is this place? If you're in NYC, make a stop here for dessert and if you aren't, add it to your to-do list for your next visit!

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Milk & Cookies Bakery Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies
makes about 3 dozen cookies

• Vanilla Base Dough (recipe follows)
• 2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chunks
• 2 cups (4 ounces) bittersweet chocolate curls or shavings

VANILLA BASE DOUGH:

• 2 1/2 cups (7 1/2 ounces) old-fashioned rolled oats
• 2 cups (8 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
• 1 cup (7 ounces) light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. (Alternatively, use nonstick baking sheets or lightly butter conventional baking sheets.) Set aside.

3. Place the oats in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and process until finely ground. Transfer the ground oats to a mixing bowl. Stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

3. Place the butter in the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle. Begin beating on low speed to soften. Increase the speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes, or until light and creamy. You may also use a hand-mixer if a standing electric mixer isn't available.

4. With the motor running, gradually add the granulated sugar and then the brown sugar, beating until very light and creamy.

5. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat to incorporate, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and when blended, slowly beat in the reserved dry mixture.

6. Stir in the chocolate chips and chocolate shavings or curls. While the dough is still streaky, remove the bowl from the mixer and scrape the paddle clean.

7. Lightly flour a clean, flat work surface.

8. **If necessary** Scrape the dough onto the lightly floured surface. Lightly flour your hands and finish mixing the dough by using a light kneading motion, working until the dough is just blended. Do not overwork the dough, you just want to be certain that all of the ingredients are just blended together.

9. Using a tablespoon or small ice-cream scoop, make mounds of dough. Roll the dough into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Place the balls, about 2 inches apart, on the prepared baking sheets. Using your palm, gently flatten each ball to make a puck-like shape about 2 inches in diameter.

10. When all of the cookies are formed, place in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges and set in the center. Do not over bake; you want some chewiness in the center.

11. Remove from the oven and, using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool.

Store, airtight, at room temperature for up to a week.

Note: Dough can be stored, airtight, in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for up to a month.