I don’t know about you, but I was sad to see Erika eliminated from Top Chef Just Desserts last week. Could the judges have made a mistake? Shouldn’t Danielle have been eliminated? Well, if they did make a mistake, it won’t keep me from tuning in. And though Erika is gone, she left us with her version of Ruth Wakefield’s famous cookie. One of the judges actually loved Erika’s cookie so much that she asked for the recipe. Wow, a judge asking for the recipe? I thought I had better make these.
Why Erika chose to call these “chunky” eludes me. There are no chocolate chunks in the cookie, only chocolate chips. Regardless of what she calls the cookie, I am loving the flavors. Caramel undertones blend well with buttery walnuts, which I toasted. The walnuts add a nice crunch, and there are plenty of chocolate chips. Slightly crispy on the edges, the inside of the cookie is hard to describe. It's soft, but not too soft. It's definitely not cakelike, and the brown sugar doesn't quite make it chewy, but gives it an interesting texture. If you want crisper edges, you'll have to bake the cookies longer, but then I'm not sure what the insides will be like. I slightly underbaked the cookies, since that's my personal preference. Eat them up the same day or freeze them, because the crisp edges will soften quickly from the brown sugar and eggs. 
| Erika’s Top Chef Chunky Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie Adapted from bravotv.com * Rating: 9 out of 10 PRINTABLE PAGE |
| INGREDIENTS: 1/2 lb. salted butter, cool room temperature 3/4 cup sugar 3/4 cup brown sugar 2 large eggs 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract (I used my homemade vanilla) 1/4 tsp. sea salt 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. baking powder 2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (about 10.8 oz.) 1-1/2 cups chocolate chips (I used half Ghiradelli bittersweet/half Harris Teeter semi-sweet) 1 cup walnuts, toasted and broken Heat oven to 345F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Cream butter and sugars together on medium speed of mixer. Add eggs, one by one, beating till incorporated. Beat in vanilla and salt. On low speed, stir in baking soda, baking powder and flour. Add chips and walnuts by hand, or, if using Kitchen Aid with paddle attachment, stir in. Drop dough by 1/4 cup scoops onto prepared baking sheets. (Dough is sticky.) Bake 14-15 minutes till set and toothpick returns with just a few crumbs. (Or bake longer for crisper cookie all the way through.) Cool on baking sheets 5 minutes to set edges, then transfer cookies to wire rack to finish cooling. *Though the ingredients have not been changed, I have listed them in the order they are used, toasted the walnuts, specified a weight for the flour and made the instructions a little more specific than the original recipe. |
9 comments:
These look great, Judy! I can't wait to try them. :-)
HEllo,
I like your recipes but I have a problem. The page layout or computer gremlins cut off the right side of the column. Any solutions would be very gladly received.
More later,
Lynne in
West Chester PA
Momma Lynne, I'm no computer expert, but you should be able to adjust your screen. Each computer is different. Also, I have a wide screen. If you do not, that will make it harder for you to adjust. I wish I could tell you how to adjust your screen, maybe you can get some local help on that.
Hi Judy
This is Erika from Top Chef Just Desserts and I am happy that you enjoyed the recipe. I called the cookie chunky because for myself I love walnuts so I add extra chips and walnuts. Also on the show I did to but kept my recipe at an reasonable amount for price reasons. But my favorite chocolate to use is Callebaut chocolate and it is larger chocolate pieces. Thank you so much for trying my recipe and I always say that "A day is never good without chocolate" .......many kitchen blessings :)
Erika, Thanks for commenting. If you use Callebaut chocolate and break it into chunks, then I totally understanding where the title of the cookie is coming from. I'm going to have to get some of that Callebaut and give it a try, thanks for the tip! And thanks for your cookie recipe.
How cool Erika commented!! I was sad she left too - it definitely felt too early. I'll have to try these :)
I have been baking different chocolate chip cookies in a quest for the best one for us.
When, I can face, chocolate chip cookies again, I want to try this too.
Hi, in the ingredients, it says 1/2 lb of butter. Did you mean 1/2 cup or one stick? 1/2 lb of butter seems like too much!
Thanks,
Meg
Hi Anonymous, 1/2 lb. of butter sounds like a lot, but it's just roughly 1 stick of butter to a cup of flour, standard ratios for a chocolate chip cookie. Which is part of the reason why these little devils are so good and so fattening.
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