Joanne Chang’s Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Ingredients:

9 oz (255 g) bittersweet chocolate (62% to 70% cacao) or semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped into 1-inch pieces from a brick (about 1½ cups total)

2½ oz (70 g) milk chocolate, roughly chopped from a bar (about ½ cup

¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar

¾ cup (165 g) firmly packed light brown sugar

1 cup (160 g) bread flour

1 cup (150 g) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp kosher salt

2 large eggs at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla paste

1 cup (2 sticks/225 g) unsalted butter at room temperature

(Note: Joanne’s recipes have been tested for success using the precise measurements and ingredients that are featured in each one. Should you choose to make modifications or substitutions to accommodate individual preferences, diet, or allergies, it may take a few tries to get it right.)

Directions:

Place a mixing bowl on the scale, and tare the scale. Before the tare times out, weigh out the bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chunks. Tare the scale again, and add the milk chocolate chunks to the same bowl. Set the bowl aside.

Place a clean mixing bowl on the scale, tare the scale, and weigh out the granulated sugar. Tare the scale again, and add the brown sugar to the same bowl. Set the bowl aside.

Place another clean mixing bowl on the scale, tare the scale, and weigh out the bread flour. Tare the scale again, and add the all-purpose flour to the same bowl. Add the baking soda and salt to the bowl. Whisk to combine all of the ingredients. Set the bowl aside.

Crack the eggs into a small mixing bowl. Add the vanilla extract to the eggs, and whisk to combine. Set the bowl aside.

Making Your Cookie Dough:

In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or using an electric hand mixer (note: using a hand mixer will take longer), add the butter and both sugars. Cream the ingredients, starting on low speed and increasing to medium speed, until the butter is light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Stop the mixer a few times throughout and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure that all of the ingredients are combined. Continue mixing on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes more, pausing occasionally to scrape down the bowl, until the mixture is very light and fluffy. Mix on medium speed for another 2 to 3 minutes to aerate the mixture, which will ultimately give the cookies a crispier, lighter texture. Pause the mixer.

Turn the mixer on low speed and slowly drizzle in the eggs and vanilla extract. Mix until everything is fully incorporated and the mixture is light and creamy, about 2 to 3 minutes, pausing occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pause the mixer.

Add the chocolate chunks to the bowl with the flour mixture, and stir gently to combine. Add the chocolate-flour mixture to the butter-sugar mixture, and pulse in the standing mixer (quickly turning the machine on and off) on low speed for 1 to 2 minutes, until all of the ingredients are mostly combined.

Remove the bowl from the standing mixer and finish combining using a rubber spatula, gently folding the dough by pushing your spatula into the center of the bowl and scooping up from the bottom while turning the bowl. Mix just until there are no dry ingredients visible. Be careful to not overwork the dough, or the cookies will be tough.

Transfer the dough to an airtight container just large enough to hold it. Chill it in the refrigerator for at least 3 to 4 hours and up to overnight. (If you have enough space, you can also cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap, press down to create an airtight seal, and place it in your refrigerator.)

These cookies are at their best flavor- and texture-wise when the dough is chilled overnight, as this gives the liquid from the eggs and butter time to fully absorb into the flour. (Unbaked dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days, or in the freezer for up to 1 month. If baking from frozen, allow the dough to defrost in the refrigerator overnight before scooping and baking.)