Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies have been my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe for years. My family repeatedly asks me to make these. They are soft and chewy cookies that melt in your mouth and are packed full of chocolate chips. The dough can be made easily and quickly and doesn't require chilling time. You can make these cookies dairy and egg-free and no one will notice a difference!

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This cookie recipe is my all-time favorite to date. While selling these cookies in my home bakery, people would rave about them! One customer mentioned that ever since they ate my cookies, they would dream about them. After baking these for a work outing, my husband's coworkers know me as the "cookie lady." Everyone LOVES these cookies! Once you give them a try, you'll see why!

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There is a secret ingredient that packs these chocolate chips cookies with the perfect taste. It's instant vanilla pudding mix! Who knew pudding mix would add so much flavor to a chocolate chip cookie?! You don't do anything with the box pudding mix other than adding it, in powder form, to the batter.

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What makes this cookie even better is how quickly it comes together. Most cookie recipes will require you to chill the dough for a few hours to overnight. But these require no refrigeration! Just mix them up and pop them straight into the oven.

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TIPS AND TRICKS TO MAKE THE BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

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1. Use room temperature ingredients. This will ensure there are no lumps leftover from your butter and so everything mixes and blends smoothly together. Just place your butter and eggs out on the counter about an hour before you plan to bake. If you forget to do this, you can pop your butter in the microwave and heat it no more than 5 seconds at a time while rotating it each time until just softened. For eggs, place them in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes.

2. Properly measure your all-purpose flour. I like to include this tip because not everyone knows how to measure flour. If you measure the flour inaccurately, it can quickly ruin your recipe. Spoon your flour into the measuring cup before leveling it off with a flat edge. I like to use the back of a butter knife. This will ensure you've measured the proper amount and won't dry out your cookies.

3. Combinations of sugars. This chocolate chip cookie recipe includes both light brown sugar and white granulated sugar. Brown sugar adds a slight molasses flavor that white sugar doesn't have. The combination of these two sugars will give your cookie the best taste and overall moist texture.

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4. Measuring your dough with 1/4 cup. By using a 1/4 measuring cup, it will not only keep all your cookies the same size, but it creates a larger cookie. While it is optional to make these cookies smaller, I highly recommend keeping it 1/4 cup per cookie. Having a larger cookie allows it to bake evenly. You want a soft and chewy center with a crisp outer texture and lightly browned cookie bottoms.

5. Don't overbake your cookies. You want to bake these cookies at 350 degrees F for about 10-12 minutes. I always give a range because everyone's ovens are different and cook or bake differently. My oven takes me exactly 10 minutes for these cookies but may take longer for others. So make sure you set the timer for about 9 minutes and then add one more minute each time you check them to ensure they don't overbake. You want the bottoms to be lightly browned. The centers will still look undercooked but I promise you this is fine! The cookie centers will continue baking after removing them from the oven.

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HOW CAN I MAKE THESE COOKIES DAIRY AND EGG-FREE??

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What I love about these cookies is how easily you can make these for folks with food allergies. I make these cookies egg-free due to my egg allergy. The best part is, you can't even tell the difference. When I make them egg-free, my family is none the wiser. Here's how to make the food allergy-friendly:

⦁ Use 1 cup or 2 sticks of unsalted dairy-free butter. I love Country Crock Plant Butter, but there are tons of other options out there.

⦁ Use Egg Replacer to replace the eggs in this recipe. I use Egg Replacer by Bob's Red Mill. You can use flaxseed eggs, but they will alter the taste slightly. For egg replacer, follow the instructions listed on the bag: mix 1 tbsp of egg replacer with 2 tbsp water for EACH egg, so you'll need 2 tbsp egg replacer and 4 tbsp water. Mix this before starting your batter to allow plenty of time for it to thicken. Same for flax eggs. You can also use 1/3 cup of aquafaba, or the liquid from a can of chickpeas.

⦁ Use dairy-free or allergy-friendly chocolate morsels. Make sure that you use semi-sweet chocolate chips that are dairy-free. There are a few brands that I love to use such as, Nestle Toll House, Enjoy Life, and Simple Truth.

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