Easy chocolate chip cookies

Ingredients

• 150g soft, unsalted butter
• 80g soft light brown sugar
• 80g granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg, fridge-cold
• 225g plain flour
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 200g milk or plain chocolate chips

Method

Classic American-style chocolate chip cookies are crisp on the outside with a soft centre, and are full of melting chocolate chips. They’re perfect with an afternoon cup of tea or a glass of milk for an after-school treat, or used to sandwich vanilla ice-cream for a delicious easy dessert.

Most classic chocolate chip cookie recipes call for a combination of butter, flour, sugar, eggs and, of course, chocolate chips. Yet variations in the type and amount of each ingredient abound, all of which can make a big difference in the flavour and texture of your cookies.

The type of sugar used has the most impact. You can, for example, use caster or dark brown sugar in your cookies. But the traditional mix of light brown and granulated sugar gives the satisfying crunch yet soft, chewy interior of the perfect chocolate chip cookie.

1. Preheat your oven to 190°C /170°C fan/gas 5. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment.

2. Using a wooden spoon or a food mixer, beat the butter and sugars together until light and creamy. Add the vanilla extract and the egg and beat well.

3. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt over the mixture and mix together until it forms a sticky dough. Fold in the chocolate chips.

4. Take a heaped tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll into a ball. Place on the baking tray and flatten slightly. Continue until there’s no more dough left, keeping the cookies well spaced. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly brown.

5. Leave the cookies on the trays for a few minutes to firm up, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cooking tips

If you’ve time, chill your cookie dough after step 3 for a couple of hours in the fridge before cooking. When placed in the oven, the fridge-firm dough will spread less compared to the just-worked cookie dough. However, you may need to cook the cookies for a few minutes longer.

Avoid over-mixing and over-handling the dough as this can make the cookies flat and look greasy when baked.

Visit our baking section for more delicious cake and biscuit recipes.