Magic 8-Ball of Chocolate Chip Cookies

My friends Keliane, Josh, and Alex brought me these super amazing cookie last week when I was feeling sick. They were the best cookies I've ever eaten! They agreed to reveal their secrets with us below.

You’re interviewing for a job and the interviewer asks you, “What would you say is one of your weaknesses?” You’re ready for this one. You rehearsed it in your head. You know to turn this question upside down. You know well enough that you can’t really admit your faults – that you have trouble staying organized/focused, that you have a caustic attitude when it comes to collaboration, that you enjoy the thrill of stealing office supplies – and have to use sleight of hand to turn this weakness into a strength. You come up with “I care too much about my work.” It’s genius. You’re hired. I have applied the same strategy to my gluttonous consumption of cookies. Cookies are my weakness, but I believe I have found a way to turn them into an asset. Because they make me more creative, cookies are my greatest strength. Here’s how. For starters, make a gigantic batch of simple chocolate chip cookie dough. You will need this for dividing into 8 different types of cookies. If you choose only one type of cookie, that’s fine too. You can proportionally shrink the recipe below.
Magic 8-Ball of Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients (Yields 48 cookies)
2 cups butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
2 cups packed brown sugar
4 eggs
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon hot water
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Variety of mix-and-match ingredients that will complement your cookies (scoresheet included at bottom of this recipe)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. I don’t have a mixer, so this took some elbow grease, patience, and a fork.
3. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Then stir in the vanilla. Look in the mirror while whipping those together and recognize that you are a poorly dressed June Cleaver.
4. Dissolve baking soda in hot water. Add to batter along with salt.
5. Stir in flour until integrated, then do the same with the chocolate chips.
6. Divide this giant mountain of cookie dough into 8 smaller bowls, evenly apportioned. We did this 4 at a time.
7. Hire an ideas guy and let him bring an interesting variety of ingredients and pairings to you.

Here are the combinations we created and a scorecard (Scale: 1-10) for each:
a) Reese's Pieces and Raspberry M&M's (PB & J) Score: 8
b) Cinnamon Toast Crunch + syrup (breakfast cookie!) Score: 10
c) Oreos and graham crackers Score: 6
d) Butterfinger and Nestle Crunch Score: 7
e) Nestle Crunch and Cinnamon Toast Crunch (the crunch cookie) Score: 8
f) Baby Ruth and Raspberry M&M's Score: 8
g) Oreos and Reese's Pieces Score: 10 (Editor's Note: These were my favorite!)
h) Butterfinger and Reese's Pieces Score: 10 (Editor's Note: These were my second favorite. I love Reese's Pieces)
8. Drop large spoonfuls of each onto ungreased cookie sheets. It is likely that if your oven is not industrial size, you will have to do a few rounds of baking.
9. Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are nicely browned.
Please don’t burn them. A burnt cookie is a pretty useless way to indulge in something unhealthy. What you’re obviously looking for is a steamy, undercooked chocolate chip cookie, where the cookie itself is the same texture as the melted chocolate chips.
10. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before removing from the cookie pan. This will prevent your cookies from falling apart.
11. Bring a bunch to your friend Emily, who always cooks amazing dinners and desserts for you. Wag your tail proudly.

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