Chewy Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

I haven't made a holiday post yet but I gotta stay that I am really excited. I know it may be hectic during the holidays with all the crazy shoppers and maybe some family drama. I have to say that I love the holidays though. I always get so excited when the Fall semester starts because I know the holidays are here! Thanksgiving, Christmas then New Years are all right around the corner. All my family members try to come back home. I notice that the older you get, the more busy your family gets. The best excuse to come back home to get together is, of course, the holidays.

The holidays is another reason to bake of course. I love when my family eats the food I am. I believe that food brings everyone together as well. Since there is technology and almost everyone has a smartphone, we also tend to share our happiness online with our social media friends.

For Christmas, I will be making these Chewy Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies I adapted from Chew Out Loud. Whenever I try a new recipe, I am always so excited about what my family will think. It especially makes me happy when they love what I make! After this chocolate chip post, I will be posted other recipes on my blog. The recipes are not traditional. We tend to do things a little different since we are Chinese American.

Recipe adapted from Chew Out Loud.

Yields: ~72 cookies

4.5 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Place the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl - set aside.

2 cups unsalted butter - room temperature
1 cups brown sugar - loosely packed (I used Organic Brown Sugar from Trader Joe's)
2 - 3.4 oz packages instant vanilla pudding
4 eggs - @ room temperature
1 tbsp vanilla extract

Cream the butter and brown sugar together until creamy and fluffy. Add packages of vanilla pudding - one at a time. Add eggs one at a time, then add vanilla extract. Mix until well-combined.

Using the dough hook attachment, slowly add the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Fold ingredients until fully incorporated. It may get a little messy since the mixing bowl will be pretty full. I suggest slowly adding the flour mixture so that it doesn't get everywhere.

4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Trader Joe's Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips)

Add the chocolate chips into the dough mixture. I ended up using about 3.5 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of 4 cups. You may also opt to mix in the chocolate chips with your hands.

The dough should look like the image below.

Cover the cookie dough mixture tightly and chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes to an hour - I chilled mine for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven at 350 degree F while you are waiting for the cookie dough to chill.

Form the dough using a cookie scooper or form the dough by hand - about 1 inches. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper. Place 12 scoops of cookie dough per baking sheet and space them out evenly. Use a spatula to press down on the cookies a little.

Bake the cookies for 8-12 mins. Keep an eye on your first batch to determine the right amount of time for the cookies to bake - every oven is different. It took my oven 10 minutes to bake the cookies. The cookies are perfect when the edges look golden brown. Be sure to look for that in your first batch of cookies then set the timer accordingly. *Note: Cookies may seem underdone but will firm up as it cools.

Cool the cookies on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes then place them in an airtight container (I use the OXO 3-Piece Pop Round Canister Set).

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE :)