Pecan and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies are some of the simplest snack foods out there but they are oh so good.  This my go-to recipe for thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies, you can vary them to your liking.  Sometimes I don't include pecans, sometimes I like to use white chocolate chips with macadamia nuts, so feel free to use what you have on hand.  I like to store them in an air-tight container for 1-2 days but you can always freeze the balls of cookie dough and bake them straight from the freezer 20-25 minutes in a 325 degree oven.  

Pecan and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield: about 24 cookies

Ingredients:
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (10 2/3 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup packed (7 ounces) light brown sugar
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (9 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup toasted chopped pecans

Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.  Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl.

In a large bowl, beat the melted butter and sugars together with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.  Beat in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla until combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl and beaters as needed.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds.  Mix in the chips and pecans until incorporated.

Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll the dough into balls (I like to flatten the balls a little bit) and lay them on the prepared baking sheets, spaced about 2 inches apart.  Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, until the edges are set and beginning to brown but the centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through baking (remove cookies when they appear underbaked in order to still have chewy cookies).

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then serve warm or transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Source: America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book