Today, May 15th, 2017, is National Chocolate Chip Day and MIAbites has the BEST recipe via our own Dessert Expert, Amber Love Bond.

There are certain recipes that are necessary to have up your sleeve.  I’m a big believer that an insanely good chocolate chip cookie recipe can take you far in life.  I grew up being taught that you never show up to someone’s house empty handed.  While a bottle of wine is almost always welcome in those cases, being the baker and dessert lover that I am, I always show up with dessert. 

Chocolate chip cookies have been my go to for many years.  The ingredients are so simple and basic, you can usually count on having them on hand in most homes.  This particular recipe is one I came up with after I got a last minute invite to a friend’s BBQ and needed something to bring, but – GASP – I was out of BUTTER!  After a few moments of panic, and truly not having it in me to actually put on clothes to leave the house (aka pants) until I absolutely had to – I decided to do a coconut oil experiment.

Coconut oil is considered a “superfood”, which is kind of cool since it’s so dynamic and can be used in many different ways.  I use it a lot in my kitchen, especially once I realized how easily it can replace butter (however, my love for butter will never die), but the best part is how well it holds flavors and can make recipes work.  Apparently there are a lot of people out there who aren’t fans of the taste of coconut, something I’ll never understand, but good news – these cookies taste nothing like coconut!  In fact, when I tell people there’s no butter in them they are convinced I’m lying! 

Check out the recipe and test it out yourself:

Ingredients:

·      2 cups all-purpose flour

·      1 teaspoon baking soda

·      1 teaspoon sea salt

·      3/4 cup coconut oil, at room temperature

·      1 cup packed brown sugar

·      1/2 cup granulated sugar

·      1 teaspoon vanilla extract

·      2 large eggs, room temperature eggs are always best for baking

·      1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

·      Preheat the oven to 350°F

·      Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in small bowl

·      Beat coconut oil in large mixer bowl until smooth

·      Add brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla extract; beat until creamy

·      Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition

·      Gradually beat in flour mixture until a nice dough is formed

·      Stir in chocolate chips

·      Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets - I like to use a small scoop so that all cookies are the same size.

·      Bake for 9 to 12 minutes or until golden brown and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft

·      Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely

As I’ve said before, I’m never good at waiting for them to cool before I dig in and I usually end up burning my tongue on oozing hot chocolate, but it’s so good that it’s totally worth it!  Feel free to add walnuts or oats or any random candies you may have in your kitchen. 

Make it your own!  Enjoy and happy baking!