Cookie Musings - 062907

Do you remember Al's Deli near the corner of Ridge and Noyes, underneath the Noyes El stop in Evanston, Illinois? Well, they made the best chocolate chip cookies. Towards the end of my twin's last year at Northwestern, we were regulars there as we lived just a few blocks away. Their cookies were huge, and gooey. Sometimes a little too gooey, but we were regulars there. That deli was one of the things I remember about Chicago, Illinois.

I followed a recipe from Nancy Baggett's All-American Cookie Cookbook for Chewy Chocolate Chip Monster Cookies. They were gooey too, and if I was more patient, then they could harden enough to carry. Unfortunately, in order to transport them from the cookie sheet to the cookie rack they were so gooey they fell apart, so I increased the time in the oven, which resulted in not so gooey. Next time I'll have to let them harden on the cookie sheet for a long time. Either or the ones that I could transport, and that I baked for about 14 minutes at 350 degrees as opposed to the recommended 12, or the impatient 16 were the best ones. My co-workers are going to love these. The taste is a fine and dandy chocolate chip cookie tastes, but since when is big NOT better, eh?