Piccante Dolce: Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt

WARNING: These cookies are completely addictive.

I don't bake cookies all that often. But a few months back, when I was working on a movie, my boss brought in a box of these amazing chocolate chip cookies topped with sea salt. Made courtesy of his ridiculously talented baker of a mom. Seriously, this woman is nuts I've been lucky enough to taste many of her treats and to bake with her and she is truly a wonderful baker.

Well these cookies were so good and completely the opposite of what I usually look for in a chocolate chip cookie that I had to ask her for the recipe.

They are thick and crisp, when I traditionally like a thin butter cookie, with a bit of chew and a cookie that has spread so much that the chips have practically disappeared into the batter. If anyone has a recipe for a cookie like that, please share. For those of you in LA, Clementine Bakery & Cafe has my ideal chocolate chip cookie. If you haven't had one, get after it. Like, stop reading right now and run over there for one or four.

But back to these cookies, they are completely different, yet absolutely give the Clementine cookie a run for it's money. From the bittersweet chips to the contrasting sea salt and the nuttiness that the browned butter brings, they're good. I did make a couple of my own tweaks to the recipe I was given, namely the brown butter and the use of dark brown sugar.

Now browning butter and letting it cool is key for these to work and be the addictive cookies we love at my house. If you add hot butter to chocolate chips you end up with chocolate swirl cookies, which wile tasty aren't really what we're going for here. The cooling does add some time to the overall process, but it is so worth it. PLus it makes it easier to make cookies if you don't have any room temperature butter, which happens in my house far too often.

But make these and let me know what you think. Pretty please!

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Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt

by Jen H February-9-2012

chocolaty, buttery, nutty and delectable.

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter - cut into small cubes
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
sea salt for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Place the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and cook until melted, then stirring occasionally and watching until it smells nutty and there are golden brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Remove from the heat and let cool for 20-30 minutes2. Heat the oven to 350F. In a medium bowl mix the flour, baking soda and salt. 3. Once the butter has cooled to room temperature mix with the sugars until well combined. Add in the egg and vanilla extract. Mix to combine.3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix to combine. Then fold in the chocolate chips (this is why it's important to let the butter cool or you end up with swirl cookies). 5. Roll heaping tsps into balls and place 2" apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Flatten just a bit and sprinkle each cookies with sea salt. Repeat with other sheets of cookies.6. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Let cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

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