John Tufts

Steps:

Bring Everything to Room Temperature:

About 1 hour prior to mixing, take refrigerated items out of the fridge to come to room temp.

Bringing your ingredients to room temperature prior to mixing allows for the sugar to be properly creamed with the butter.  This process creates small pockets of air that trap the carbon dioxide released during baking.

Make the Cookie Dough:

Combine the sugar, butter, salt, baking powder and baking soda in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. 

Mix on medium speed for 4-5 minutes until the mixture is very pale.  

Add the egg and vanilla and mix until it reaches an even consistency, ~2 minutes.

Add the flour and mix until just combined.

Add the chopped chocolate and give a few pulses of the stand mixer until the chocolate chunks are just evenly distributed. 

Resting:

Using a scoop or a large spoon, portion the cookie dough into 12 portions onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

Chill the cookie dough in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

At this point you bake all the cookies at once, or just the ones you want to eat.  Those you want to save for later can be placed in ziploc bag and frozen up to several months until ready to bake.  

Baking:

Preheat the oven to 375ºF.

Place the cookie portions you wish to bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet in the 375ºF oven for between 11 and 14 minutes.  Since each oven is different, you’re looking for the edges to brown and the top just starting to brown.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven.

Using the bottom of a glass, immediately press down gently on each cookie to flatten it slightly.  This creates a denser, chewier cookie.

Allow the cookies to cool for a few minutes. (Or not, but I like it because it keeps the cookie from falling apart.)

Serve.