Submitted by RitaJean Strauss

Come on, admit it — your favorite chocolate chip cookie is just big hunks of chocolate, barely held together in a tasty, buttery dough.

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

2½ teaspoons vanilla

¼ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1½ cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose flour

2 cups semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chunks or chips

Line three baking sheets with parchment. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl, add the sugar and return to the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes, till the sugar is melted.  Cool to lukewarm. Meanwhile, preheat oven and and beat together the vanilla, baking powder, salt and egg.  When the butter/sugar has cooled sufficiently, beat in the egg mixture. Add the flour and chocolate chunks, stirring briefly, just until well combined.

Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets.  Bake the cookies for 9 minutes, or until they are barely set.  Remove them from the oven and cool right on the pan.

Yield: 3 dozen cookies