Everywhere you look these days there are recipes that claim to make the BEST chocolate chip cookie! Since we all know they can't all possibly be the BEST, I decided once and for all to put them to the test. The three recipes used below seems to be the most popular, created by very creditable sources. In order to conduct a fair comparison, they were all made at the same time and sampled within a short period from each other. The first batch came from the recipe of Jacques Torres. The unique concept of this recipe is the use of pastry & bread flour instead of AP. The idea behind this is two fold, one the low protein content in pastry flour is crucial to producing a very tender finished product. However it is the bread flour, with it's high percentage of protein that helps produce the wonderfully well-risen, chewy texture. 
Ingredients
1 pound unsalted butter soften
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons pastry flour
3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 pounds bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars.
- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Reduce speed to low and add both flours, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, and chocolate; mix until well combined.
- Using a 4-ounce scoop for larger cookies or a 1-ounce scoop for smaller cookies, scoop cookie dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.
- Bake until lightly browned, but still soft, about 20 minutes for larger cookies and about 15 minutes for smaller cookies.
- Cool slightly on baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
As the mixture came out of the mixer to be chilled in the fridge, the texture is clearly drier and clumpier than the typical dough.
My second batch came from the recipe of America's Test Kitchen. The ingredients were typical of a chocolate chip chip recipe with AP flour, brown sugar, egg and butter. However the key different is the handling of the butter, which is required to be completely melted first before incorporated into the sugar. This resulted in an more liquid consistency than the precious batch.
The finished dough was light in color with a shiny coat due to the melted butter. This also translated into a slightly fluffier texture that looked promising.
Ingredients
2 cups plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
12 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Direction
Adjust oven racks to upper and lower-middle positions. Preheat oven 325. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Whisk dry ingredients together in a medium bowl; set aside. With electric mixer, or by hand, mix butter and sugars until thoroughly combined. Beat in egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients and beat at low-speed just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
Roll a scant half-cup of dough into a ball. Holding dough ball in fingertips of both hands, pull apart into two equal halves. Rotate halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, place formed dough onto cookie sheet, leaving ample room between each ball. Bake, reversing position of cookie sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy.
The last recipe was found on http://www.tastygardener.com/?cat=360. Though the source may not be as reputable, the recipes on there looked promising and thus worth a try. In addition, it was very similar to the American Test Kitchen version with slightly differently ratios in wet to dry ingredients.
Ingredient
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Direction
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 large cookie sheets with butter.
2. Cream the butter and sugars together in a large bowl. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until well blended. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt; gradually blend into the batter.
3. Stir in the chocolate chips. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto the cookie sheets, about 2 inches apart.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown. Remove from the oven, and transfer the cookies to cooling
racks.
The combined dough seemed moist and smoother, and despite the dark brown sugar used, still came out a light creamy color.
The freshly baked cookies were all slightly different but all a little disappointing. First off the first recipe yield a cookie that was more crispy than chewy. When cooled it produced a brittle-like texture. This was not surprising given the dryness of the initial finished dough. However it was not what I am seeking in a cookie and I'd rate this recipe 5 at best.
The second recipe was a little more promising as it was softer and chewier when first out the oven. Yet after just a little while the cookie became hard and dry. So unless you can eat a few dozen cookies in 5 mins this recipes is also mediocre at best.
The final recipe was not much better. When fresh it tasted very similar to the second batch, however it unfortunately also held the same fate when cooled. At last I sadly realized that none of these will be my GO TO recipe.... Guess it's back to the drawing board.
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