Most, if not all, children are back in school, or will be very shortly, so why not welcome them home with homemade chocolate chip cookies. Just the aroma alone of freshly baked homemade chocolate chip cookie will make anyone feel at home. When I bake chocolate chip cookies I always use Ghirardelli® (pronounced “Gear-ar-delly”) Chocolate Chips ever since they were a Southern Living Cooking School sponsor back in the ‘90s. Ghirardelli has produced chocolate for more than 150 years and they are one of very few American manufacturers that make chocolate starting from the cocoa bean through to finished products. Try it and you and your family will taste the difference too.   

Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies, my all-time favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.

Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yields 4 dozen cookies

Ingredients

11 1/2 ounce Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

1 cup butter or margarine, softened

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs

2 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/4 cup unsifted flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped (optional)

Directions
Heat oven to 375ºF.

Stir flour with baking soda and salt; set aside. In large mixing bowl, beat butter with sugar and brown sugar at medium speed until creamy and lightened in color. Add eggs and vanilla, one at a time. Mix on low speed until incorporated. Gradually blend dry mixture into creamed mixture. Stir in nuts and chocolate chips. Drop by tablespoon onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.

Note: The 11 1/2 ounces of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips can be substituted with any variety of chip flavors (i.e. Milk Chocolate Chips, 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Chips, etc.).

Tags: Best Ever Chocolate Cookies, Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe, Ghirardelli chocolate chips