It’s Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday and for some of us the last day to savor some of our favorite indulgences. January brought cleanses and February brought the return of comfort foods, so Lent brings another chance to reset our bodies, as the warmer and longer days begin to settle in, but not without one last chance to indulge. My ultimate comfort sweet treat would have to be Jacques Torres’s chocolate chip cookie. They’re perfectly light and doughy, not overly sweet but instead richly bitter, and salty. I knew if there was one way I wanted to head into forty days of putting the brakes on my daily caffeine and hot cocoa kick, I needed to make a big batch of my favorite chocolate chip cookies. I mean we all deserve to cave into temptations with a second or third helping of these mouth-watering cookies. 
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients {Makes about 4 1/2 dozen – 2″ cookies}
8 1/2 ounces – All Purpose Flour {This recipe works just as well with only All Purpose flour}
8 1/2 ounces – Bread flour
1 1/2 teaspoons – Baking Powder
1 1/4 teaspoons – Baking Soda
1 1/2 teaspoons – Salt
1 1/4 ounces – Unsalted butter {room temperature}
10 ounces – Brown sugar {packed}
8 ounces – Granulated Sugar
2 large – Eggs {room temperature}
2 teaspoons – Pure Vanilla Extract
1 1/4 pounds – Bittersweet Chocolate
Sea Salt, for sprinkling {optional}
Recipe {Adapted from Jacques Torres}
Sift the flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together into a medium bowl. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy {about 3 to 5 minutes}. Add in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Then add in the vanilla and mix together. Stir in the dry ingredients, until just incorporated, and fold in your chocolate until just combined. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours {or freeze for at least 2 hours}.
When ready to bake, bring the dough to room temperature. Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees, and grease four baking sheets. Scoop a heaping tablespoon of dough, an inch apart. Do not press the dough down, and sprinkle the tops lightly with a bit of sea salt. Bake until lightly golden, rotating halfway {about 12 minutes}.
Allow cookies to cool slightly on your baking sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack. Enjoy warm or at room temperature, and store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.
