Salty chocolate chunk cookies - the search for the perfect cookie, Part I

It's hard to find the perfect cookie. Trust me, I've tried. If you think that I'm merely joking, ask my husband, who's watched me scour through cookie recipes, tried and dabbled with many recipes. Even when I find a great recipe, I continue on, hoping for utter bliss in my mouth. As I find recipes that work, I'll share them. 

Now let me tell you about these cookies. Don't mind the salt; this recipe is delicious. Really. It's got an interesting mixture of flavors, and the salt sprinkled atop the cookies adds a new complement to the sweet that you wouldn't expect. I really liked this recipe for the fact that you've got two layers of sugar, and the rich batter is good all on its own. 

Hope you enjoy this with a huge glass of milk. 

Salty chocolate chunk cookies

Makes approximately 18-24 cookies, depending on your size preference

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup powdered sugar

2 large egg yolks

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate 

flaky sea salt for sprinkling

• Preheat your oven to 375°. 

• Mix your flour, baking powder, kosher salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl, and then set the dry mix aside.

• Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the softened butter, brown sugar, sugar, and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. This process will take approximately 3-4 minutes. 

It almost looks like a snowed in home.

Make sure your butter is completely soft, otherwise this won't work. 

• Add egg yolks, egg, and vanilla to the wet mixture. Beat them in, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl, until mixture is pale and fluffy. This will take approximately 4-5 minutes. 

My dog really appreciated the egg whites.

• Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add in your dry ingredients, mixing just to blend. Gently fold in your chocolate. I followed the recipe, and this seemed to ask for less than most recipes. I'd add a smidge more next time. 

• Chill your cookie dough for approximately 30 minutes to an hour. This makes the dough a lot easier to work with, and the cookies keep their shape as they bake.

• Spoon rounded tablespoonfuls of cookie dough onto 2 parchment paper-lined baking sheets, spacing 1-inch apart. Sprinkle cookies with sea salt.

• Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through. This will let your cookies cook more evenly, as there might be some cooler spots in your oven. Cook the cookies until they are golden brown around the edges. This will take 10-12 minutes. (Note: your cookies will be soft, and will firm up as they cool). Let cool slightly on baking sheets, then transfer to wire racks; let cool completely.