The Original Chocolate Chip Cookie

Ahh.. the humble chocolate chip cookie. Something everyone's familiar with, but has got their own preferences of. Be it crunchy, chewy or soft, everyone has got a recipe they swear by. But ever wonder what is the original version and how it came by?

I first heard about the origin of chocolate chip cookie on a food documentary that seeks out the history of various food in our daily lives. The chocolate chip cookie was invented by Ruth Graves Wakefield, owner of Toll House Inn, back in 1938. It was reported on the show (and many other sources) that she didn't have enough chopped nuts to make her, then popular, butterscotch nut cookie so she chopped up a chocolate bar and added them to the cookie dough, thinking that the chocolate morsels would melt during baking thus resulting in a chocolate cookie. When that didn't happen, she decided to sell them anyway and it was an instant hit amongst her customers. And so, the "Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cookie" was born.

Well, that's one fairytale version that is most apt for the Great Depression period (1929-1939) and for television. In reality, Mrs. Wakefield had meant to create a new cookie for her business and deliberately invented the Toll House cookie after many rounds of experimentations with her pastry cook, Sue Brides. For a widely-travelled, talented, hardworking lady such as Mrs. Wakefield, who was also a graduate of household arts (i.e. cooking, sewing, crafts practiced in households), I hardly think she would need a stroke of luck in the creation of the chocolate chip cookie. Let's give credit when credit is due!

In the years after, Mrs. Wakefield gave Nestlé the rights to use her recipe on the back of their products. Some say in exchange for a dollar and a lifetime supply of chocolate!

The Original Nestlé® Toll House® Chocolate Chip Cookie
(recipe from Nestlé)

Mixture A
280g     All Purpose flour
    5g     Baking Soda
    5g     Salt

Mixture B
225g     Butter
150g     White sugar (reduced to 120g)
165g     Brown sugar (reduced to 135g)
    5g     Vanilla extract

2 Eggs

145g Nuts, chopped
350g Chocolate chips, semi-sweet

Preheat oven to 190°C
1. With a paddle attachment, cream Mixture B until the colour turns pale.

2. Add in the eggs, one at a time, making sure it's well incorporated before adding the other.

3. Slowly add in Mixture A and mix till dough just comes together. Stir in the nuts and chocolate chips.

4. With a tablespoon, drop rounded heaps of cookie dough onto a lined baking sheet.

5. Baked 9-11mins until the cookies turned golden brown. Cool on the baking sheet for 2mins before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Thoughts: These unassuming cookies look as plain as they can be, even a little fugly if you ask me. But they are unstoppable! The first time I baked these, hubs and me polished off half a batch at one go! That's about 30 palm-sized cookies! Truth be told, I didn't think they are extraordinary but they are very very good cookies, more like the ones we had while growing up. And much resemblance to Famous Amos cookies, then again, urban legend has that Wally Amos's aunt based her recipes on Toll House cookies' recipe, so it shouldn't be all too different. 

The cookies turned out more crispy than crunchy, unlike what Mrs. Wakefield had named them. But to be fair, this original recipe has been updated with time from when Mrs. Wakefield first handed hers to Nestlé. Steps like activating baking soda with hot water before mixing with flour has since been rendered obsolete. Even the modern day plain flour (all-purpose flour) is different from what was used during the Great Depression. I did find them way too sweet and reduced the sugars used (highlighted in red above) in my second and third respective batches. Even then, I still find them sweet but most of the recipients feedbacked that it was just nice, so I'll leave it at that. If you would like to further reduce the sugars, just note that it will affect the texture of the cookies.

Be warned that these cookies spread extremely well. A heaped, tablespoonful of dough will be around or slightly bigger than the palm of your hand. If like me, you prefer bite-sized cookies, use a teaspoon instead. Smaller cookies are not just easier to snack on but also easier for me to exercise self-control. Haha! However, the palm-sized cookies are perfect for making ice cream sandwiches! 

Look at that!!! This is perfect for the hot Australian summer! I feel like making another batch of these bad boys already! 

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