COOKIE PARTY!!!!

There was a stowaway yolk in one of the eggs I got at the farmers market. Does a double yolk mean that there would have been twin chicklets? It breaks my heart to think of it since twins are my fave, but I guess since they went into chocolate chip cookie dough it was a fair break. Yay! Cookies for lunch!
Here was Kevin's questionable quote of the day: "I don't like warm or soft cookies". Things like that keep me up at night, worrying about his health.


CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES WITH CRYSTALIZED GINGER

2 sticks of butter (room temp)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs (one with a double yolk, if you're lucky)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. fleur de sel
2 cups AP flour
1 cup pastry flour
1 lb. 70% cacao chocolate, chopped.
1/4 cup crystalized ginger, chopped.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. I used my kitchenaid mixer for this whole process and you should too, if you have one. Fit the mixer with paddle attachment. First cream the butter and sugars together until smooth and wonderful. Don't forget to scrape the bowl a few times throughout the process. Add the eggs one at a time, beat after each addition. Then add the vanilla. I usually add too much on purpose, but maybe I shouldn't tell you that. Put the mixer on medium-slow and add the rest of the dry ingredients in the order that I list them. If you only have AP flour, you can get away with it. Have a few glasses of wine and you won't give a damn about finesse. Otherwise, pastry flour really does make a difference. Drop small amounts of dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Here is my favorite trick: shape the dough into a small ball, but then twist the ball and pull apart- this splits the ball in half and leaves you with jagged sides. Stick the pieces back together, but with the jagged sides facing up. This texturizes your cookies and makes them look like models. I did not do this step today so please examine my photo to see what a smooth finish looks like. I'll tell you what- it doesn't look half as good as the textured finish. Again, this is minutia and should be ignored if you are drinking.