I have a love-hate relationship with baking. It’s not that I hate the actual baking part of it I just really do not enjoy doing the dishes. They are one of the easiest household chores and they are also one of my longtime enemies. When I was younger and dinner was over and everyone stood up to clear the table (the universal sign for dishes) I always had to go to the bathroom. I mean sometimes I would fake it but other times, it was like my body had a defense mechanism against the dishes and my digestive system ramped up just in time for my most hated chore. My parents, unfortunately, found a way around my avoidance or as I liked to call it, my genius escape plans. They came up with this system called wash-dry-party. My Dad would get three strips of paper with one of those words on each piece and my two older sisters and I would pick our strip and determine our fate for the night. It didn’t exactly work though, well for my Dad at least. I wouldn’t call myself lucky but let’s just say I had a certain way of picking the party strip and getting off scot-free from any dishes.

Long story short, I am old enough now where I understand that I can’t escape the dishes anymore. My luck in wash-dry-party ran out, as both of my sisters left for college and I was left with the dishes. I have gotten over the hatred to a certain degree and now they are just an annoying yet sometimes necessary task.

I love to bake though and with baking comes dishes. So, it is important to me to try and find some recipes that don’t use every bowl in the house and with this chocolate chip cookie recipe, I have found that. This recipe is by far the easiest greatest tasting cookies, and that is coming from a girl who eats a lot of cookies. You only need one bowl and you don’t even have to wait for the butter to soften because you melt it. This recipe is the fastest, easiest, best-tasting cookies that you can make and are perfect for any occasion. I love chocolate chip cookies and for the most part, so does everyone else. They are a perfect gift for friends, neighbors, or anyone that needs a pick me up.

• 8 tablespoons of salted butter
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (but I always add a little extra)
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS

• 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Microwave the butter for about 40 seconds to just barely melt it. It shouldn’t be hot – but it should be almost entirely in liquid form.
• 2. You can use electric beaters or even with a spatula and a strong arm, beat the butter with the sugars until creamy. Add the vanilla and the egg; mix on low speed until just incorporated – 10-15 seconds or so (if you beat the egg for too long, the cookies will be stiff).
• 3. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until crumbles form. Use your hands to press the crumbles together into a dough. It should form one large ball that is easy to handle. Add the chocolate chips and incorporate with a spatula.
• 4. Roll the dough into 12 large balls or use a cookie scoop and place on a cookie sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes until the cookies look puffy and dry and just barely golden. Do Not Overbake. The key to these cookies is to take them out of the oven at the perfect time. The top will look a little undercooked, but the bottoms need to be a golden color. They will finish baking once you take them out of the oven and they will sink down into the best cookies ever, once you let them cool.
• No matter if you put them in the freezer, eat them off the pan, or give them to someone the next day, one thing is for certain, they will all be gone sooner than you wish they were.

Recipe adapted from Pinch of Yum.