Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

There are some foods that I only crave in certain seasons. Hearty soups + stews? That’s cold weather food. Light, veggie-filled pasta dishes? Perfect in the springtime. Burgers + steaks, hot off the grill? That’s summertime food to me. Cookies? Those are the exception – I truly love ’em year ’round. Even on the hottest days, I don’t mind turning on the oven if it means I’ll have fresh, delicious cookies at the end. So, when I realized recently that I hadn’t baked cookies since before my baby was born, I knew it was time to change that + give these Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies a try!

Y’all? These cookies are AMAZING. They are rich + super buttery, with delicious chocolate chips in every bite, a soft, gooey caramel center, + flecks of sea salt on top. They’re wonderfully soft + they stay that way for a full week after baking. How fantastic is that? These really are perfectly balanced, wonderful, decadent cookies – absolutely delightful with a tall glass of milk. So, if you’re looking for a new cookie recipe that will absolutely please a crowd, you’ve gotta give these a try!

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

makes 15 jumbo cookies, adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction

ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, melted + slightly cooled
3/4 cup light brown sugar, loosely packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips, divided
15 Rolo candies
sea salt

directions

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cornstarch + salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment), whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, + white sugar together until no brown sugar lumps remain. Whisk in the egg, then the egg yolk. Finally, whisk in the vanilla.

Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients + mix together with a large spoon or rubber spatula. The dough will be very soft. Fold in 1/2 cup chocolate chips, dispersing them evenly through the dough. Cover the dough + chill for at least 2 hours, or up to 3 days. The longer you chill the dough, the better!

Take the dough out of the refrigerator + allow to slightly soften at room temperature for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
Unwrap the Rolo candies + have your 1/2 cup of chocolate chips in a pile ready to be used.

Roll the dough into balls, 1.5 tablespoons each. You’ll have about 30 balls. Make a thumbprint into one dough ball + press the Rolo inside. Cover the Rolo with another dough ball + mold the two dough balls around the Rolo, making sure it is completely wrapped inside. (See Sally’s blog for a step-by-step visual.) Gently press down on the large cookie dough ball to slightly flatten + press a few more chocolate chips on top. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Put 7-8 balls of dough onto each cookie sheet. Put one cookie sheet into the refrigerator as you bake batch #1. Bake the cookies for 12-13 minutes. The cookies will look very soft + underbaked, but do not bake longer than 13 minutes. They will continue to bake on the cookie sheet. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.

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