Chocolate Chip Cookies à la Fleur de Sel

The "American" cookies they sell in France are pretty disgraceful. Pale, thin, lacking in flavor, and nothing like what we know to be a delicious cookie in the states. They are about as far off on cookies as Americans are on baguettes. But that doesn't mean a good cookie can't be made here in France. In fact, the ingredients are overall better here, especially the chocolate. So using French ingredients, I created a cookie recipe that destroys the competition. And sprinkled with a touch of fleur de sel, they are sweet and a little salty, keeping you coming back for seconds, thirds, and fourths. Chocolate Chip Cookies à la Fleur de Sel: 295g Flour 11g Baking Soda 1t Salt 225g Butter (unsalted, at room temp) 175g Sugar 150g Brown sugar 2 Eggs 1t Vanilla 325g Dark chocolate, chopped (70% cacao) 120g Pecans, toasted and chopped Fleur de sel

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. In a second bowl, place the butter and begin to beat with an electric mixer. Add the two sugars and cream together. Next, add the eggs one at a time to combine, followed by the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to make sure everything is incorporated. Now add the dry ingredients to combine, and finish by adding the chopped chocolate and pecans. Make sure everything is well incorporated. Lay out a large piece of parchment paper on your work surface and scrape out the cookie dough on top. Cover with a second sheet of parchment and roll out the dough to about 1" in thickness. Refrigerate the dough until firm. Then, peel off the top layer of parchment, and using a cookie cutter, cut rounds of about 2" - 2 1/2" in diameter. At this time you can either freeze the rounds for baking later, or continue and bake now. When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 180C or about 375F. Sprinkle a good quality fleur de sel on top of the cookies and bake them on parchment paper or on a silpat until they brown around the edges if you like a soft cookie. For a more crunchy cookie, you can bake a little longer. Remove them from the oven to cool slightly before using a spatula to remove them from the baking sheet. Dig in.