The Best Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Ever

You won't need many ingredients on hand for a great homemade chocolate chip cookie. If you bake often, you probably already have the ingredients on hand.

• 1 1/2 cups softened butter
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/3 cups packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 4 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 4 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Tip for leftovers: Roll the extra cookie dough into a log shape. Wrap it tightly in saran wrap, then wrap it again in aluminum foil. Take out the cookie loaf any time you need just a few cookies and it will cut off easier than having it in one big ball.

The cookie to the right is the finished product from this recipe. Don't drool yet.

1. Preheat an oven to 350°F. Beat butter, brown sugar, white sugar, vanilla extract and the eggs on a medium speed for about two minutes. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt, then stir in chocolate chips.
2. On an ungreased, clean cookie sheet, drop dough onto the sheet in 1 tablespoon balls.
3. Bake 11 to 13 minutes or until just lightly browned. Cool and remove from cookie sheet to cool. Let them sit at least 5 minutes to let the cookie solidify.

• Be sure to make your cookies with high quality ingredients. Often the higher quality the butter, vanilla, eggs, chocolate, and sugar, the better tasting the end result.
• Do not use hot cookie sheets. This will cook the bottoms of the cookies very fast.
• Take the cookies out when they are just lightly browned. You can actually remove them before they appear done, and they'll harden up after a few minutes from taking them from the oven.

• Don't melt the butter. Melting will turn the dough darker, and it will burn easier.
• Use a clean, reflective cookie sheet so the heat will be distributed perfectly while cooking.
• Use high quality chocolate chips. Experiment to find what chips you like best, milk chocolate, semi sweet chocolate chips (the most popular), or dark chocolate.
• Keep an eye on the cookies while they're cooking. All ovens are different, so you may have to take them out early, or cook them an extra few minutes.
• Make cookies again! Every time you make them, they come out better each time. Practice makes perfect.

Looking to switch up your cookie? You can make a variety of different kinds of cookies just by changing the chips. Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and semisweet chocolate chips all have far different tastes. For more variety, add white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, or mini chips.