Tate's Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies

Name: Tate’s Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 26 min
Ingredients: 1 cup salted butter, softened (See Tip 1); 3/4 cup (5.25 ounces) granulated sugar; 3/4 cup (5.63 ounces) firmly packed dark brown sugar; 2 large eggs, room temperature; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1 teaspoon table salt (See Tip 2); 1 teaspoon baking soda; 2 cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour (See Tip 3); 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips; 1 cup toasted pecan pieces (See Tip 4)

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Tate’s Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies are thin and crispy, and absolutely delicious. Even if you prefer soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies, you’ll find it hard to resist these buttery cookies filled with yummy chocolate chips and toasted pecans.

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The Search for the Perfect Recipe
Ingredients: Here’s What You’ll Need
Deviations from the Tate’s Bake Shop Recipe
Steps: Making the Dough for Half the Recipe
Finishing the Tate’s Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies
Frequently Asked Questions
Recipe Tips and Tricks
Other Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
Recipe

The Search for the Perfect Recipe

I had never heard of Tate’s Chocolate Chip Cookies until recently. I happened to see them at the local Walmart, so bought a package. One bite and I knew that the hype surrounding the cookies was correct – they were really good!

I decided that I had to try my hand at making these delicious cookies. Therefore, I started by searching the Internet for recipes. I found two recipes that looked promising: (1) the Tate’s Bake Shop recipe; and (2) a Tate’s-Style Thin and Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.

I initially tried the Tate’s Bake Shop recipe but must have done something wrong. The cookies were good, but they weren’t thin and crispy.

Then, I tried the Tate’s Style recipe. Again, I must have done something wrong. The cookies were thin and crispy but were incredibly greasy.

Not to be deterred, I tried the Tate’s Bake Shop recipe again – this time using half the recipe. As I’ll explain in a bit, I ultimately ended up with amazingly thin and crispy chocolate chip cookies.

I asked the Master Taste Tester to do a side-by-side comparison of the store-bought cookies and mine. His conclusion was that they basically tasted the same, except that mine had more chocolate chips! Therefore, a success story! Read on to see what I did.

Ingredients: Here’s What You’ll Need

The ingredients used in this recipe are pretty standard for a chocolate chip cookie.

Ingredients for Tate's chocolate chip cookies.

Butter: Generally, I use unsalted butter in my recipes. However, with the above success, I decided to use salted butter that was included in the Tate’s Bake Shop recipe.

Sugars: I used both granulated sugar and dark brown sugar in this recipe.

Flour Plus: I used all-purpose flour with table salt and baking soda added.

Egg: I included an egg which helped to bind the ingredients together.

The Flavorings: To add flavor and texture to the cookies, I used vanilla extract, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and toasted pecans.

Deviations from the Tate’s Bake Shop Recipe

I actually deviated from the original recipe in three respects.

First, the original recipe called for a teaspoon of water and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. I omitted the water and instead added two teaspoons of vanilla extract.

Second, the original recipe did not call for any nuts. However, I can’t imagine chocolate chip cookies without toasted pecans. Therefore, I added the pecans.

Finally, the original recipe called for stirring together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Sometime back, I started adding salt and baking soda to the “wet” ingredients right before adding the flour. My rationale was that the salt and baking soda would be better combined by beating them into the “wet” ingredients. This has consistently worked for me!

I used Gold Medal flour bleached all-purpose flour (blue). The reason was that I had read that the lower protein content of the Gold Medal flour produced lighter and crispier cookies. I’ve also used White Lily bleached all-purpose flour.

I generally use unsalted butter for all of my baking. However, I made a special trip to the store to buy some salted butter which was called for in the recipe. Subsequently, I used unsalted butter and increased the amount of salt by ¼ teaspoon.

Steps: Making the Dough for Half the Recipe

First, I creamed together the butter, granulated sugar, and dark brown sugar on medium speed.

I only beat the mixture for a minute until it came together. Beating incorporates air into the dough, which in turn produces a puffy cookie. Since I didn’t want puffy cookies, I minimized the beating.

Next, I added the egg and vanilla extract. I beat the mixture on medium speed for about 30 seconds, just until the egg and vanilla were incorporated. Again, I didn’t want to introduce too much air.

After that, I added the salt and baking soda. I beat the mixture on medium speed just until the salt and baking soda were incorporated, about 30 seconds.

Adding salt and baking soda to the batter.

Then, I added the flour. I beat the mixture on low speed just until most of the flour was incorporated into the dough. This took about 30 seconds.

Finally, I folded in chocolate chips and toasted pecans. I was careful not to over-mix the dough.

Finishing the Tate’s Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies

I used my smallest cookie scoop to drop the cookies onto a silicone-lined baking sheet. This cookie scoop measured 1-¼ inches in diameter.

I baked the first sheet of cookies in a preheated 350°F oven for 12 minutes and was dismayed to see that they looked more like regular chocolate chip cookies than thin and crispy cookies.

Therefore, for the second cookie sheet, I wet my hands and pressed the cookie dough to about ⅜-inch thick. This way, the cookies had a head start in spreading.

I baked this sheet of cookies at 350°F for 12 minutes. Perfection!

The picture below shows the difference between the cookies when the dough was not flattened (cookies on the right) versus the cookies when the dough was flattened (cookies on the left).

Therefore, one of the secrets to achieving thin and crispy cookies appears to be giving the cookies a head start in spreading by flattening them before placing them in the oven.

The picture below shows a comparison of the store-bought Tate’s Bake Shop Chocolate Chip cookies on the left and my cookies on the right. The store-bought cookies were about 2-½ inches in diameter. My cookies were between 2-½ and 2 ¾ inches in diameter!

As I previously indicated, I made half a recipe. I ended up with three dozen amazing thin and crispy chocolate chip cookies studded with toasted pecans.

The full recipe, shown below, would have produced six dozen cookies! All I can say is that these cookies are awesome! Yum!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I ensure that the cookies are thin and crispy?

For thin and crispy cookies, make sure to use softened (not melted) butter, and press the dough balls slightly before baking.

Can I omit the pecans?

The store-bought Tate’s Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies do not contain pecans. Therefore, it’s fine to omit them from this recipe.

How should I store the baked cookies?

Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They should stay fresh for up to 1 week.

Can I freeze the cookie dough for later use?

You can freeze the cookie dough in an airtight container or plastic wrap for up to 3 months. If frozen, let the dough thaw in the refrigerator overnight or for a few hours at room temperature. Then, shape and bake as usual.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

As I previously indicated, both salted and unsalted butter will work in this recipe. If using unsalted butter, increase the amount of salt by ¼ teaspoon to a total of 1 ¼ teaspoons.

I used Gold Medal bleached all-purpose flour because of its low protein content. The low protein content minimizes gluten formation and results in a lighter and crispier cookie. I’ve also used White Lily bleached flour.

I always toast pecans before adding them to other ingredients in my recipes. To toast the pecans, spread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 8 or 9 minutes until lightly toasted. Watch carefully to ensure that they do not burn.

My smallest ice cream scoop is about 1 ¼ inches in diameter. If you don’t have an ice cream scoop, then you can use a tablespoon to drop the cookies. To ensure round cookies, wet your hands and roll the dropped dough into a ball. Then, flatten the dough with a wet hand to about ⅜ of an inch.

The recipe in the recipe box is for a full recipe that makes 6 dozen cookies. For half the recipe to make 3 dozen cookies, use the following measurements:

½ cup salted butter (1 stick)
⅜ cup (2.63 ounces) granulated sugar
⅜ cup (2.82 ounces) dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (5 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup toasted pecans

If you like chocolate chip cookies, you should also try the following cookies:

Espresso-Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies

Chocolate Oatmeal Pecan Cookies

DoubleTree Chocolate Chip Cookies

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