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.
Watch How to Make These Delicious Cookies
Jump to:
- Watch How to Make These Delicious Cookies
- 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.
- 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.
- 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
For thin and crispy cookies, make sure to use softened (not melted) butter, and press the dough balls slightly before baking.
The store-bought Tate's Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies do not contain pecans, so omitting them from this recipe is fine.
Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They should stay fresh for up to 1 week.
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
Other Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
If you like chocolate chip cookies, you should also try the following cookies:
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Recipe
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Tate's Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter, softened (See Tip 1)
- ¾ cup (5.25 ounces) granulated sugar
- ¾ 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)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line cookie sheets with silicone or parchment paper; set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars on medium speed until they come together, about 1 minute. Add the egg and vanilla. Beat on medium speed just until the mixture is combined, about 30 seconds. Add the salt and baking soda; beat on medium just until combined, about 30 seconds.
- Add the flour; beat on low just until combined, about 30 seconds. Fold in the chocolate chips and toasted pecans. Do not over mix the dough.
- Drop the cookies 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets using a small ice cream scoop. Flatten cookie dough to about ⅜-inch thick with a wet hand. (See Tip 5)
- Bake in preheated 350° F oven for 12 minutes or until the edges and centers are brown. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheet. Remove the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store in an air-tight container.
- Yield: 6 dozen cookies. (See Tip 6)
Video
Tips/Notes
- You can also use unsalted butter 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
- 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.
- 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.
- To make half a recipe, use the following:
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
Donna Zasowski says
Can these be made without eggs?... what can I substitute?
Chula King says
Donna,
Thanks so much for your question! I haven’t tested this recipe without eggs, so I can’t say how it would turn out with a substitute.
In this recipe, the eggs play an important role in binding the dough and helping create the signature thin, crispy texture. Changing or omitting them would likely affect both the structure and the final result.
If you decide to experiment, I’d love to hear how it works for you!
Chula