recipe | neiman marcus chocolate chip cookies

of myth or cookie... One of my favorite urban myths is of course food oriented, it is the legend of the Neiman Marcus chocolate chip cookie. The rumor that circulated for years and years was that a customer asked the famed store for their chocolate chip cookie recipe and the store charged her $250 for it. Of course, no one knows where this story exactly generated, but it definitely is an urban myth. Neiman Marcus even pays homage to the tale on their website.

The real reason why I finally am getting around to testing this recipe is because it contains espresso powder and I have been looking for reasons to use this fun ingredient in many of my recipes. Hot chocolate? Add espresso powder. Making brownies? Add espresso powder. Basically I'm trying to say is that I need to work my way through the jar before it expires. But I was pretty pleased with the results. Honestly, is there a bad chocolate chip cookie recipe out there? Probably not, but the espresso powder adds a nice depth and body to this cookie. It is subtle enough to go unnoticed by my boys, but I definitely picked up on it.

Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies

yield: 2 dozen cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

1 cup light brown sugar

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1-3/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder

1-1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300ºF. Cream the butter with the sugars using an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract for another 30 seconds.

In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients and beat into the butter mixture at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the espresso coffee powder and chocolate chips.

Using a 1 ounce scoop or a 2 tablespoon measure, drop cookie dough onto a greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2 inch circle. Bake for about 20 minutes or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a little longer for a crispier cookie.