Ever have a craving for a good, chocolate chip cookie? There's something about a fresh-baked, still warm from the oven, chocolate chip cookie that makes it the ultimate treat.
I remember an episode of "Friends", where Phoebe had to try and get a copy of her grandmother's secret chocolate chip cookie recipe, which turned out to be the exact recipe from the back of the Nestle chocolate chip bag. This is exactly what I thought about Ma Chin's super family secret recipe, and so after calling her one day to get it, I found that it too, was the same Nestle recipe! But for some reason, these cookies, while very tasty, always ended up being thinner, crunchy cookies, which she dislikes.
 |
| Image courtesy of Hilton Hotel |
Long ago, on my first ever, out-of-the-country business trip, I had to go to Santa Clara for a training class with IBM. Our company travel agency booked me into the Doubletree, which I had never heard of, as they did not have any properties in Canada back then. I didn't know it at the time, but the Doubletree chain (now owned by Hilton), was famous for their warm, chocolate chip cookies that they handed out to guests when they checked in. Needless to say, when I tried their cookie, I was immediately sold on them! When I checked out, I bought a small tin of them to give to my brother's high-school chum who lived in San Francisco at the time. Copycat recipes have been available online for a while now, but due to the pandemic,
Doubletree actually revealed their secret recipe! So, with nothing but time on my hands, I thought I should give this recipe a try.
As you can see, they turned out pretty well, and tasted very good - I'd rate them about 8.5 vs. the original Doubletree version. I didn't have any walnuts on hand, and I remember the hotel ones having a slightly more oat-y texture. But the flavour was excellent, and of course, they are best served warm! Aside from adding the walnuts next time, I would chill the dough for a couple of hours before baking them - it keeps them from spreading out too much and becoming too thin. Regardless, they make excellent treats during the coronavirus quarantine!
