Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars with Caramels

When you find that one recipe that works like magic each and every time you make it, you scream it from the rooftops! That, my friends, are these chocolate chip cookie bars. Not only can this cookie dough be utilized to make the most chewy, soft and craveable classic chocolate chip cookie, but, you can make them into bars if you want to skip rolling out individual cookies!

Let your imagination run wild with what you’d like to mix into the dough: caramels, cinnamon chips, m&m’s, peanut butter cups, etc. There is no wrong way to make this treat.  Below, I am sharing with you all the basic Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe — it’s your choice whether to make cookies or bars with it!

 

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

*pre heat oven to 350* line two baking sheets with parchment paper

2 sticks melted unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

3 cups flour

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup chocolate chips of choice

1. With a handheld mixer, mix together butter, sugar, vanilla and eggs until light and fluffy (2 minutes or so)
2. Add flour, salt and baking soda to the wet ingredients and mix until all ingredients are fully incorporated
3. Stir in chocolate chips
4. At this point, you can keep them classic with only chocolate chips OR add the mix-ins of your choice
5. Roll into balls, roughly the size of 1.5 Tbsp.

BAKE at 350 degrees F for 9-12 minutes or until centers are barely set and the bottoms are slightly golden.  Let cool on a wire rack.

FOR BARS:

Use the same dough with the mix-ins of your choice. (If you are adding caramels, simply slice baking caramels in half and press them into the top of the dough after it is pressed out onto the sheet.)

Press dough into a parchment paper-lined 8×11 baking sheet. Using the bottom of a measuring cup makes this step much easier to even out the dough while pressing! If you do not have a small baking sheet, you can use a larger one.  Simply keep a few inches open at both ends for the  cookie dough to spread slightly.

BAKE at 350degrees F for 25-30 minutes, or until top is slightly golden and puffy.

Remove from oven and let cool at least 30 minutes before slicing Enjoy!

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