Toasted Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt

You all are going to be so thankful I ever shared this recipe with you. No for real. Guys. These are the most magically delicious cookies ever created. My mom even says they are her favorite... and that is saying something because she is the baker of all bakers. The master of cakes and cookies. Yet, these ones blew her away. You just have to try them. I think what makes them utterly incredible are the toasted almonds and the ooey-gooey-cookie-dough texture in the middle. That paired with the chocolatey yumminess in the uber rich chocolate chips and with the slight taste of sea salt. Listen to me guys! I sound like the judges on Iron Chef. This is what those cookies do to you. Ahhh! My mouth is watering now. I'm going to get one....

Okay so now I've eaten one. And I can say again...BEST COOKIE EVER. Make them now. Recipe from the Ambitious Kitchen

Ingredients:

For toasted brown sugar almonds:

3-4 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon butter

1 1/2 cups sliced almonds

1 teaspoon sea salt

For the cookie dough:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 egg plus 1 egg yolk

2 teaspoons milk

1 1/4 cups dark chocolate chips (I used Hershey's, otherwise used chopped dark chocolate)

Sea salt, for sprinkling

Instructions: 

1. Place almond slices and butter in a large pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Shake the pan a bit while nuts are heated and begin to toast. After a few minutes, sprinkle brown sugar over the nuts and continue to stir with a wooden spoon. You will notice the sugar will begin to melt and caramelize. Keep stirring to coat the nuts and reduce heat to medium low. Once you notice the almonds turning a golden brown and the sugar caramelizing, turn off the heat, sprinkle with sea salt and place almonds spread out on parchment paper to cool. There will be clumps of almonds but that is fine and will provide a good crunch for the cookies.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat. The butter will begin to foam. Make sure you whisk consistently during this process. After a couple of minutes, the butter will begin to brown on the bottom of the saucepan; continue to whisk and remove from heat as soon as the butter begins to brown and give off a nutty aroma. Immediately transfer the butter to a bowl to prevent burning. Set aside to cool for about 5 minutes.
3. With an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, vanilla, and milk until combined. Add the dry ingredients slowly and beat on low-speed just until combined. Gently fold in all of the dark chocolate chips and add the almonds. You may need to use your hands to help incorporate the almonds into the dough.
4. Wrap your dough in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator, or place in freezer for 30 minutes if you are super eager, although I cannot promise the same results if you do this. Seriously, it's crucial to cool the dough.
5. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Once dough is chilled measure about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball. Place dough balls on cookie sheet, 2 inches apart and flatten the top a very tiny bit with your hand. (Seriously, only a tiny bit!!)
6. Bake the cookies 10-13 minutes or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown. They will look a bit underdone in the middle, but will continue to cook once out of the oven. Cool the cookies on the sheets at least 2 minutes and sprinkle with a little sea salt. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.