I haven’t had any cookies other than homemade for quite some time now, but I make the exception for Panera’s chocolate chip cookies. They are huge and too hard to pass up, especially when the kid at the register asks me if I would like to add one to my order for 99 cents! They are my weakness along with the adult grilled cheese sandwich and the creamy tomato soup!

What did we ever do before Pinterest?? Seriously, I have collected some gems in the past year that I would probably not find if not for the convenient and genius site that is Pinterest! I just stumbled upon this recipe last night and made them today. These are the biggest cookies I have made to date, but there is really no way around the 1/4 cup serving 😉

(some complimentary cookie close-ups!)

Verdict: Wow – perfection! I will make these again. I baked off six – for quality control sake, of course 😉 Slightly crispy edges and chewy middles with plenty of sticky, sweet flavor from the dark brown sugar. One is more than enough for this lady! 😉 Thanks for reading, enjoy!

*TIP: If you’re like me and you only buy light brown sugar, you can add one tablespoon of molasses per one cup of packed light brown sugar. Not to worry if you only have white sugar on hand; add 1/4 cup of molasses to one cup of white sugar.

*TIP: I use a disher to portion out the dough onto my cookie sheet, and then I use a fork to scrape the dome off the tops of each to flatten. They bake up as pictured – thanks to all the commenters! I hope this helps.

Copycat Panera Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies – adapted from The Pinning Mama

• 1 c butter, softened
• 1/2 c shortening
• 1 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 1/3 cup all-purpose flour (541 grams)
• 2 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 – 12 ounce bag mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions –

1. Mix butter, shortening and sugars until light and fluffy.
2. Add egg and vanilla and mix until well combined.
3. Combine flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt and mix together.
4. Mix dry ingredients slowly into wet ingredients and blend well.
5. If the dough is crumbly, stir in water 1 teaspoon at a time until it just holds together. The dough should not be sticky.
6. Add in chocolate chips and stir until evenly distributed.
7. Using ¼ cup measure, scoop out dough and form into a ball. Continue until all dough is balled. Approx 24 cookies.
8. Place dough in the freezer for 2 hours or up to 3 months.
9. Place frozen cookie onto parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for 15 min.
10. Let cool 2 minutes.