Olive Oil Chocolate Chunk Cookies

📷 by: Love & Olive Oil

Made with olive oil instead of butter, you won’t believe how good these perfectly chewy chocolate chip cookies are!

• 1 ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt, plus extra for topping (optional)
• ½ cup Santini (formerly San Gimignano) Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup roughly chopped dark chocolate (60-80% recommended, you can also use a mix of multiple chocolates here too)

1. In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt and set aside.
2. In a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together olive oil, brown sugar and sugar until evenly moistened. Add egg and egg yolk and beat on high speed for 30-60 seconds until smooth. Mix in vanilla.
3. Dump in dry ingredients and mix on low speed until almost incorporated. Add chopped chocolate (reserve a small handful for topping, if desired), and fold with a spatula until chocolate is evenly distributed throughout.
4. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes until it can be rolled, or overnight for the best flavor.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a heavyweight baking sheet with parchment paper.
6. Scoop dough into balls (I use a medium #40 cookie scoop which is just under 2 tablespoons of dough) and shape into smooth balls. Because of the oiliness of the dough, I find that ‘pressing’ the dough into balls is a better technique than ‘rolling’ it. Arrange on parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving at least 2 inches of space between cookies. If desired, press a few chunks of chocolate into the top of each dough ball for a prettier baked cookie. Sprinkle with flake sea salt. At this point you can also freeze the dough balls to bake later (freeze overnight on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a bag or airtight container to store for up to 1 month).
7. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until tops are puffed and edges are golden brown (add an additional 2 minutes of bake time if baking dough directly from frozen). Before removing from the oven, give them a good smack on the baking rack (drop the pan from a few inches down on the rack) – this will help deflate any puffiness on top. Let cool on cookie sheets for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy warm, or store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.