Malted Milk Triple Chippers

The Setting: A delightfully breezy game-day in South Bend.

The Soundtrack: Football fans and festivities.

On the Stovetop: Nothing...still a bit full from the burger-and-brat double whammy I probably shouldn't have had for lunch.

The Scenario: It's hard to beat a classic chocolate chip cookie. Whether that means chewy, crisp, or flat-out doughy, it's really all about that perfect balance of brown sugar, butter, and bursts of bittersweet chocolate, accentuated with vanilla and enlivened with salt.

Though I force myself to curb my cookie intake more than I'd like (and admittedly less than skinny jeans would require), I jump at any excuse to whip up a batch of my biggest vice.

So when Hoosband asked if I could throw together some cookies for a meeting he had coming up, you can bet I had the mixer going before he could blink twice.

I'd intended to make our tried-and-true Bifecta Chocolate Chip Cookies, but, discovering I was completely out of all-important brown sugar, I quickly shifted into experimental mode, grabbed a container of malted milk powder, and came out with something slightly different but almost equally worthy of the elastic-waisted pants I'll likely be wearing all week as a result.

Malted Milk Triple Chippers

The trifecta of white, dark, and milk chocolate chips is an ideal accompaniment to the mysteriously addictive malted milk powder in these cookies, providing both contrast and complement to the ingredient's signature sweet, yet subtle, flavor. The cookies will not look done when you take them out of the oven, but do not fear--they will finish cooking on the baking sheet as they cool.

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 T pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I use King Arthur)
3/4 cups malted milk powder (I use Carnation)
1 tsp fine (not coarse) sea salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup milk chocolate chips (I prefer Ghirardelli)
1/2 cup semisweet (or dark, or bittersweet) chocolate chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Very lightly grease two large cookie sheets (alternatively, line the sheets with parchment paper). Make sure an oven rack is positioned in the center of the oven.

Beat together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until once again light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, malted milk powder, salt, and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and beat on low for 30 seconds to incorporate. Increase speed to med-high and beat 1-2 minutes to mix well. Add the milk, dark, and white chocolate chips, beating on low just to distribute.

Use a medium-sized cookie scoop or spoon of your choice to drop two-tablespoon-or-so-sized mounds of dough approximately 2-3 inches apart on your prepared cookie sheets (about 6-9 cookies, depending on the size of your cookie sheet).

Bake one sheet at a time on the center rack of the oven at 350 degrees F for 7-9, minutes or just until the dough has spread out, the cookies are BEGINNING to set, and the edges are just golden. The tops of the cookies will appear very pale and undercooked.

Allow to cool COMPLETELY on the sheet outside of the oven before transferring to a serving plate or airtight storage container. Store at room temperature for up to one week.

Repeat with remaining dough; alternatively, store remaining dough in an airtight container for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to one month. If freezing, thaw overnight in fridge when ready to use.

Makes approximately 30 cookies.

Thanks for reading! Here's to Being the Secret Ingredient in your life.