Recipes: Jack Daniels Chocolate Chip Cookies

BY: Sam Parks (January 2012)

Jack Daniels Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Author’s Note:

I love Jack Daniels; from the way its sweet caramel aroma wafts lazily from your glass to the notes of smoky charcoal that dance playfully across your palate.  Perhaps it’s a byproduct of living in the South or spending way too much thinking about food (the two aren’t entirely mutually exclusive by the way), but I always enjoy incorporating a little “Jack” into my recipes. 

Whenever I take something to the office following a weekend of marathon baking, the first question I’m usually asked is, “how much did you use this time?”  Not referring to sugar or butter, but good ole’ Uncle Jack!  I suppose you could say that I’ve become somewhat of a notorious Jack Daniels whore!

The first version of these cookies appeared one slightly intoxicating evening during my junior year of college, when a mass craving for chocolate chip cookies descended over the guests in my dorm room.  On a lark, someone dared me to put the last of our Jack Daniels stash into the standard Toll House cookie recipe; so I did. 

Over the years, I’ve played with the recipe incorporating different ideas and musings from various sources: the extra egg is courtesy of Jeffrey Steingarten’s book “The Man Who Ate Everything;” the bread flour idea came from Alton Brown; and of course the addition of honey was entirely à la mode Flay. 

But the inclusion of Jack Daniels was almost entirely mine! 

This (semi) finished recipe is the epitome of Southern flavor, minus the larger-than-life Paula Deen butter obsession.  Rich chocolate, sweet tupelo honey, and smoky Jack Daniels are balanced brilliantly in this chewy cookie.

Jack Daniels Chocolate Chip Cookies on a Lazy Summer Afternoon

Eat good food.  Drink good beer.  And above all, stay classy!

INGREDIENTS

-1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

-1 cup bread flour

-1 tsp baking soda

-1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

-1/2 cup granulated sugar

-3/4 cup packed brown sugar

-1/4 clover or tupelo honey

-1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-2 Tbs Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey

-2 large eggs

-1 egg yolk

-2 cups (about 12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chunks

-1 cup chopped, toasted pecans

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour (both varieties) and the baking powder together until well combined.

In a separate bowl, beat the butter using a stand or hand mixer, until light and fluffy.  Add the sugars, honey, and salt and beat until creamy and thoroughly mixed.  Add the vanilla and Jack Daniels, and mix for a few seconds.

Mix 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter.  Beat until blended.  Add one egg, and beat until fully mixed.  Continue alternating between the flour and eggs, until everything has been mixed together.  Add the chocolate chunks and the chopped pecans.  Mix just enough to incorporate all of the ingredients evenly.

Take a small spoon and “sample” the batter.  If small children are present, make sure they are fully involved in the quality assurance process.

Using two spoons or a small cookie scoop (it looks like a small ice cream scoop), drop a rounded mound of the batter onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.  Make sure to leave approximately 2 inches around each dough blob.

Cook for 9-10 minutes until golden brown.  For crisper cookies add 2 minutes to the baking time.

Remove from the pan immediately (this is where the parchment paper comes in handy)! 

Cool on a wire rack. 

Enjoy!