Melted butter helps to make a chewy more dense style cookie (rather than creamed butter and sugar) recipes. You can bake the cookies after mixing, but if you have the time, I strongly suggest chilling the dough balls in the refrigerator for as long as you can. (2 hours to 2 days!) It really deepens the flavor and improves the texture. I like to chill the dough balls rather than the whole batch of cookie dough. As the dough is easier to scoop when it's soft and the dough balls don't take as long to chill as does a whole bowl of dough.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. I always double check my oven temperture with a separate inexpensive oven thermometer.
I use a hand mixer to mix this cookie dough.
Melt butter in skillet - stirring until the whole stick is melted - let gently simmer for 1 min. Take off heat and stir in sugars.
Pour melted butter and sugar mixture into mixing bowl and let cool about 5 minutes. (you don't want to scramble the egg you'll be adding next)
While it's cooling, combine flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda into a small bowl and stir together. (I have started weighing my flour with a digital kitchen scale - it's a much more accurate way to measure.)
Use a hand mixer to mix the egg and vanilla into the cooled melted butter and sugars.
Mix in the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.
Stir in the chocolate chips and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Will thicken up a bit (as the flour hydrates), but still be a little softer than traditional cookie dough.
Scoop 2 tablespoon portions onto baking sheet. I use a light colored 13 x 18" baking sheet lined with parchment. I fit 12 portions on the baking sheet and bake 1 batch at a time. Use a cool baking sheet for 2nd batch.
Note: I do like the cookies a little better when I have time to chill the dough balls. The flavor and texture improves quite a bit. So if you have the time - scoop the dough balls, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to 2 days.
Bake for 12-13 minutes or until golden brown on edges, puffed, cracked and slightly shiny on the top.
Let cool on baking sheet 1-minute before removing to cooling rack.
Notes
Salt:
I use coarse Kosher salt - you may want to use less traditional iodized salt (which is a smaller grain and tends to taste saltier.)
Oven Temperature: (flat cookies?)
I highly recommend double checking your oven temperature with an inexpensive oven thermometer. I find that my oven tends to run cooler than it says and takes longer to preheat too. When I bake these cookies and the oven is not hot enough - they tend to flatten out too much.
Cookies Not Shiny?
I had this happen when I waited too long to bake them.
Updated Recipe: 3/22/23
I have updated the recipe. The last couple times I made the cookies without chilling they fell flatter then I would have liked. I try to keep the flour portion of the the butter to flour ratio in my chocolate chip cookies as low as possible. The flour tends to dull the buttery flavor. But you need enough flour for structure. The original recipe called for 158g or 1 cup + 2 tablespoons flour. I have increased the flour to 172 grams (1 1/3 cup) to help ensure the cookies don't fall flat. I am also suggesting chilling the dough balls if at all possible. It enhances the flavor and texture greatly. If you scoop the balls while the dough is nice and soft, then chill them. It's easier and you don't have to chill them for as long as a whole bowl of dough. The last batch that I let chill overnight was just divine.
Nutrition (approx. data estimated via online nutritional calculator.)