I don't update Instagram enough, but I spend too much time scrolling and naturally came across the viral Martha Stewart Fired Me Cookies. What a fun recipe! These chocolate-packed, cookies have a dramatic backstory: a former Martha Stewart employee who was let go (for reasons that remain secret) perfected the chocolate chip cookie recipe during her unemployment. She, Sarah Gormley, then went on to write a book called The Order of Things: A Memoir About Chasing Joy. I can't wait to read it and hope it's half as good as these cookies.
Making the Dough
The recipe itself is straightforward, and my favorite part (aside from the amount of chocolate chocolate) is that Sarah doesn't mix the dry ingredients together, she just adds them separately to the dough. Sarah's book is about chasing joy. Well, I feel a little joy when I don't mix the dry ingredients. It's freeing somehow. What's not freeing is all the creaming.
Mixing Dough
Creaming the butter and all 3 sugars is easy, but it helps to have a stand mixer and some patience. I have very sensitive ears and sometimes rush through the creaming process, but no more! I recently bought a remote control outlet and now run the stand mixer from another room. Here's a link to the remote control outlet if you too would like to run your stand mixer (or your Vitamix) from another room. This works with any appliance that has a lever type on off switch. If you have hyperacusis and like to bake, it might change your life.
Chilling Dough
Okay, so the dough is on the thick side, and even thicker and stiffer once chilled. Sarah has you use your hands to portion it. I did what I always do and scooped the dough with a medium cookie scoop before chilling. I put the little dough scoops on a plate, covered with plastic wrap and chilled overnight. Well, sort of. I baked the first 3 after about 6 hours in the refrigerator and will bake the remaining after 48 hours. Cookies made with chilled dough almost always taste a million times better. However, the day 1 were pretty darn good.
Texture and Flavor
These are your typical crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside chocolate chunk cookies. I baked mine in a toaster oven with a fan assist and the dry air (plus all the baking powder) gave them nicely cracked surfaces. The brown sugar flavor is just right, I can definite taste the butter and loved the bit of salt at the end. But honestly, what really makes the cookies is good chocolate.
So Are The Cookies Worth the Hype?
In short: absolutely. Will I make them again? Definitely -- 100% yes. But maybe next time, I’ll experiment with different types of chocolate or add a sprinkle of flaky salt on top for contrast. But this is probably my new favorite recipe. Also, mine is a halve version of the original and makes 18 good size cookies. For the original full size version go to Sarah's website.
Hints and Tips
Use salted Land o' Lakes butter for the best flavor. For the chips, use a variety or better yet, chunks. I used a mixture of Guittard bittersweet, Guittard semisweet chips and something else that was unlabeled. I also added M&Ms. The Maldon salt is a nice touch, but of course you can use flakes of any salt or leave it off if salted chocolate is not your thing.
Recipe
Martha Stewart Fired Me Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 stick salted butter, softened (114 grams)
- ¼ cup white sugar (50 grams)
- ½ cup very tightly packed dark brown sugar (116 grams)
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar (55 grams)
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste)
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- ¾ tsp. baking powder
- ⅛ tsp. Maldon salt (add ⅜ teaspoon salt if using unsalted butter) plus more for outside of cookies
- 1 ¼ cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (165 grams)
- 1 ⅛ cups semisweet chocolate chunks or assorted chocolates, chopped
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer using the whisk attachment, beat the butter, sugar, and both of the brown sugars for 3 entire minutes. Do not skip this step or shorten the beating time.
- Add the egg and the vanilla and beat for another 2 minutes, stopping once or twice to scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Add baking soda, baking powder, salt, and beat until thoroughly mixed, then add the flour and stir to make a soft and thick dough.
- Add chocolate pieces and mix until well distributed.
- Cover the bowl and chill overnight OR scoop out 18 cookie dough balls using a medium size cookie scoop. Put the balls on a plate, cover and chill until ready to bake. Preferably overnight, but after a few hours or even immediately should be fine.
- When you’re ready to bake, preheat oven to 360°F (182°C).
- If you did not scoop up balls of dough, use your hands and a scraper to scoop out blogs of dough balls.
- Arrange on baking sheets spacing 2 ½ inches apart.
- Sprinkle some sea salt over them before they go in the oven.
- At about the 10 to 12 minute mark, remove tray from heat and slam the tray down lightly on the counter a few times to flatten the cookies out. This also helps keeps the centers chewy. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 2 minutes.
- Transfer cookies to a room-temperature, nonporous surface to cool for at least 3–5 minutes before serving.
Sue K says
These sound fabulous and I can’t wait to make them! I’m joyful just thinking about making them. LOL.
Nice tips on the remote for the mixer and Vitamix. I do ok with my mixer but I wear ear muffs when I use the Vitamix.