Make the Dough. Whisk together brown sugar, melted butter, and vanilla extract until smooth. Add the egg. Mix until thick and smooth. Add the flour, salt, and baking soda. Stir together until a soft dough forms. Add the chocolate chips. Stir. Cover the bowl and chill for 30 minutes. (Dough may be chilled overnight. See note.)
Bake Cookies. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop dough, about 2 tablespoons each onto the prepared baking sheet. Space cookies about two inches apart as cookies spread as they bake. (Optional: Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with a little kosher salt before baking.)
Store. Cookies keep on the counter for up to four days.
Brown Sugar: Use either light or dark brown sugar in this recipe. Light brown sugar makes cookies with a caramel/toffee-like flavor while dark brown sugar makes softer cookies with a more pronounced molasses flavor.
Chocolate Chips: Think of the one cup of chocolate chunks or chips as a suggestion. If you like chocolate chip cookies loaded with chocolate chips, add more. If you prefer chocolate chip cookies with only a sprinkle of chocolate chips or chunks, use less chocolate chips. (Cookies shown in the photos contain 1/2 cup chocolate chunks.)
Chilling the Dough: This dough needs to chill for 30 minutes before baking. However, it may be chilled for longer. The longer the dough chills, the less the cookies spread during baking and the more toffee-like the flavor becomes.
: Love a salty-sweet flavor? Give the cookies a sprinkle of kosher salt before baking.