I struggled making chocolate chip cookies, trying different recipes, ingredients, techniques, and even equipment. In spite of my best efforts, I just couldn't achieve the chewy and thick cookies I sought after many experiments until....to my palate (and texture preference), this one,
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/10331/m...-chip-cookies/, which yielded the best ones I've ever made because of a special (and unusual/unexpected to me) ingredient: instant pudding mix. I expect some folks will scream "heretic" or otherwise think this is pretty low-brow, but I loved them as did my friends and colleagues.