perfect (to me) chocolate chip cookies

I've tried countless recipes and methods in search of the best chocolate chip cookie. There's that Neiman Marcus recipe that was circulated on the internet that calls for flour made from blended oatmeal. Tried that one. There is a method that involves dropping the cookie sheet flat on the floor right after taking the cookies out of the oven in effort to help them settle more quickly. Tried that too. I've experimented with butter vs. margarine vs. butter/margarine combos vs. butter/margarine/crisco combos. Here is a list of the tips I use to make 'em the right way.

• Just use the recipe on the back of your choco chip bag
• Use butter
• Multiply the amount of salt by 3 or 4. Trust me. The recipe I use calls for 1/2 teaspoon. The last time I made cookies I put in 2 teaspoons. It still could have used a dash or two more. You don't really taste the salt. It just helps to cut the sweetness. With more salt in the cookie you can better taste the vanilla, the chocolate, and the butter. 
• Add an extra 3/4 to a full cup of flour. This is something I picked up from making cookies with my pal, Ina. The dough should really clump to the beater and should be tacky to the touch. When you touch it with your finger, it will leave just a little behind.

• Make them the right size. I use a teaspoon (from my silverware drawer, not a measuring spoon) to scoop the dough. I use my fingers to form the scoop into a ballish shape while it is still on the spoon, then drop it on the cookie sheet. They don't have to be perfect spheres but they should be about the same size.

• DO NOT OVER COOK THE COOKIES. This is really the most crucial tip. They should be pulled from the oven the moment that 1) the bottom edges just start to golden up 2) the cookies no longer look wet on the top. You are going to want to leave them in longer, but don't do it! They will continue to cook on the sheet after you take them out. My recipe said to cook them 9-11 minutes. Here is what the cookies looked like at 8 1/2 minutes. They are really close. One or two are just a little wet on top and they haven't quite started to brown at the edges. 

• One minute later they were ready. Here they are just out of the oven. Barely golden at the edges and puffy. 

• Let the cookies settle on the sheet for 2-3 minutes. The cookies will deflate and will look slightly darker. If you try to take them off too soon, they will fall apart. If you leave them on to long, any chips that are touching the sheet will start to stick. The cookies will be really soft when you take them off. You may be tempted to put them back in the oven. Don't do it! I use a spatula to get under the edge of the cookie then carefully twist it to loosen it from the sheet. Remove the cookies to a cooling rack.

• Leave them on the rack for at least 5 minutes. They will deflate a bit more. But really, the objective is to prevent storage condensation by getting them cooled off before sealing them up.

• Store them in something air tight. Saran wrap need not apply. Stored in an air tight container, the cookies will stay soft and chewy for... well. I don't know exactly. They don't last very long around here. But they stay soft and chewy.

• Finally, share them! A cookie shared is a cookie spared (from my waistline). I divide them up and get them ready for delivery as they come off the cooling rack, thus eliminating any chances of falling victim to my weak will power.