This chocolate chip cookie recipe is my secret weapon. I know, I know, 'tis the season to get all fancy with the baked goods, but truth be told, I'm a bit of a minimalist when it comes to holiday sweets: I like the tried-and-true classics without the extra fuss. And James is never happier than he is when a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies make its way from the oven to a common area where they're easily snatched every time he ambles by.

I swear by Food Network's Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe. I know that there's been much debate over cakey vs. chewy vs. crispy: I'm declaring it now, our household is a crispy chocolate chip cookie household. In my humble opinion, cookies are meant to be dunked in milk, and there's nothing I hate more than a cookie going all to pieces and ending up at the bottom of my glass. I won't abide that madness. 

To amp up the flavors a little, I made a couple tweaks to the ingredient list:

• 1 Tb. Molasses, added when you add the vanilla.
• Vanilla seeds scraped from 1/2 - 1 pod (whatever I have handy that I can spare), added when you add the vanilla.
• 1 c. jumbo milk chocolate chips, instead of 1 1/2, because James and I agree that that is our optimal cookie-to-chocolate ratio.

I've also found that my new oven in Nashville gets all hot and bothered, cooking the dough all the way through in about 14-16 minutes. (In Brooklyn, 9 minutes a side was perfection.) The moral is that every oven is different, with its own quirks. Make a couple batches and scribble down what works for you on something that you won't lose, like a recipe print-out or your refrigerator or your kid.

The FN Dish blog did a wonderful comparison of all the different types of chocolate chip cookies, and explains what variations in the recipes yield which results. I'm sure the recipes for Cakey, Chewy and Crispy-Cakey cookies are all equally delicious. And now everyone can make the perfect chocolate chip cookie, no matter where your texture loyalties lie.

What's your favorite no-fuss cookie recipe?

-MMV.