The Real Recipe for Mrs. Fields Chocolate Chip Cookie

There's no question that the milk chocolate chip Mrs. Fields cookie recipe is regarded as the "holy grail" of recipes for cookie bakers worldwide. Once you've tasted Mrs. Fields moist-but-chewy, deliciously sweet treat, all other chocolate chip cookies pale in comparison. Yes, it's really that good, say the legions of cookie bakers and homemakers who know a thing or two about making scrumptious cookies.

Would you pay $250 for a Mrs. Fields cookie recipe?

You've probably heard the "true story" about a woman who asked to buy the famous Mrs. Fields cookie recipe and was told it would cost her two-fifty. She added it to her cookie purchase and when she got her credit card bill she discovered a charge for $250 instead of the $2.50 she expected.

The woman was so mad, she started a chain email and gave away the Mrs. Fields recipe to millions of people. Did you believe that story? Well, guess what-it's nothing more than an urban legend, and it's well documented on the internet, with several different versions of the story no less!

"Supposedly" authentic Mrs. Fields cookie recipe

A friend gave me this chocolate chip cookie recipe, claiming that it's the legendary recipe Mrs. Fields uses to make her world-famous cookies. While I can't vouch that it's an authentic Mrs. Fields cookie recipe, I can tell you the cookies turned out yummy- I had to quickly grab a few for myself because they were literally devoured by my family. If you want to be 100% certain you are baking the "real deal," buy a copy of the Mrs. Fields Cookie Recipe Book, which is available on their company website. Debbi Fields adapted 100 of her cookie recipes for home kitchens-classics like the Milk Chocolate Chip and the Oatmeal Raisin cookie, as well as kid-pleasing Marshmallow Clouds and many others.

In the meantime, try this recipe:

Cream together
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar

Add
2 eggs
1 tsp. real vanilla extract

Mix together
2 cups all-purpose flour
2½ cups oatmeal (blended into a fine powder)
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda

Mix all ingredients well, then add one 24-ounce bag of milk chocolate chips and 1½ cups chopped walnuts (or pecans). Drop 1" balls on ungreased cookie sheets, two inches apart, and bake at 375° for 6-8 minutes. Makes approximately 60 cookies.

Tips for success with the Mrs. Fields cookie recipe:

*Always use real butter, not margarine. It DOES make a difference.

*Use melted butter instead of room-temperature softened butter, which improves both the consistency of the dough and the texture of the baked cookies.

*Double the amount of vanilla specified in the recipe. (Real vanilla extract, not "vanillin," which is a cheaper substitute that doesn't taste nearly as good as the genuine article)

*Add a tablespoon or two of milk when mixing the dough. The cookies will come out softer and less crunchy.

Mrs. Fields Company History

Yes, Virginia, there really is a Mrs. Fields. Unlike fictional company "characters" such as Betty Crocker and Aunt Jemima, the Mrs. Fields cookie empire was actually built by a real person. When Debbi Fields opened her first store in Palo Alto, California in 1977, she was a young mom who had no business experience, but she did have a crazy-big dream and headstrong determination to succeed.

That dream turned Mrs. Fields into a worldwide celebrity and created a company that is now a premier chain of cookie and baked goods stores, with 390 locations in the U.S. and another 80 internationally. And the Mrs. Fields cookie recipe is the most talked about, clamored-for recipe in towns from coast to coast, and sea to sea.

Happy baking!