5 Upgrades to Create the Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Ever

Chocolate chip cookies are pretty much perfection (some purists even balk at the notion of adding walnuts). Truth is, though, the classic American milk-dunker is a wonderful base recipe for all sorts of riffs. Kathleen King, founder and owner of Tate's Bake Shop in Southampton, NY, has been baking for more than 30 years and is still coming up with new versions. Her latest: the Frankenstein, which was born out of a tray of botched blondies. The bars were underbaked, so she broke up the dough and mixed it with cookie batter, along with coconut and cranberries. Another combo King stumbled upon that's now a cult classic: semisweet chocolate chips, raisins and toasted walnuts (use a cup of each).