Not what I expected but still great

Nuevo Chocolate Chip Cookies
The Sweeter Side of Amy’s Bread Copyright 2008

2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 large egg
Yolk of l large egg
1 ¼ teaspoons vanilla
¾ cup softened unsalted butter I used salted butter
2/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon molasses
1 1/8 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Position one rack in the top third of the oven, one rack in the bottom third of the oven, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the cookie sheets with baking parchment.
2. In a bowl, add the flour, baking soda, salt and ginger and whisk together. In a separate bowl, add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and whisk together.
3. In another bowl, using an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter, the sugar and molasses on medium speed for 2 minutes or until light and fluffy, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl frequently. Gradually add the egg mixture until everything is well-combined.
4. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in stages. Mix only until everything is just combined, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl frequently. Add the chocolate chips and continue mixing at a low speed until the are evenly distributed (or fold in manually if you’re not using a mixer with a paddle attachment). Fold in nuts if using.
5. Scoop out big balls of dough placing 6 balls on each prepared cookie sheet, Each ball of dough should weigh approx. 3 ounces (about ½ cup). Do not flatten the dough balls. Bake cookies about 18 minutes, rotating the cookie sheets halfway through the baking time. They will spread a lot (A LOT!) and be golden brown and just set when down.
6. Cool the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to a rack to cook completely before storing.
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These cookies didn't turn out like I expected them to and I'm not sure why. I'm 99% positive that I didn't mess up the ingredients. The only change I made was using salted butter instead of unsalted. That shouldn't have affected the structure of the cookie.

They looked fine when I rotated the cookie sheets but when they were done they had all run into each other and they were thinner and more chewy looking than the picture in the cookbook and other pictures I've seen of these cookies from Amy's Bread. I never actually had a cookie from Amy's bread in my hand but I expected these to be thicker, not as chewy.

The only possible issue was my oven which is old and might not be regulating the temperature properly anymore.

Anyway, they were actually pretty great. They were very chewy and had a great caramel flavor. I even liked them better the older they got. I really liked what that bit of molasses added to this cookie but I'm sure that the ginger did much of anything.

It's still not what I was looking for in a 'big' chocolate chip cookie. Does anyone remember those Springwater Cookies they used to sell for fundraisers in the 80s? That's what I want.

Question of the Day: What kind of food products were sold for fundraisers in your school? Gertrude Hawk peanut butter eggs (3 to a pack) were the biggest sellers in our school. Big candy bars were sold too. When I was younger, my sister sold Krispy Kreme donuts for a fundraiser and they came warm and it was one of the best food experiences of my life (that was way before the big Krispy Kreme explosion of a few years ago).