Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love cookies. Who doesn't? There is just something special about the ooey-gooey deliciousness that comes with a good chocolate chip cookie. The key to a good chocolate chip cookie, like most desserts, is salt. Salt has a wonderful, magical ability to bring out the flavor of almost anything, even sweet things. Chocolate paired with sea salt creates such a magical combination that will never go back to under-seasoned cookies. Enjoy your baking!

First, we are going to brown the butter, which gives it a nice smokey and nutty taste. Simply cook the butter over medium heat for 5-8 minutes. It will melt, start to foam, and then start to brown. Do not let it burn, take it off the heat as soon as it reaches a nice caramel color. Transfer it to a bowl and let it cool for 10 minutes.
Whisk flour, baking soda, and sea salt in a medium bowl.
To the browned butter, add brown sugar and white sugar. Beat with an electric mixer for about a minute until the sugar is fully dissolved. Add eggs, vanilla, and almond, and mix until everything is incorporated and the color lightens. Should be about 3 minutes.
Add in dry ingredients and mix on low just to combine. Chop wafers into smaller, irregular pieces and add to batter. Fold in chocolate with a spoon or spatula. Let dough rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before continuing.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. On a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper, place goofball-sized balls of dough about 2 inches apart from each other.
Bake cookies for 6 minutes. At this point, they will be spread out a bit more, so you have more surface area to season. Sprinkle each cookie generously with flakey salt. Out cookies back in the oven for about 6 minutes, or until the edges start to brown. Do not overbake, they should be gooey right when they come out.
Let cookies rest for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then let them cool on a wire rack.

Note: Dough can be made up to 4 days in advance.