I've been on a mission to perfect pareve chocolate chip cookies for years. You know the struggle if you keep kosher and want to serve dessert after a meat meal. Most pareve cookies taste like sad cardboard versions of the real thing. They're either too dry, too sweet, or they have that telltale artificial flavor that screams "dairy substitute." The breakthrough came when I stopped trying to replace butter one-to-one with margarine. Instead, I combine coconut oil with a touch of neutral vegetable oil. The coconut oil gives you that rich mouthfeel we associate with butter, while the vegetable oil keeps the texture soft. I use refined coconut oil so you don't taste the coconut. The key is using the coconut oil at room temperature, not melted. This creates the perfect creaming base with the sugars. Brown sugar is your best friend here. I use more brown sugar than white because it adds moisture and that deep, caramel-like flavor that makes cookies taste expensive. A tablespoon of vanilla extract (not just a teaspoon) and a pinch of sea salt on top of each cookie before baking really push these over the edge. Don't skip the salt, it makes all the flavors pop. These cookies are perfect for Shabbat dessert, holiday cookie platters, or anytime you want to serve something sweet after a meat meal. They freeze beautifully too. I always make a double batch and freeze half the dough balls. Then I can bake fresh cookies whenever company drops by.