Chocolate Chunk Cookies — These chocolate chunk cookies are made with both chocolate chunks AND chips. These are hands down the BEST chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made!
Easy Chocolate Chunk Cookies
I’ve been on the quest to find the perfect end-all be-all chocolate chip cookie recipe. And this recipe is as close as I’ve come.
The process of making the dough follows standard cookie-dough making protocol. Beat softened butter and cream it with both brown and granulated sugars. There is a higher ratio of brown sugar to granulated, which helps cookies in general stay softer and gives them a richer flavor profile since brown sugar has more depth of flavor than granulated sugar does.
Ironically, cookies made with more brown than granulated sugar become softer over time as they absorb atmospheric moisture, rather than drying out.
Where this chocolate chunk cookie recipe veers way off the path compared to any other cookie recipe I’ve ever tried is that it uses cornstarch, and just two mere teaspoons, but enough to work its softening magic. Cornstarch is not only a softening agent, but it’s also a thickening agent. Just as it thickens gravy or soup, it helps to create thick and puffy cookies.
There’s a wide variety of knockoff recipes for the Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies floating around that call for cornstarch, but I’ve never tried them and after making these, I don’t feel compelled to try.
These chunky chocolate chip cookies are so soft, similar to Keebler Soft-Batch Cookies, minus the store-bought taste. And they bake up with the perfect height; not too thick or overly domed and not too thin like flat pancakes.
I was going to make the cookies exclusively using semi-sweet chocolate chips, but I enjoy having a variety of textures and flavors in my cookies, especially when those textures and flavors are of the chocolate variety. I opted to use both semi-sweet chocolate chips and bittersweet chocolate chunks, courtesy of a Trader Joe’s 72% Pound Plus bar.
I realized when I made the New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies that incorporating over an ounce of chocolate per cookie not only works in theory and that the dough can hold it all, but that the results taste fabulous. So I went ahead and stuffed these cookies to the max with both chocolate chips and chocolate chunks. As the cookies bake, the chips retain their shape more than the chunks, which turn into oozing luxurious puddles.
If you’re looking for an easy, straightforward, chocolate chunk cookie recipe that yields fantastic results, I encourage you to give this one a try. These cookies are as close to my definition of The Perfect Cookie as I’ve come and here are the highlights why I love the recipe:
- No two-day waiting period between making the dough and baking the cookies — and dough chilling is optional.
- No egg plus yolk situation to contend with so nothing is wasted.
- The overall batch size is manageable, about two dozen.
- Each cookie is decent-sized, but not ginormous.
- The cookies get softer, not harder or drier, the next day and continue to stay soft for up to a week.
- The holy grail of cookie qualities are present — thick, puffy, soft, and chewy.
And let’s not forget, there are two kinds of chocolate in every bite. The more the merrier.
What’s in Chocolate Chunk Cookies?
To make this chocolate chunk cookie recipe, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Bread flour
- Cornstarch
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Bittersweet chocolate
How to Make Chocolate Chunk Cookies
To make these chunky chocolate chip cookies, first cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add in the egg and vanilla, then stir in the dry ingredients. Add the chocolate chunks and chips last, then scoop the dough into balls.
Refrigerate the cookie dough balls before baking them. These chocolate chunk cookies will need to bake until barely golden brown around the edges, even if slightly undercooked in the center.
Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing and transferring to a rack to finish cooling.
Do I Have to Use Bread Flour?
I used two types of flour in these chocolate chunk cookies, both bread and all-purpose flour. The original recipe just calls for all-purpose but because bread flour adds extra chewiness and since my dream cookie is one with a high degree of chewiness, I utilized a combination of bread flour and all-purpose.
If you don’t have bread flour, soley using all-purpose is fine. Your cookies may not be quite as chewy nor as thick, since bread flour also lends increased structure to baked goods, but they’ll still be plenty good.
Can I Add Other Mix-Ins?
Yes, if you don’t keep chocolate chunks on hand, just use chocolate chips. And feel free to add nuts, white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, diced candy bar pieces, or whatever you enjoy.
Can I Freeze Cookie Dough?
Unbaked cookie dough may be refrigerated for up to 5 days prior to baking it, or frozen for up to 3 months
Tips for Making Chocolate Chunk Cookies
I used about 2.25 ounces dough per cookie. I weighed each mound of dough, but if you don’t have a scale or don’t want to be bothered, that translates to two heaping tablespoons of dough, and with the chocolate pieces dangling off, possibly 3 tablespoons, still smaller than the New York Times cookies. I learned when I made those cookies that a larger mass of dough allows the cookie center to remain soft and tender since it never gets the chance to dry out or overbake while the edges crisp up.
I chilled the dough before baking it and always advocate doing so because as dough chills, the flavors marry and cold dough spreads less during baking, resulting in puffier and thicker cookies.
I recommend baking 8 to 9 minutes, and not more than 10 minutes, period. I found given the size of my dough mounds, my oven, and my taste preferences, 9 minutes is the magic number for me. Even though the centers will seem underdone at eight or nine minutes, as the cookies cool out of the oven, they firm up.
If you wait to pull the cookies until they look done, as they cool they will set up far too firm and crumbly and won’t stay soft and chewy. Don’t overbake.
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Chocolate Chip and Chunk Cookies
These chocolate chunk cookies are made with both chocolate chunks AND chips. These are hands down the BEST chocolate chip cookies I've ever made!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed (I use light)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup bread flour or all-purpose flour* (See Notes)
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, optional and to taste
- 6 ounces (1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 6 ounces bittersweet or dark baking chocolate, chopped into bite-sized chunks (I use Trader Joe’s 72% Pound Plus bar)
Instructions
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on low speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the sugars and beat on medium-high speed until creamed and well combined, about 3 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flours, corn starch, baking soda, salt, and mix until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Add the chocolate chips and chunks, and either fold in by hand or beat for a few seconds on low speed.
- Using a 2-ounce cookie scoop, form heaping mounds weighing 2 1/4-ounces each (weighed on a scale, which is approximately a scant 1/4-cup measure. Dough mounds will look large for their weight because there’s lots of chocolate pieces adding bulk).
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plasticwrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 5 days.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat Non-Stick Baking Mat, parchment, or spray with cooking spray. Place dough mounds on the baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart; I bake 8 cookies per sheet.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges, even if slightly undercooked in the center, noting the tops will not be browned and will be pale. Do not cook longer than ten minutes as cookies will darken and firm up as they cool (The cookies shown in the photos were baked for 8 minutes, rotated once midway through baking, and have chewy edges with soft pillowy centers).
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing and transferring to a rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- *Edited to add May 2013 – I prefer these cookies using exclusively all-purpose flour and have stopped baking them with a combination of all-purpose and bread flour. I am leaving the recipe up as I wrote it back in 2012, but note that I prefer all-purpose because the cookies are softer, more tender, and more moist.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
24Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 173Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 9mgSodium: 107mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 2gSugar: 13gProtein: 3g
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes:
You can check out all of my chocolate chip cookie recipes HERE.
Softbatch Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies — These soft batch cookies are made with a combination of butter and cream cheese, which makes them extra rich and delicious!
New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies (from Jacques Torres) — I learned many valuable lessons when making these cookies, from loving bread flour in cookies to detesting cake flour in them; to baking cookies bigger to stuffing in extra chocolate. The cookies are very good, and I loved them on the first day, and I wrote extensively about my thoughts overall on them.
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies — Based on principles from the Cooks Illustrated Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip, but I also added peanut butter and oatmeal, creating a soft and moist cookie, with plenty of chewy texture.
Molasses Triple Chocolate Cookies — I used chocolate three ways in these soft, chewy, moist and tender molasses cookies. All that chocolate pairs perfectly with robustly-flavored molasses and the intensity of spices used, making these a new holiday favorite
Mrs. Field’s Chocolate Chip Cookies (Copycat) — If you’ve always wanted to recreate Mrs. Fields cookies at home, this recipe works beautifully and will save you a trip to the mall.
Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies — These cookies are soft, moist, and oh-so chewy. They taste like banana bread and chocolate chip cookies rolled into one dessert!
These are delicious and are my absolute go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. I do cut the chocolate down and they’re still filled with chocolatey goodness!
Thanks for the 5 star review and that’s great that these are your absolute go to CCC recipe!
These are chilling in the fridge. You might make an asterisk next to the bread flour as it wasn’t until after I had made the dough that I read your preference comment. No biggie, looking forward to them!
Thanks for mentioning it, and I just updated the recipe a bit. It’s from 2012 so nearly a decade now, and trends and habits change over the years. I did update it in 2013 but again just noted it.
Hope the cookies are great!
This is by far the BEST chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve found after trying a dozen or more recipes from Food Network to Cook’s. I’ve been using this as my standby CC cookie recipe and the whole family loves it!!Thanks, Averie!! You are a pro-baker!!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I am thrilled to hear these are the BEST chocolate chip cookies you’ve tried, after trying what sounds like the “who’s who” of choc chip cookies from FN to Cooks Country, etc. Thank you for the lovely compliments!! :)
I just made tham earlier and I LOVE THEM! I shouldve used darker brown sugar (I used the medium brown ones) cause they turned out too pals, but using semi-sweet choco chips and dark chocolate chunks, just perfect! I also chilled the dough for almost 3 hours, so they didnt flatten down. I think the cornstarch really makes it soft and chewy, and making the cookies remain in the pan for 5 minutes really help in sort of hardening them a bit cause I tried to remove the first batch immediately after 9 mins, and theyre too soft :))Im gonna try doing your other recipes, Im so glad I came upon your website <3I also tried your smores one and theyre also my favorite!Im excited to try the other recipes!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad you love them! I agree about the corn starch and letting them rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes, too. Thanks for trying this as well as other recipes in the future!
Delicious! Absolutely the best chocolate chip cookie recipe. I used the bread flour variation and did not bother with refrigerating the dough. They were perfect. Maybe my oven is not exactly like yours, because I had to increase the temperature to 355 degrees and bake for 9 to 10 minutes. I have tried many different recipes over the years, but this one is the best. Thank you.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad you think these are absolutely the best chocolate chip cookies! All ovens vary, actually they can vary a ton, so I wouldn’t worry too much about baking time if it differs by a minute or two. Plus, everyone’s exact size of mound of dough can differ, the pan itself, etc. Glad they’re the best for you!
So it’s basically 2 cups all purpose flour if eliminating the bread flour??
Yes correct 2 cups of AP flour.
I made these cookies for a friends birthday and was very impressed. They turned out soft, gooey, and just perfect! I also really liked the chocolate chunks in them. I didn’t put the first batch in the refrigerator, but I did for the second batch and I didn’t notice a difference in size or taste, so I was wondering if it was even necessary to chill them first.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad they were a hit! For me personally and for many other, if I don’t chill my dough the cookies turn out flatter and thinner so it’s necessary. Maybe in your climate or situation it’s not.
best cookies ever! my go to chocolate chip cookie recipe
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad these are the best ever for you and your go to recipe!
Could I double the recipe?
yes
Hi. I want to know if I could add cocoa powder to make it a double chocolate chip cookie. ? Would that mess with the recipe. If not. How much would you recommend adding. Thanks. I making these for a party.
I would just make these https://www.averiecooks.com/quadruple-chocolate-soft-fudgy-pudding-cookies/ or https://www.averiecooks.com/softbatch-cream-cheese-chocolate-chocolate-chip-cookies/
Hi!!!
If I decided to fridge the cookie dough balls over night do I need to leave them at room temp a bit before going in the oven?!!!
Very excited to try :)
No, straight to oven after the fridge.
These are the best! Our new go-to cookie recipe 🤗. I am curious how well the dough can be used to make a cookie cake. Any suggestions on adaptations in order to achieve even baking?
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad this is your new go to! For cookie cakes, google ‘averie cooks cookie pie’ and lots of options will pop up.
These are my holy grail, go-to cookie! I’ve made them many times for friends and coworkers, and always get complements. Just a couple very minor tweaks:I’ve never been able to get them to fully bake in the recommended time, in fact I usually double it – today’s batch took 20 minutes, but are perhaps a bit overcooked. I have a light-coloured cookie pan, which I think makes the difference.I also took the interior salt down to just a pinch, and top with finishing sea salt when they’re fresh from the oven. This step isn’t necessary, they are still rockin’ without.Perfect!!!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad these are your holy grail go-to cookies! I love sea salt on top of cookies too. Makes them taste even better!
I have also been on a search for the perfect cookie recipe, but my very favorite uses equal parts butter and oil. I use it as the base for most of the cookies I make. The combo of butter and oil makes them crunchy on the outside but soft in the middle, in case you’d like to try it. But I am interested in trying my recipe with the addition of cornstarch. I have never heard of cornstarch in a chocolate chip cookie, What does the cornstarch do and how does it improve the cookie?
Makes them softer and they stay soft for days.
I made these cookies today and they came out great.
I used all purpose flour. I used 1/2 semi sweet chocolate chips and 1/2 milk chocolate chips. I used a number 40. Scoop and refrigerated the scoops for two hours. The cookies baked approximately 11 minutes. I was very pleased with this recipe.
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
My cookies came out very flat. They were delicious, but they did not retain the thick and puffy. I followed the recipe exactly. The only thing I may have done is beat the butter&sugars longer than 3 minutes. Would that matter and make the dough a problem. When the dough was done, it was silky soft, and was not really too dough-like. Where did I go wrong ?
I would say if the dough was silky soft and not really dough-like that you needed more flour. Maybe another 2-4 tbsp would have done the trick and that would tighten up the dough and they would have spread less. I also recommend King Arthur brand flour for baking because it has more gluten than other brands, which helps cookies stay thicker.
Honestly the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made. Everyone loves them and they are perfect every time.
I’m glad that you think that they’re best and that everyone loves them!
Hey! Thank you for the wonderful recipe! We have to eat gluten free, dairy free, coconut free and soy free, so needless to say I make a few substitutions, but in the end they taste far better than most allergy friendly recipes. I’m so thrilled to have found such a great well thought out detailed recipe. Thank you again!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you -despite the substitutions!
The only walnuts available near me are raw walnuts. Should raw walnuts be roasted before they’re added to cookies?
Will try the cream cheese choco chip cookies and fudgy chocolate pudding cookies next! I’m so glad I came across your website. I tried making the NYT cookies before, and yours are far more delicious and easier to make. Thanks so much for sharing these recipes! :)
You can toast if you want, or not. Whatever you think you’ll enjoy more.
Thanks so much for this recipe! I’ve made these cookies twice, and they turned out great both times. Everyone who tried the cookies told me I should sell them! I just have a couple of questions about adding nuts. Would 1/2 cup of walnuts be enough? Do I have to peel the walnuts, and do I have to roast them before adding them?
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it’s a favorite! I think 1/2 cup, maybe a bit more, would be fine and I have never peeled walnuts, not the kind I buy at least. They just come diced up in a pouch.
I just finished making these cookies and OMG are they delicious!! I actually decided to use the bread flour n they still turned out super soft on the inside. Each one was about 2T. but I cooked them for 14 minutes. I like mine crispy from the outside. I think this is the best chocolate chip cookie I’ve made!! Thanks for this great recipe!!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! Glad it’s the best CCC you’ve made!
My son and I made these last night and they are the perfect chocolate chip cookie! We had to substitute a 1/4 c of butter with coconut oil and I’m glad, it just gives them a little something I just can’t put my finger on, but it’s good. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!
I also have all coconut oil cookies, no butter https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/03/the-best-soft-and-chewy-coconut-oil-chocolate-chip-cookies.html And there are links in that post to a few other coconut oil cookies or just google ‘coconut oil cookies averie cooks’ and a bunch will pop up!
hi had a question….if you want to half this recipe… what would you do concerning the egg?
You could crack the egg in a bowl, whisk it together, and then use half of that amount in the cookies.
Hi. I just made a double batch for my daughter’s class and they’re delicious. I do have leftover dough balls that I plan on freezing. Can you tell me how long do you bake them from frozen, or do you have to defrost them first. Thank you for your recipe!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! When I freeze dough, I just bake straight from the freezer without thawing and just add an extra minute or two, that’s about all it takes usually.
Hey Averie, can I ask if cornstarch and corn flour is the same thing? I can’t seem to find corn starch where I am. Any substitutes if they aren’t the same? Thanks!
No they’re not the same thing. Corn starch is usually kept in the baking aisle by the other flours, baking sodas and powders, etc. It’s usually pretty easy to find at most any grocery store. I would check another store but I think you should be able to find it. Enjoy the cookies!
I have no idea how these make 2 dozen! They made 15 and I used exact I friends and a scale for measuring each cookie. They also took 14-15 min to cook. Maybe the original recipe was based on smaller cookies. Delicious but this part was very confusing to me
If you’re yielding less cookies than me, and you’re baking longer, those are two big clues that yours are bigger than mine. As long as they’re delicious, I don’t think the yield matters that much :)
Can you mail these cookies? I am looking for a soft choco chip recipe to send to my grand son in college.
I would send them overnight or 2-day at the most since most cookies taste best when they’re extremely fresh and right out of the oven.
i need to know how many people like your chocolate chip cookies for a school project
How long can you keep this cookie dough in the freezer?
Hi! :) Tried these cookies, and they are HEAVENLY ;) Thank you for the recipe!
I have a rookie question though. If I plan to halve the cookie dough mounds (instead of 1/4 cup, I’ll make 1/8 cup cookies), how long should I bake it in the oven for? Around 6-7 minutes only?
Thank you!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! I would say start watching closely at 7 minutes and go from there as needed.
I must say these cookies and every cookie recipe i’ve tried from Avery’s is truly the best. i highly recommend this site.
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you and for your kind praise!
I made these today and they are out of this world! I can hardly wait for the hubs to get home…he is sooooo gonna love me! (and you :).
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! Nice surprise for your hubby on a Friday night after work!
Thank goodness a cookie that does not spread out and become thin. They are beautiful and chewy cookies. Tasted warm so not sure how they are cold. I am not a chocolate chip person but my husband is. I did try a couple bites though. I am so pleased with them. I can’t tell you how many I have tried and wasn’t happy with at all. THANK YOU!!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out wonderfully and that you’re so pleased and that my recipe did the trick for you!
my oven can only bake up to 270, so what do you think I should do?
270F or 270C? This is a recipe for 350F and you’d want to stick with that in order for the cookies to turn out properly.
These cookies are awesome and are now my go to cookie recipe. I’ve tried the chocolate chip and the M&Ms, both were a big hit with my family. I’m looking forward to trying the other variations. Thank you!
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out so great for you that they’re your new go-to cookie recipe! And thanks for trying the M&Ms cookies, too!
Hi Averie,
Is this still your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe? (I’m trying to decide which one to try next, and I’m thinking it will be this one!)
Thanks!
By the way, I’m obsessed with the Six Layer Cookie S’mores Bars from your book. I’ve made them about four times and everyone loves them!
Love that you’ve made the 6 Layer Smores Bars so many times! Funny when my book came out, that recipe is what many of my blogger friends made and blogged about!
https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/02/the-best-soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies.html I love those as well as these. And these https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/06/softbatch-cream-cheese-chocolate-chip-cookies.html You can’t go wrong with any of the 3!
I was wondering if I HAVE to refrigerate the cookies before I bake them?
Please read this post on why I highly recommend chilling dough! https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/02/the-best-soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
Cookies look amazing! I want to make them for my sister she just got a new job. I have a question though. I know you changed the recipe to not use bread flour anymore and I wanted to know if instead you are using 2 cups of all purpose flour?
Thank you.
Yes.
Hi Averi is it possible to get this recipe in grams ? the butter, sugars , flour and also the chocolate …. TIA
There are online conversion tools you can use to plug the data in yourself in minutes. Enjoy the cookies!
I was wondering if I can leave out the corn starch?
I think I addressed this in the post about what kind of cookie you’d end up with if you left it out. But yes you can leave it out, you just won’t get THESE cookies that will look and taste like the ones shown here.
Do I need to sifted first before adding into batter?
No.
I have made these cookies several times and my family loves them. They are perfect. Thanks so much for sharing, I am so glad I stumbled on to your site!
Thanks for trying the cookies many times and glad you and your family love them!
Hi, Averie! I’ve been lurking on your site for quite some time and after baking these cookies for ummm.. the 5th or 6th time… I really felt the need to thank you for this recipe. a BIG BIG THANK YOU because every time I make them, they come out perfect, soft and chewy but not overly so. I have actually stopped buying chocolate chip cookies from the stores because of your recipe :) Now off to try your other recipes! :)
Thanks for trying the recipe so many times and glad you love them to the point you don’t need to buy storebought cookies anymore…that’s great! Hope you enjoy my other cookie recipes, too. LMK what you try!
Hi Averie! I’ve made your cookies twice in the last two months, they are just the most perfect chocolate chip cookie! I have a perhaps, rookie, question. I’m going to my sisters house for the holidays and we want to bake these together, except she does not have a stand up mixer– is it okay to use just a plain old electric hand mixer? Would rather not travel with my enormous Kitchen Aid mixer, but if need be I will!
Also, is it possible to make these smaller in order to yield more cookies? And if so, should I change the baking temp?
Thank you, thank you for this amazing recipe and all your other delicious recipes.
Happy holidays!
-Erika
is it okay to use just a plain old electric hand mixer? = I always use my KitchenAid stand mixer and it’s probably fine to use a handheld electric but your results may not be exactly the same.
Also, is it possible to make these smaller in order to yield more cookies? And if so, should I change the baking temp? = Yes, no. Just reduce the time, not the temp.
Glad you love these cookies and hope you and your sister have fun baking together!
I’ve followed most of the details on this recipe but it didn’t turn out as what I was looking for:( Have used both all purpose flour and bread flour for the cookies, also added some chocolate drinking powder to replace some of the sugar to make the cookies more chocolaty. But turned out the cookies didn’t spread and flatten, instead remained in the mini dome shape… Could you help on this?
You possibly over-floured them a bit and/or given your baking conditions, oven, etc now you know to just flatten them much more before baking. Baking is trial and error to get things just right sometimes so just play around with the shape of the dough mound.
And I just re-read what you wrote…adding the chocolate drinking powder is what did them in!! That behaves like flour, makes the dough more stiff, and that’s why they didn’t flatten. Follow the recipe exactly as I wrote it and you will be fine.
Disappointing, but since my husband would have to eat all I had made ahead, I was desperate so I placed several in a slightly damp towel for a couple of hours. Worked like a charm. Saved the day!
Wow! Wonderful, chewy cookie. However, I made several batches in advance of the holidays. In order to keep them for two weeks, I put them in a zip lock bag in the fridge. Couldn’t resist temptation to “steal” one – and, ouch! It was brittle. Is there a way to get them back to the “chewy” state?
Storing cookies for 2 weeks in the fridge definitely will kill them and there’s really nothing you can do. You could have FROZEN them and they probably would have fared better, but just in the fridge, nope. It dries cookies out, even if in Ziplocks, so lesson learned. Sorry about that!
Ok, so it’s 2014 but I just discovered this recipe and it read so invitingly that I couldn’t wai to try. I followed it to the letter, both with ingredients and cooking time and was terribly disappointed. They were very dry (after 7 minutes at 340 degrees fan forced oven) and had very little flavour (yes, I write from Australia). The pictures looked so enticing, pity about the end result.
340 fan forced oven sounds like what Americans would call a convection oven. These were baked in a regular, non-convection oven. I think that’s what happened! Therefore in your oven you either need to reduce the temp and/or reduce the baking time. Try again because these are amazing cookies or if you’d like, I have another recipe called ‘The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies’ – search my site or just google (sorry replying from phone and too hard to get you a link) – those cookies may work better for you too.
I just came across your recipe (not sure I will find it again) and fell in love with your chocolate chip cookie recipe. Tried to run off a copy of it but could not do so. Do you have your recipes blocked? All I could get was a bunch of blank pages and then the conversations at the end of the page. You have some lovely looking cookies at the end of the page.
Hmmmm, no I don’t have anything blocked. Did you click on the PRINT button, the small circular button in the R-hand corner of the recipe section? That pulls up a new window where you can easily print. Or, you can just copy/paste the recipe into an email and send it to yourself. Enjoy!
I use a recipte by Martha Stewart and I love it but I’m definately going to try this one too.
My secrets for great cookies are simple:
EVERYTHING at room tempearture. Cold butter does NOT work and do NOT microwave it or try to melt it. The cookie will spread and be very greasy (or so I have found out the hard way). And I always use room temperature eggs.
Parchment paper. You can have the crappiest cookie sheets in the world (mine look like they’ve been through a war) but parchment paper will save them. BJs sells large rolls and I could swear they were a $1 a roll (Reynolds and don’t quote me on that price) – go to the Reynolds website for a $1 coupon.
Chilling the dough before you bake – makes a world of difference.
Use light brown sugar – dark brown has too much molasses, doesn’t bake the same as light brown.
Use fresh ingredients – yes an obvious no-brainer.
I will never go back to any other chocolate chip cookie recipe. Every step in the preparation process felt -right-, like there was a reason to do it just that way and the results more than pay for the extra TLC. Definitely will make again… and again…. and again…
Glad that this recipe is a keeper and that you’ll never cheat on it! And I love hearing that every step in the prep just felt right…love hearing those kinds of details and glad you’re thrilled with the results!
I might add, commendations on ‘milking’ out so much commentary on a single, simple cookie. Who knew one could say so much!
I’m not sure I see much difference from the longstanding basic choc chip recipes I have except for the cornstarch, which I have used for years in various other recipes. (try it as the coating on chicken wings sans flour).
Not much is really new these days, if one researches some of the older recipes which are available online. Even some of the choc chip cookie bar recipes I see are reruns of Borden’s recipes from way back when. I still have the books
Maybe coating and deep frying the cookies like a fair food would reinvent this cookie significantly…lol.
My Aunt Mary made the best Cholate Chip Cookies ever. They were NOT SOFT they were chrispie.
Hi Averie! I have a question have you heard of using mayonnaise in the recipe? I had a dear friend that used it and the cookies were really great. Unfortunately she passed away before she gave me her recipe. They were so soft & chewy, really incredible. Just wondering if you have heard of this.
Your recipes are really great, everybody who is lucky to enough to eat one (my husband LOVES your double chocolate chip cookies & would eat all the of them!) just rave on them! Keep up the great work! You have a fan for life!!
Thanks for all the praise and compliments! Yes, I have heard of people putting mayo in cookies. Sour cream (or mayo) is great in cakes and muffins but I have never put mayo in cookies. However, I have put cream cheese in cookies and it’s wonderful! Maybe try these and see how they compared to your friend’s cookies. https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/06/softbatch-cream-cheese-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
I made these Best Choco chip cookies and the cornstarch made the cookie look so beautiful. I thought they tasted good and I started bragging to everyone how I had found this recipe online, this girl was a genius. But the next day the cookie had no flavor. I used good products, not house brands or generic. I thought maybe it was just me, so I made them again, again the next day the family was unhappy with the taste. I might try my regular recipe but add a little cornstarch. I will admit I did not over load them with chocolate chips as my family doesn’t like them oozing with chocolate. Maybe that is the problem. But that cornstarch, wow, makes a professional looking cookie. Thank you for all the recipes you share.
Maybe add an extra pinch of salt if you think the cookies are lacking in flavor and also make sure to use the recommended amount of chocolate like I wrote in the recipe. I think that is key here! Try the recipe at least once as I wrote it, and with a bit more salt as I think that you may like that given what you wrote.
These are absolutely the best cookies you will ever eat.
Thanks for saying that! :)
Not even close to these.
http://www.cookiesbyjennifer.com
I have found that the easiest way to shape these cookies is to make a 2.5-3 inch log with the dough and wrap it tightly in saran wrap before freezing. Then simply cut the log into evenly sized cookies right before baking. I made and frozen tons of these logs (in various flavors) and pull one out and bake when I crave chocolate or have company over. Thanks for the recipe!
I was wondering if you think these could be made in a jar, to give as a gift? If you put the sugar on top and had the person cream the butter and scoop out the sugar to add, do you think they would work? These cookies are so good!
Probably not the best because they’d have to cream together the egg/butter with the sugars, then still add vanilla. Then still add the dry ingredients, chips, etc. Just make them a batch of dough and tell them to put it in their freezer and bake off a few balls as necessary – frozen dough will last easily 4 mos in the freezer!
I made these for the first time tonight. Everything was going great until I added the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt. I barely mixed for 30 seconds in my stand mixer before the dough got a bit stiff and kinda dry. Folding in the chocolate chips was extremely difficult. I assume it shouldn’t have been like that.
I measured the mounds to 2 1/4 oz but when I baked them they hardly spread. I’m pretty sure this is cause of the texture of the dough. They still tasted great, but after baking for 10 1/2 mins and letting cool for 5 mins they still seemed slightly underbaked.
I want to try this again…do you have any suggestions or thoughts where I went wrong?
I think you over-floured the dough which would cause it to 1. be dry and 2. be stiff and not spread much while baking. When measuring flour, use a very light hand and don’t pack down the flour, at all. Scoop it into the measuring cup using a spoon. And if anything, use a tablespoon or two less since you’ve had this happen. I think next time with less flour you’ll be in great shape.
And with baking, you have to go by YOUR OVEN and your climate and your dough; baking times are guidelines for what worked for me (same with any cookbook, it’s not set in stone) so just bake until they seem done enough to your liking!
I’ve just made these cookies. So buttery delicious I’m using an enormous amount of willpower to not eat a whole tray of them. Although I made each cookie a “scant 1/4 cup” as the recipe directed, I ended up with only 16 cookies, instead of the 22-24 the recipe states. And I had to bake them for nearly 14 minutes, but they came out ooey gooey, just like the recipe said they should, not hard or dry. I’m assuming the extra bake time was due to the larger size. I’m planning to make another batch to give away. I thought about making them smaller, but I really like the larger size, just like you suggest for this recipe but with the pudding mix. Thank you so much! This is the first time I’ve made chocolate chip cookies that didn’t flatten out.
Glad they came out perfectly for you and that this is the first time you’ve made chocolate chip cookies that didn’t flatten out! I think you may have made yours slightly larger than I made mine, hence the smaller yield and reduced baking tine (and in the years since I wrote this post, I would say my batch size would be more like 16 than 20+ because bigger is just faster and easier!) :)
Hi Averie! Just wanna thank you for answering my qns WRT the soft batch cream cheese choco chip cookies. Will definitely try again so that I can get the perfect cookie!
I would like to share with you that I baked the chocolate chip and chunk cookie today (minus the chunk, but added extra choco chip instead), followed the recipe and directions diligently and it turned out amazing! I love love it!! I received good feedbacks from my family and friends! However some of em preferred it if it was just a tiny bit harder. What would you recommend me to do? :)
Glad they turned out amazing and you loved them. For harder cookies (ick!! not what I like!) but if that’s the result you’re going for, just bake 1-2 minutes longer.
thank you..this is a very good recipe, but the dough seems little crumbly with one large egg. i dont want to waste an egg with just adding egg yolk. when making a large batch. i would waste a lot of eggs to use only the egg yolk,,is it okay to add 1.5 whole egg?
This dough was never crumbly for me…did you possibly over-measure your flour, or pack it into the cup, rather than lightly laying it in? If so, you may have over-floured the dough which is why it seems crumbly. At this point adding eggs or slightly more butter, after you’ve already added the flour, may or may not work, but you can try whatever you think is best.
Thank you Averie. for kindly answering my question. i used high protein flour. The dough turns out good but, the cookies look like they dont have enough structure ( easy to break) , thats why i thought adding yolk. some recipes like atk test kitchen use extra egg yolk. but this is just wasting the extra egg too:) yours is is the optimal recipe.
High protein flour is much ‘drier’ than all-purpose flour or bread flour, which is why your dough was likely crumbly. If you make the recipe as I wrote it using the ingredients I called for, you won’t have to worry about the extra egg situation.
Thank you. Ok now i got it.//
I have to agree – very crumbly! I’ve never seen cookie dough like this. Did everything right, with ingredients & mixing time as directed. I didn’t add any more moisture, but with some work I was able to smush it together into balls. Hopefully they hold together in baking. The dough is also less sweet than I’m used to (and I usually cut the sugar by 1/3 but didn’t here). Interesting recipe. I’m eager for them to finish chilling so I can bake them. From the reviews I am expecting greatness! I will also be making your sugar doodle vanilla cookies today. Just couldn’t decide between them!
I like the comment saying they’re like Subway cookies. Those are good, but I’d be even more interested in a Potbelly copycat…
Hope they came out to your liking and that you enjoyed the cookies. Funny, I don’t ever find this dough to be ‘very crumbly’ and I’ve made the recipe in other kitchens, with other mixers, etc. But glad it came together for you and it’s not an overly sweet dough, you’re right. Hope you like them as well as the Sugar Doodles! That dough is softer, moister, and more sweet.
Hi Averie,
I just made your NY Times Chocolate Chip Cookies and my husband and I loved them. Only problem I had was making them flat since the top of the cookies were a bit round. But over-all, they tasted fantastic. I followed your tip in baking them on 16.5 minutes and I love the texture.
Now I want to try your Chocolate Chip and Chunk Cookies and I have a question on the flour. Since you mentioned you’ve stopped baking them with a combination of 1 cup of all-purpose flour and 1 cup bread flour, should I use 2 cups of all-purpose flour instead of just 1 cup since 1 cup of the supposedly bread flour will be replaced with the 1 cup all-purpose flour?
Love your recipes,
Sheila
Glad you loved the Times Cookies and that my tips worked well for you with baking times and such.
And yes, just do 2 cups AP flour rather than 1 cup of each AP and bread. Also make sure to take a look at this recipe, my current favorite https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/02/the-best-soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
This is by far my favorite chocolate chip cookies ever. I baked a batch last night and it gave me 13 pieces of wonderful cookies. And they’re still soft :) I used mini semi sweet chocolate chips (1 cup of those) and I think they’re perfect.
Thank you again! I have your site bookmarked!
So glad that you love these cookies and that they’re your favorite recipe ever! Wonderful to hear that!!
So I made these today, and I’m very pregnant. Which was probably a very bad idea, seeing how I totally had a “pregnancy brain”- brain fart, whatever you’d like to call it- and missed the line for the 1c of all purpose flour. I only saw the one for the bread flour, and saw your comment about substituting all purpose for bread flour, and did so.. using only a single cup for the recipe. I discovered that I did this halfway through the cooking of the first couple of trays (half my dough). So I’ve fixed it for the second half, and they look okay now. I feel so dumb. Such a stupid mistake! Luckily, the batch I made for my husband was the messed up batch (white chocolate chip butterscotch chip) still tastes great, and he’s being sweet about it.
I will definitely be using this recipe (correctly!) in the future.
Well I commend you for even being on your feet and baking! Glad that your hubby is enjoying them and hey, you get an A for effort :)
Making these right now. I’m sitting waiting for them to bake as I type this, so exhilarating…
I’m excited, I didn’t have any corn starch so I sprinkled some flax seed meal and some small oats to substitute for the chewiness.
Also I chopped up four Reese’s peanut butter cups and put them in.
Sounds like they’re going to be great!
Mine keep coming out really flat. Any reason why? I’ve tried multiple times.
These are the BEST chocolate chip cookies I have ever made. I was looking for the Jacque Torres recipe but then I found this one and you mentioned that these are more chewier and just better, that made my decision to go ahead make these instead and I don’t regret it at all! I’ve made so many chocolate chip cookies, some were really bad others were just all right, but these are fantastic! I seriously recommend them! these are officially my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. everyone in my family absolute loved them.!
Thanks for trying these and so glad you love them! I love these, too, and to be honest, much much prefer them to the Torres recipe. So glad you took the leap of faith and tried these and your whole family loved them, too!
If i reduce the dough size to just 1 tablespoon, what is your prescribed baking time?
Just guessing but maybe 8 minutes. Purely a guess.
Hello! I came across your food blog not too long ago, and I absolutely fell in love with it. Not only are the pictures stunning, but I tried this recipe and it came out fantastic and perfect! I used these chocolate chunk cookies for a cookout and everyone was raving about them, saying these cookies were ‘ the best I have ever had’. Thank you for such a great recipe! Ill be using in the near future :)
Thanks for trying these, Alyssa, and thanks for the compliments on my blog, recipes, images and so glad everyone those these were the best cookies they’ve ever had! That’s all wonderful to hear :)
Hi! I’ve made these cookies last weekend and they were a hit! Someone even said that they are better than Mrs. Fields! I just a question about the dough spreading and doneness. I refrigerated my dough for around 4 to 5 hours but it still spread to a flat cookie. For the baking time, I left them in the oven for 10 minutes. After the cooling time, it seemed like the centers were underdone and as a result, the cookies were splitting in two. Any advice on how I can correct these things? Thanks!
I have a big post on cookies, spreading, tips, etc. https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/02/the-best-soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
Are you baking on a Silpat? Using a high quality flour like King Arthur? I highly, highly recommend both and I doubt you will have spreading issues.
If the centers were underdone to the point they truly seemed raw and were thus splitting, then I would bake slightly longer (ovens vary) but if someone said these are better than Mrs. Field’s, I wouldn’t really change too much :)
Just a heads up – I made these weighing all ingredients, and weighing each cookie dough mound between 2oz and 2.25oz, and it makes 16 cookies, not 24. Great recipe though!
hi!! im looking for a topnotch chocolate chip cookie recipe that doesn’t require pudding mix. would you recommend this recipe?? if not, which one?? thanks!!
Yes this was my gold standard for 3+ years, never cheated on it. Love it! I do think pudding mix cookies are *just slightly* better https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/02/the-best-soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
But if you’re opposed, these are the ones to make then!
will it make a difference if you don’t put the cornstarch in it?
Unless you have a good reason to avoid it, use it. That said, if you absolutely don’t have it or can’t run to the store, they will still be ‘fine’ without it. But it adds a very special touch!
Just re-commenting to say that these really are the best cookies ever! I recently finished a marathon brownie-testing session, checking new recipes against my favorite and adjusting to make them perfect for my taste. I then decided to do the same with chocolate chip cookies, even though I was already happy with this, my go-to recipe. I tried 7 others, over several weeks, but your recipe (as written, with 50% bread flour), was the hands-down favorite every time with everyone who tried them. None of the others came close. I thought about making adjustments but soon realized that any changes I wanted to make would basically turn those other recipes into yours. No point in experimenting when you’ve already done it and given me the answers! Great job with this one.
Wow THIS is such a great comment and thank you for your unwavering support of these cookies! I love that you tried SEVEN other recipes against these, and that they won. And that if you tried changing the other recipes at all, you’d simply be changing them into my recipe :) Now that’s a nice feeling! Thank you so much!!
When I made these they didn’t flatten out like regular cookies when they were baked. I’m not sure what I did wrong!
They don’t flatten or spread tons if you bake with properly chilled dough. You could have also slightly over-measured your flour (always use a light hand and don’t compact it) and that could be the culprit, too. But they don’t sound ‘wrong’ to me!
I made these today & they turned out super crumbly! I don’t understand what I missed/did wrong, but they aren’t like cookies at all. :(
Ive never had that happen. Did you forget any ingredients? Measure your butter properly? Cream properly? Add too much flour or baking soda? Overbake? Not sure but haven’t ever heard that from readers but sorry it happened to you.
These look so delicious in the pictures, and I’ve made them successfully once, so I know they’re just about the best chocolate chip cookies in existence!
But–am I doing something wrong? I’ve made these a few more times and continually find that the cookies don’t spread AT ALL in the oven. Should I be forming them into tightly packed balls, or just kind of spooning blobs onto the cookie sheet?
Mine don’t spread that much either. I pack them into very tight ‘golf balls’, then I flatten the balls about halfway down, then chill them like that. Then bake. Blobs never work well for me and they look super sloppy too :)
Glad you love the cookies!
Ohhhhhhh, flattening them sounds like it would do the trick. Thanks for the update!! Just took a batch out of the oven (unflattened) and they’re delicious anyway.
Yes you have to flatten them slightly and just how much will depend on your oven, preferences, etc. So just play around a little!
I made these yesterday, left the dough in the fridge for 3 hours (as long as I could wait) and they are amazing. I love cookies that are overflowing with chocolate. Thanks Averie
Rosemary @anitalianinmykitchen
Oh I’m so glad to hear that you love them & yes, they ARE overflowing with chocolate, always a good thing :)
Made these earlier in the week and they were such a hit! Now since I’m in New England and snowed in I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to make them again. Next up I want to try the pudding M&Ms one. Thank you for the best recipes Averie!
Thanks for trying these a few times! And the M&M Pudding cookies are so good! I hope you get to try them!
SO good. Made these exactly how the recipe says and served them to our guests, big hit! Everyone loved them and asked how I made them so perfect! I want to make another batch right now! :)
Thank you for following the recipe exactly & LMK it worked perfectly for you & that you totally impressed your guests! Awesome!
…MMM those looks delicious. I love chocolate chip cookies too! :-) Especially when they are warm right from the oven.
Made these over the weekend and added macadamia nuts and coconut. After lots of sad looking chocolate chip cookies in all my baking, these were AWESOME and I think I’ll be using it as my cookie base in the future.
Thanks for trying them and the awesome compliments and that it may become your main CCC base! Please see this post and do a tastetest, too :)
https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/01/soft-mm-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
I baked these Sunday (exclusively all purpose flour) and turned out delicious!!!! Now I gotta remake them ASAP after chilling dough! Didn’t think these could get better until I read comments!
I’m glad to hear they turned out delish!! Thanks for LMK! :)
Hi ! i want to make these cookies for a party but instead of making them into dough balls before i chill them can i just chill the dough as a big log ?
I haven’t tried it that way, but if you do, LMK how it goes!
Thank you for this great recipe. Made bacon chocolate chip cookies for my company’s holiday party and they were a big hit. Thanks again:)
You’re the first person who’s ever written to say they’ve subbed in bacon! Normally it’s toffee bits, butterscotch or PB chips, but never bacon! This is fun for me to hear and glad that they were a big hit!
I used 3 oz bacon to the 6 oz each of the chocolate chips, as I didn’t want the bacon to overpower the cookie. (Also, this was my first time baking, so I had no idea what I was doing lol.) Think it can go higher–will try 4 or 5 oz bacon next time.
Thanks again for the recipe, and the response. Making your s’mores version now. Happy Holidaze:)
I think you could almost go 1:1 with the bacon to chips, provided you want them pretty bacon-ey. I don’t even eat bacon but in things like this, you can use a pretty heavy hand. I love the smores version & hope you do too! LMK what you think!
S’mores came out great, too! Give them the slight edge > the bacon version. Perhaps next time I’ll have to make both at the same time so I can have a fresh-out-of-the-oven head-to-head matchup. Thanks again:)
Yay! So glad to hear you liked the Smores version too! I think a show-down next time is in order :) LMK how it goes!
I’m making these cookies for the first time today. Omg, these are seriously the best chic chip cookies I’ve ever made. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Thanks for LMK they’re the best CCC’s you ever made! That’s wonderful news and glad you love them!
Hi Averie, I absolutely LOVE the result of this recipe-by far the best chocolate chip cookie I’ve ever made and I’ve made alot! I usually make a chocolate cookie with my old favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe by substituting about 1/2 cup of flour for cocoa powder. Do you think that would work with this recipe to make a chocolate cookie dough?
1/2 cup cocoa could give you the chocolate flavor you want, but I fear it will get dried out b/c cocoa is more drying than flour, IMO.
Look at this page
https://www.averiecooks.com/category/dessert/cookies
And I’d go with the Dark Brown Sugar or the Brownie Cookies; or the Nutella PB Chunk or the Thick & Soft if you want more PB-chocolate cookies.
Hands down these are the best. https://www.averiecooks.com/2012/12/quintuple-chocolate-fudgy-brownie-cookies.html Work, yes, but the best choc cookies you will ever eat. The photos don’t do them justice.
Thank you so much for the response! After that tip I am tempted to get in the kitchen and bake a batch of those brownie cookies right now!! Again, I absolutely love this recipe-as well as your entire blog. I love baking and sharing and every single recipe I have tried of yours (M&M oreo bars, cinnamon bars with white chocolate, soft and chewy oatmeal cookies, snickers cookies-so far!) not only turns out perfectly but has gotten RAVE reviews. All thanks to you!! :)
The brownie cookies or those quintuple fudge cookies – those would be my #2 & #1 cookies for a straight up amazing choc cookie. LMK what you pick or do!
And thanks so much for trying to many recipes!! Wow, awesome! And glad they’ve been turning out perfectly with rave reviews. I love knowing that – thank you!
Love, love, love your website! Thank you for sharing your love of baking :) I am trying to make a milk choc chip, macadamia, coconut cookie for a friend – she’s dying for this combo. Would this recipe serve as a good base? If so, how much of each addition would be appropriate? Looking forward to hearing from you! Thank you again.
This is a great base, yes. Can’t go wrong with this base.
Based on what you just said though with coconut and milk choc chips…this recipe came to mind. Based on 7 layer bars….SO GOOD!
You could swap out the semi sweet chips for milk and add maybe 1/2 cup maca nuts
https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/07/soft-and-chewy-seven-layer-magic-bar-cookies.html
If you wanted to say take out the butterscotch for the maca nuts, you could do that..or just add the nuts, too.
LMK what you try
Just discovered Averiecooks.com and wanted to stop by to thank you for a great recipe and an inspirational blog!
The cookies turned out wonderful – chocolaty and tender – reminding me of my favorite Subway cookies, only better… By far the best I’ve ever made! For a crunchier top, I baked them a little longer – and surprisingly enough the inside was still soft!
I’m so glad to hear that you loved them and that they’re the best cookies you’ve ever made. Subway cookies..you know now that you say that, I can see the resemblance! I remember eating those cookies as a kid and I can see how there are some similarities. Glad you’re so happy with my recipe :)
I do have one question, though:
Do you usually bake cookies with your oven fan on or off?
(I’m relatively new to this whole baking business and haven’t yet figured out the whole convection oven thing…)
I don’t have a convection oven or option to turn the fan on or off. I just turn my oven on and it bakes how it bakes – and I believe that’s no fan. It’s just a very standard oven, nothing fancy!
Great, thank you so much for the quick response!
Made these yesterday and they are awesome!!!!
Thanks for telling me, Anne! Glad you love them!
I have been making my mother’s chocolate chip cookie recipe for years, which always seem to be a crowd favorite. They are huge and packed full of chocolate chips, with crispy outsides and soft insides. However, I tasted someone’s secret recipe for chocolate chip cookies and I won’t say they were better than mine but they were just…different! Soft, super moist, and a little bit smaller. So delicious! Since the recipe is secret, I am determined to re-create them. Your recipe sounds like it will do the trick! I will let you know as soon as they’re baked. Just one question. In one of your paragraphs before the recipe, you said the mounds should be two solid tablespoons. This would be perfect with my 2 tbsp scoop. Although, in the recipe, it says the mounds should be a scant 1/4 cup. Which one is more accurate?
I updated the recipe to give a bit more info about the size but you want to be VERY generous with your 2 tbsp scoop, have the dough really heaping off the bottom and rounded and mounded, including all the chocolate chunks. So depending on how you look at it, you are in the 3-ish tbsp of dough range but it’s hard to put a number on it b/c some mounds will have bigger chunks of choc than others. Be generous rather than skimpy, that’s my advice. Aim for about 22-24 cookies for the batch. LMK how they compare to this top secret recipe you know of!
Averie,
I have made these cookies several times and they always turn out so soft and delicious! This past time, I made a double batch and actually chilled the dough for the full 2 hours. I usually get bored and only wait 30-60 minutes. They turned out the best I’ve ever made them! I am officially a firm believer in chilling! I also split the dough in half and made one half chocolate chunk and the other with cinnamon & butterscotch chip with a teaspoon or two of actual cinnamon. They turned out just as great!
Just make the dough and keep a big batch of dough balls in the fridge since it sounds like you like them. And any time you want cookies, just bake a few balls. The cookies are even better with dough that’s been chilled for a few days. If you dont bake the raw dough within about 5 days, move it to the freezer, where you have another 4 months or so before you need to bake it.
Glad to hear you love them and that you’re a believer now with chilled dough. Huge difference, yes.
And I love the cinn/butterscotch with actual cinnamon version. Sounds wonderful! I have a few cookie recipes for cookies with butterscotch (oatmeal scotchies and carrot cake cookies) as well as cinnamon chip snickerdoodles. They’re all here in case you have extra cinn or butterscotch chips to use!
https://www.averiecooks.com/category/dessert/cookies
This is my go-to chocolate chip recipe. Thanks! If I add cookie butter are other modifications needed? I can’t use peanut butter because of an allergy.
Glad you love these and if you want a Cookie Butter Cookie recipe, make these! https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/09/softbatch-cookie-butter-brown-sugar-cookies.html
I made these. Best yet. I halved the recipe since it’s only mee and still turned out fine.
Next time, I will press the dough a bit as they were too big when I took them out. Consequently, they were just a TAD undercooked in the middle (strictly following the ‘don’t overbake’ rule here)
Yes ovens can vary slightly and so can size of the dough – pressing them down will help if you don’t like them undercooked at all in the middle (I do!) Your cookies sound perfect to me :) Thanks for trying the recipe!
Hi Averie!
These cookies look absolutely wonderful and I can’t wait to make them tomorrow. I’ve been hunting for a good chocolate chip cookie recipe for weeks now. I just have two questions for you though. 1 – How do you think these would hold up using flax + water as an egg replacement? 2 – I’m thinking about freezing some individual dough balls so I can bake a few individually later on. Should I thaw them bit before baking them or should I just stick them right in the oven?
Thanks for sharing such a fabulous looking recipe a b-e-a-utiful pictures!
They ARE absolutely wonderful and unless you have strong reason to keep them vegan with a flax egg, I would make the recipe EXACTLY as written. It’s foolproof that way. As you start altering things, you will not get the same results as I do and as seen in the photos.
The dough is fine to be frozen and just put on baking trays and thaw it while your oven preheats 10-15 mins or so; do not need to thaw completely. Bake as directed. Enjoy.
Hi!! A pretty stuoid questionbut after i chilled the dough for say 24h, wouldnt the dough be too hard? Can i use the mixer to mix it up and loosen it? Or will that be too much mixing? Should i leave it to room temperature? For how long? Thank you!!!
Make the dough as written, form it into balls, put them on a plate, cover with plasticwrap, put it in the fridge, and chill for up to 5 days. When ready to bake, put the amount of balls you want on a cookie sheet and bake.
Oh my word, they look plain amazing!
Yummy chocolatey-ness. Yeah, Chocolatey-ness a new word!
I have to try these!
I made these today (exactly as written, following your edited suggestion of using only all-purpose flour), and they turned out just as described and pictured! This is the first chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve tried that actually turned out as soft and chewy as claimed (or maybe I just didn’t overbake them for once, but these were still definitely on another level of chewiness). My personal perfect cookie is something more on the thin and crisp side, but I was really curious to see the effect of using cornstarch. They tasted great, and everyone I shared them with loved them. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Glad you loved them and had great results and that others enjoyed them too! Thanks for coming back with a detailed comment telling me about your experience with the recipe!
Hi Averie! Can I just say that you are a cook(ie) goddess. I don’t know exactly why I struggled so much in all my other attempts to make good cookies. But they always ended up just bland or smushed into each other. I have a batch chilling in the fridge right now and am very confident that I will love them very much. It seems like I have finally found the perfect recipe.
I did have to convert all the measurements to British, so hopefully it will work out. I am of course planning to try some more of your recipes in the future as they look just amazing.
Thank you so much. My future children are sure to love them. And all of my jealous University housemates.
What a sweet, fun, and great comment! So happy to hear that you feel like THESE are the cookies you’ve been searching for – I know that feeling! Glad that they’re enough to make everyone jealous and wanting some of your cookies! Please keep me posted how they turn out and what everyone says!
I am not sad to say that this is my third time coming back to this recipe. I love it, the cookies always turn out amazing and great. A little more brown on top – but that was my fault for leaving them in longer. But they are a massive hit. Thank you so much for being so wise and detailed with your recipe!! It has guided me on the path of wonderful cookies everytime. I am excited to try some more of your recipes! Many Many thanks!!!!
I am so glad to hear you’ve had repeated success with these and continue to love them. Thanks for trying the recipe & LMK if you try others!
The NYT recipe is a meh for me—and def way too fussy for any mom interested in making cookies for the family not getting a degree in chemical reactions in cooking!
Def interested in trying these.
One thing I do is I have modified an old YANKEE MAG recipe–I think they won a cookie contest or something—Choc Chip recipe. Higher brown sugar etc AND what absolutely MAKES the cookie for us is the addition of 1/4 CUP pure maple syrup. (Not “pancake syrup” only the real stuff will do!) This adds–something–to the recipe and also affects how they keep which is very well thank you! Just add this in at room temp to the butter/egg mix. the batter will look a bit funky but it will be FINE once the flour etc is added. I also add quite a bit of vanilla as we can’t seem to get enough! (I have also tried the Ghiar recipe WITH the maple and it was MUCH better and that is a pretty good one to start with!)
Another fave for us is the only cookie I use shortening for–altho I have subbed in with success about half butter–is an old Southern Living Sugar Cookie recipe. The simplest easiest and easiest to add things to and on! Makes a ton of really surprisingly GOOD cookies that have that same chewy but smooth texture. And the recipe makes a LOT so good for bake sales or parties.
AS soon as it is not a bazillion degrees around here we will try these!
Love love love your detailed comment and info! I agree with you on the NYT recipe. Just meh. After all that fussy work, steps, measuring on a scale, I expect them to basically be the best thing in the entire world. And they’re just meh to me as well. The first day is great but they don’t have shelf-life. And who needs 18 jumbo cookies on the same day!
1/4 cup PURE maple, not pancake syrup – got it. That sounds wonderful! I need to give it a try! In my cookbook, I have a couple cookie recipes that I called for maple syrup in.
And then also the Southern Living Recipe sounds like a keeper. I finally came up with this recipe after trying and trying for a sugar cookie I liked https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/07/softbatch-funfetti-sugar-cookies.html
If you have any other recipes or try any of mine, please come back and LMK! You sound like you are as picky about your cookies as I am – and have tried tons as well :)
So I just made the dough for these cookies, and I made each mound of dough exactly 2.25 oz by measuring them on a scale. I was only able to make 17 mounds. I’m wondering if I didn’t put the full amount of flour in. I don’t think that’s what happened though. By about 2 dozen medium cookies, did you mean 17 cookies? I’m thinking you meant closer to 24…
Well, I’ll see tomorrow if I made a mistake with the flour measurement since they’re chilling in the fridge now. Hopefully they still turn out great :) I put one cup of bread flour in because I had it left over from making Jacques Torres’s cookies. I need to use it all up. I hate waste.
It’s hard to say where the slight discrepancy was from 17 to say 20 cookies. I don’t necessarily weigh each and every mound of dough. If I made 10 cookies that were 2.15 oz or 2.05 oz rather than 2.25, over a whole batch, that would account for 3 or so extra cookies. Or maybe my chips were lighter or heavier than yours, or my chunks were bigger than yours, or flour was different brands/weights, etc. I would not worry about it! As long as your dough came together and they’re chilling, then you will have 17 lovely cookies tomorrow :) LMK how you like them!
Okay. Sounds good to me. I’ll let you know how they turn out :) Thanks.
I baked them today. They turned out great! They taste delicious! I had to increase the oven temperature and baking time because my oven is weird. I definitely need to buy an oven thermometer to see what setting my oven to 350 really means. It’s definitely way off. It would be nice to bake something without all this trial and error, but at least the cookies still turned out great :)
Yay I am so glad to hear they turned out great and yes, get an cheapie oven thermometer and it will save you so much guesswork. Glad you loved the cookies – thanks for LMK!
These cookies look so delicious. I am in the process of making them now I just put them in the fridge to chill aboit an hour ago so I can’t wait for them to be done so I can start baking them. I have always been a fan of chocolate chip cookies and these by far are the best looking ones I have ever seen. I have never use cornstarch in cookies before so I’m excited to see how they turn out. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
LMK how they turn out!
You are a cookie goddess!!! Just made the chunk chocolate chip cookie and it came out glorious! No exaggeration. All the pointers are great heads up and I do see the difference. I never knew something so simple could make a big difference. Thank you so much for sharing all these great cookie recipes. Thoroughly enjoyed these cookies.
I just sent you the WRONG comment reply to this comment intended for a gal who just made a different cookie. But I am so glad the tips, pointers, and everything helped you bake up a fab batch of cookies! Thanks for trying them! :)
I made these tonight. I left 1/4 cup bread flour and used King Arthur White Wheat (that’s all I have). Needed cookies for teachers. Love them! They are divine! Used TJ 72% along with a mix of milk chocolate and semi sweet chips.
Thank you Averie for all your hard work. My family is very happy.
Love the cookbook!
Thanks for the awesome comment & for LMK you tried these and that they’re divine for you! Yay! Love that! And your mixture of 72%, milk and semisweet sounds perfect. And good to know they turned out just fine using mostly KA white wheat!
Your pictures of these cookies make me sure that I will make these. I’ve made a similar recipe from Sally’s website with great results. I now love using chocolate chunks and mini chips in the same cookie.
Yes Sally and I both used the same recipe that was adapted from the Food Network Canada site. I originally used bread flour but am back to using AP flour with them. Love the results, every time!
Averie, I’m so glad you like these cookies. They are most definitely my most favorite recipe. Thanks for sharing them with your readers!
And thanks to you for finding them from Anna Olson on the Food Network Canada site! A place I would have never thought to look for amazing cookies. But between you, blogs, and Pinterest, I am grateful for the recipe and have made them in umpteen version and ways since this original post and have the recipe memorized by heart! It’s an awesome dough base!
I have made the “best ever” chocolate chip cookie recipe about 5 times and let me tell you… It truly is THE BEST. These cookies are puffy, slightly browned, chewey, FULL OF CHOCOLATE, and my coworkers even said they’re “what heaven would taste like.” I had searched and searched for this recipe for a year and I have truly found it. I tend to use Ghiradelli chocolate chips (semi & bittersweet) in my recipe and the results are impeccable. Thank you for this recipe!
Marissa thank you for the glowing report and the fact that your coworkers say “what heaven would taste like” is just so fabulous! I am so thrilled that you love the cookies, and that you get great results every time! Thanks for coming back to tell me about it :)
I really love your blog; the great recipes, writing style, comprehensive instructions as well as the in-depth discussion of the “why’s and hows” of each recipe. I read and reread this recipe write-up along with your comments and comparison with the NYT CC Cookies, which I’ve made several times with great success. However, I have to agree that they are very good the 1st and 2nd day but they quickly became dry and crumbly; and the recipe is indeed pretty “fussy” and it is the stiffest cookie dough I’d ever made.
Well, yesterday morning I made your Chocolate Chip & Chunk Cookie dough and chilled it until last night, when I baked 9 cookies (2-1/4 oz each). Took them out when they still looked under baked but after trying one today I’m a very satisfied cookie baker/eater. I love the soft, yet slightly chewy texture, the deeply rich flavor and I really love the fact that it wasn’t a “fussy” dough to make in the least. And you are so right, they don’t have that “cake mix” smell and flavor due to the absence of the cake flour. The cornstarch really works wonderfully!
Your recipe is now my #1 “go-to” Chocolate Chip Cookie! Folks, if you’re on the fence about trying these cookies, I strongly urge you to go for it. The worst thing that could happen is that you could end up with a plate of really good chocolate chip cookies!
P.S. – I was wanting to see if they really held up well for 3 to 4 days but I guess I won’t know til I make my next batch cause these didn’t make to the end of day 2! Thanks Averie!
Thanks for the detailed comment & feedback, Ron! Love it and so happy you’re super satisfied with this recipe and that this is now your #1 go-to recipe for CCCs!
And yes, compared to the NYT cookies and these, between fussyness level, the day 2 crumbly issues, the cake flour/cakey issues – this recipe is the CLEAR winner for me and glad it is for you, too!
I’ve since slightly adapted this and am using ALL all-purpose flour and no bread flour in these Snickers and M&M cookies and love love love them.
https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/05/soft-and-chewy-snickers-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/03/soft-and-chewy-mms-cookies.html
Can these be made in a 9×13 pan for cookie bars?
I’m sure they could but I haven’t tried them that way.
This dough base is made for baking in a pan; add choc chips rather than PB cups if you’d like https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/04/peanut-butter-cup-cookie-dough-crumble-bars.html
Or this is a PB cookie dough base, rather than a plain version https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/03/peanut-butter-chocolate-chunk-cookie-bars.html
And see this page first! https://www.averiecooks.com/category/dessert/bars
This recipe reminds me a lot of New York Time’s chocolate chip cookie recipe, which I tried just recently. I’ll try this recipe and compare. :) Also, do you know if I can use just brown sugar? I love the taste of brown sugar, plus it’ll be slightly healthier. I don’t see why not if you can use dark brown sugar in this recipe.
They are NOTHING like the NYT recipe. https://www.averiecooks.com/2012/11/new-york-times-chocolate-chips-cookies-from-jacques-torres.html
I personally think the NYT recipe is just not really..for me. They are too thin, crispy, and not soft enough over time. The first day they are good but after that, meh, not really for me.
These Choc Chip & Chunk Cookies though..I love them!
I have also made this version which just uses AP flour, not bread flour https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/05/soft-and-chewy-snickers-chocolate-chip-cookies.html (I actually prefer this dough base)
Either way, you will LOVE these cookies. I recommend just leaving the sugar as written b/c they are PERFECT. Experiment if you wish, of course, but I love them just the way they are.
mine weren’t chewy, just very very soft. what did i do wrong//
The cornstarch makes them very soft! They are more of a soft cookie than a chewy cookie in general. You could use all bread flour next time; scale back the cornstarch or omit it; or bake longer.
Any of the above will firm them up and give you more of a chewy rather than soft cookie.
I just made a tester batch of these for work – alas, making a second since these were devoured in entirety before they even cooled off! My new #1! Used a choc combo of 1/3 bittersweet chips, 1/3 semi sweet & 1/3 chopped milk choc (from one of those two pound two-dollar Easter bunnies from Walmart!) Unreal – you’re the new goddess of cookies!
Erin thanks for the glowing report! So glad they were a big hit and I love that you worked in the chopped chocolate bunny. God, those things can really linger. Great thinking! I will need to do that here in a week or so. Thanks for LMK they turned out so well, the test batch was devoured :)
This post is making me question my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. But to be honest, I’ve been kinda wanting to change it up. I’m a fan of using more brown sugar as well and for the same reasons. These look amazing and I think I’ll try them out next time I make cookies.
Cheat on your recipe, just once, with these. I think you’ll be sold :)
There’s also a very similar M & M’s version I made using this dough base http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2013/03/soft-and-chewy-mms-cookies.html
The timing on the cookies is off…they came out under cooked.
All ovens and preferences vary; cook another minute or two until done in your oven and to your liking.
These are delicious and currently my #1 chocolate chip cookie. I agree with you that it’s awesome that they still taste great a few days later. It’s a little dangerous, too.. ;)
Made the cookies for the first time tonight, and they were half successful…I rolled them into little balls and they didn’t flatten at all, for some reason. The second batch, I flattened them a bit, but they didn’t flatten further. Baking soda should be fresh, I think (wasn’t sure how to test it, just in case). They got a little overdone as I waited for them to flatten, so the texture was a little funky. Dough wasn’t chilled either, which should have helped with the spreading. Any tips for me? Loved the taste of the cookie! Also experimented by with using white and dark chocolate chips, which was delicious :)
Are you in a dry climate? Sometimes when things stay very domed/very structured, it means it’s dry. That happens to me in San Diego. Next time around, make flatter shapes, not as ball-like or as mounded OR just smoosh them down more into patties rather than balls. Easy fix :) Enjoy!
Nope, I don’t think so. I’m in Vancouver BC, which is probably one of the wettest places on earth. Would overmixing contribute to the problem? Also, what does cornstarch do to the cookies (out of curiosity)?
Oops, saw that you answered the question about cornstarch above already. Silly me. I am wondering though, whether it helps with the chewiness or just helps with the softness.
Overmixing will (over)develop the glutens and in bread flour, with a higher gluten content already, yes, you sort of made loaves of ‘cookie bread’ if you overmixed at all! That could be the culprit.
As far as cornstarch, I discussed in detail – about 3 paragraphs worth – in the post about it. Reread!
OMG. These are so good – they’re cooling on my counter right now. The only things I did differently were to make them 1.25 oz each (yep, I’m crazy with the food scale, too) and to sprinkle a bit of fleur de sel on each cookie right before baking. They’re out of CONTROL. Soft and chewy and chocolatey – using the TJ’s pound plus bar (I only had dark chocolate on hand) and the TJ’s semisweet chips makes such a huge difference, too – these cookies are worthy of the high-quality chocolate! Thanks for such a great recipe – I’ll blog about them soon and link back here to the recipe so everyone can see your gorgeous photos. Now I’m going to go pack them up for my friends – lucky friends. :)
Thanks for the glowing field report and spelling out exactly what you did. I love it when I know what people did, down to the size and chips/type used! You have very lucky friends :) And thanks for trying them and linking back if you end up blogging about them!
For the Chocoloate Chip and Chunk Cookies….can you use Cake Flour in place of bread flour? That’s what I have and I have everything else that goes in them…was just about to get ready to make them when I discovered that they call for bread flour not cake flour… Please let me know as soon as you possibly can…
Thank You!
I can’t wait to try these.. and if I’m able to use cake flour – I’ll let you know how they turn out!
Brenda :)
Cake and bread flour are on the two opposite ends of the spectrum, so no, not interchangeable, at all! If you only have all-purpose and cake flour, just simply use AP for all the flour in the recipe (2 cups of it) and omit any other kinds. Don’t, I repeat DO NOT, use cake flour in these cookies. They will turn out tasting like…cake. Ick! I don’t like cakey cookies and would never use flour making them taste cakey! Just stick with AP!
Hi Averie….I found you through Jackie at Marin Mama Cooks and made these delicious cookies last night. Soft, pillowy and yet still chewy – Yum! I’ve never used bread flour or cornstarch in my cookies but will from now on! My batter was on the dry side so I added a few tablespoons of water to get the right consistency. Before putting them in the oven I added Maldon sea salt to the tops, like Jackie does in one of her chocolate chip cookie recipes, and it added another level of amazingness! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes!
Thanks for finding me & for LMK you tried these and are so happy with the results! Yes, like all doughs sometimes small tweaks on the order of a tbsp or two of something are necessary and adapting as necessary based on how things look in the mixing bowl is key. Wish everyone did that :) Good call on the water! And so glad you’re happy with the cookies. Please LMK if you try other things!
Wow, I don’t even know what to say. I thought when I found the Ghirardelli recipe many years ago I was done experimenting with chocolate chip cookies. It didn’t seem like there was any room for improvement. But I was intrigued by the idea of using bread flour and cornstarch, and you explained the recipe so well (and made the cookies sound so good) that I had to try yours. I cannot even believe how amazing they are! They taste delicious, they have the perfect texture, and they just look so darned pretty. I am an instant fan; thank you so much for changing the way I think about chocolate chip cookies!
Laura the comment you left me here, as well as the other, are the reasons I blog! Seriously! Knowing that you can cook and put faith in the Ghirardelli recipe, but decided to cheat on it with my recipe, and are blown away…well, that’s high praise and I am thrilled you did! “They taste delicious, they have the perfect texture, and they just look so darned pretty.” — agreed! And unlike the NYTtimes recipe, my recipe isn’t fussy like that one. And those cookies turn out too thin for me anyway. Don’t be a stranger and write to LMK what else you try!
I’m wondering if I refrigerate my dough in balls should I let them get back to room temp before baking them??
No, not really. The point of refrigerating them is to chill the dough. Room temp means warmer dough. They don’t have to be straight from the fridge but bake them within 5-10 mins of taking them out. LMK how they turn out!
I guess you do already have a peanut butter chocolate chip recipe. Several in fact. Now, to try your cookies!
Would you consider adapting these into peanut butter chocolate chunk cookies? What adjustments should I make for high altitude?
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2013/01/peanut-butter-chocolate-chunk-cookies.html Enjoy! Not sure about high altitude since I live in San Diego but I’m sure you’ll figure something out :)
I searched for a recipe for several years and finally found one the we love. I have made them almost exclusively for 6 years. I decided to try something new and found these. They were really tasty. Thanks for the great recipe! We will definitely make them again.
I’m honored that you’ve been using a recipe for six YEARS and gave mine a try and enjoyed them! Just the fact that you even cheated on your recipe :) and that I got you to try these is great and so happy you liked them!
Mine all came out flat! They started bubbling in the oven and oozed together and totally flattened out! :( I cooled the dough and I added more flour to the second batch and the same thing happened! Any ideas what could have happened? I’ve never had cookies do this before. :/
If something literally just flattened like a pancake, and you’re 100% sure you measured everything exactly correctly, you used teaspoons rather than tablespoons and just all the common things that can happen to all of us from time to time – and you chilled the dough so that it was pretty much cold and rock hard and then they still flattened – sounds like a leavning issue. Are you sure your baking soda is fresh?
Other ideas..the dough really wasn’t sufficiently chilled, the butter was too warm when creamed, the flour amount was too little, you used an extra large rather than large egg – so many things but try again & lmk what works!
Thanks Averie…just baked them and I must say they are tasty. I would bump the brown sugar up 1/4 cup and another tsp. of vanilla and these would be over the top…I like the way they don’t collapse and hold their shape. Nice.
You could always try dark brown sugar rather than light – it will give a richer flavor. In bumping up ingredients like sugar you can run the risk of the dough getting too soft since sugar liquifies as it heats and then you’d have to bump up the other dry ingredients to compensate and start playing around with things.
And if you’re a vanilla fanatic like I am it sounds like – love the stuff! Thanks for trying the recipe!
Hi…I appreciate all the food photography, how it looks, etc. etc., but has anyone actually eaten these that can comment on the taste, texture, and goodness first hand? I mean, they are to eat, right? Thanks.
Did you read any of the comments above yours? People have written in with rave reviews!
I made these last night and they are the most amazing chocolate chip cookie that I have ever had. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
Thank you Stephanie for making them and coming back to LMK that you love them and they’re the most amazing choc chip cookie you’ve ever had! This is why I blog. Thank you! :)
I made a batch of cookies on Friday using a different recipe but I adapted it with many of the tips given here – I made them bigger to allow for crispier edges and gooier centres, I STUFFED them with chocolate chips and chunks, I used a higher content of brown to white sugar, I took them out while still under baked and let hem set the rest of the way on the cooling rack and I stored them in an airtight container. All of these thing made for the most perfect chewy-centred, chocolate-oozing cookies that everyone raved about and they stayed soft for the day and a half that they lasted. I did not try the bread flour and cornstarch so that is my next cookie experiment but it will be very hard not to just make them exactly the same way again (not such a hardship really but, you know). Thanks.
So glad that all my tips worked for you (bigger, underbaking, chips & chunks, brown/white, airtight, etc.) and that they all worked wonders. It sounds like you have created a perfect cookie for yourself and if you want to add cornstarch, it will rock your world in terms of softness – that pillowy tender center that’s the end-all-be-all. I would give it a try if you feel like experimenting but sounds like you’re happy already – I would be too :) Thanks for using all my tips!
So.. just out of curiosity, why do you replace only half the flour with bread flour? Is it okay to use all bread flour or would that result in… over-chewiness or something? haha
Just curious if you had a reason for not doing it before I try it!
Because some people don’t keep bread flour on hand, and I know if I call for half bread/half AP but someone wants to use all AP, the recipe will work. If I use all bread, and they want to use all AP, there begins to be some shades of gray on results. Feel free to try all bread flour and LMK how they turn out!
I made some of these cookie with plain old all purpose flour, I looked like super dad for about an hour lol.
I will try the bread flour mix next time thank you so much Averie!
I am so glad you were Super Dad for an hour – I feel like Super Mom every once in awhile when I pull these out of the oven, too! They are a hit with my family and I’m glad with yours, too! Thanks for the field report!
Averie – these cookies look so perfect! They are calling my name. Thanks so much for linking up to Taste and Tell Thursdays!!!
And thanks for featuring them – they’re honestly my new gold standard choc chip cookies and I’m so happy with them and glad you liked the looks of them, too :)
Soooooo tasty and delicious. A little underdone at 10 minutes for me, but it’s cold here in Kansas! Not sure if I will ever know how these hold up after a couple of days, cause they disappeared in minutes. Another great recipe: I love how detailed and specific your posts and recipes are. Thanks Avery!
I am so glad you loved them, Sarah! Ovens and weather conditions, and the temperamental nature of cookies setting up, and 90 seconds can sometimes make a huge difference. Glad you found the sweet spot. And yes, it’s hard to keep these babies around for the week-long freshness test but they really do hold up. Glad you like all the details, too. If I am going to call something best-ever, I better be darned sure I back it up :)
Oops, I meant to leave that on the giveaway page!
I repinned your Chocolate Chip & Chunk cookies. http://pinterest.com/pin/129267451775935222/
Averie ~ these look mouth watering! You always take stunning photos I envy your work =).
I wish I could come watch you cook and photograph your food – I envy YOUR work! :)
Just pinned this recipe. I’ve got all the ingredients and can’t wait to start baking. I can’t stop looking at the pics. They do look absolutely perfect!!
If you make them, LMK how it goes for you!
I don’t typically comment on these (unless it’s for a giveaway :)) but, these are seriously amazing. I’ve been waiting for you to post a choc chip cookie recipe and I saw you post the NY Times one but didn’t have much desire to try those due to the work involved. So I jumped on these and they really are the best I’ve ever had. I wouldn’t change a thing! Kudos to you.
Thanks for commenting on a non-giveaway post – and to tell me that you love these!! :) I am so glad you think they’re the best you’ve ever had and wouldn’t change a thing. Awesome!
WOW. These chocolate chip and chunk cookies look AMAZING! Of all the chocolate chip cookie recipes I’ve seen claiming to be the best, I would have to say that these actually look like the best. I love a thick, chewy cookie, so I will definitely be giving your recipe a try soon!
The other day, I tried to click over to your site from my wordpress dashboard after you left a comment, but it brought me to a nonexistent site. BUT I just clicked on one of your recipes on FoodGawker, and here you are! I will be back often because you have some FANTASTIC looking recipes! I’m excited to try your lentil sloppy joes, as well as pretty much all of the desserts on here. :D
That’s awesome that you found me (that is so weird that you tried to click over to me and found a non-existant site…that’s kind of scary..wonder if my server was down and it was on my end or a typo in the URL field – gah, hate flukes like that!) but anyway these cookies are my new faves for just a straight-up choc chip cookie that WORKS and is fab!
Keep me posted if you do try any recipes!
Just made these cookies… Oooooooh my gosh. YUM! Seriously, they’re blowing my mind! I made them to celebrate National Cookie Day tonight, and I’m going to bring them to my intramural soccer team tomorrow, haha.
I am so excited I found this recipe!!! I am now writing it on a recipe card with the name “Best Chocolate Chip Cookies EVER. F’real.” I can’t wait to someday be the mom who makes the best chocolate chip cookies. All thanks to you! :D
I am so glad that you made them and loved them! And you’re so nice to share with your soccer friends. You will be popular tomorrow I’m thinking! :)
Wow, you know your cookie facts! :) These look so so good…if only I could find packed brown sugar in Germany. Your pictures have made me officially crave chocolate chip cookies to a point where I am just going to try making them with granulated sugar. I know the result won’t be as good, but they’ve still got to be better than any cookie you can buy at the store here. Thanks for the great recipe!
“Brown sugar, packed” is just the way Amerians tend to write our recipes with brown sugar. Packed into a measuring cup, not loosely placed into the cup like you’d place flour or regular sugar.
Brown sugar is nothing more than granulated sugar with added molasses. So if you had 1 cup brown sugar, I’d add maybe a teaspoon to it….and keep on stirring until you got it in the ballpark of brown sugar! I’d be surprised if they don’t sell brown sugar though?
I know, it sounds ridiculous, but google “where to find brown sugar in Germany” and you’ll see I’m one of many with this problem. :) They do have a brown sugar but the grains are much larger and the consistency much drier. I’ve considered the molasses thing, but molasses can only be bought at certain specialty stores and are quite expensive. I was able to find the brown sugar we know online so I guess the cookies will just have to wait until it arrives… Well, I think I’ve bothered you enough with my brown sugar woes :). Have a great time in Aruba!!
I made the Chunky Chocolate Chip cookies. They are good but I tried to make them smaller so it would yield more cookies. Had a really hard time. Had to keep putting them back in the oven. Does anyone know what the baking time would be if you halve the size of the cookies?
Thx
Part of the way cookies bake and overall success and results does have to do with the of the quantity of dough and overall mass, surface area ratio of edge to center, internal temperature while baking in large vs. small mounds of dough, and lots of science behind it.
So to halve each cookie, and these were not “big” cookies to begin with…you will be making mini cookies. And for those, I am not sure how much I’d reduce the baking time by, a minute or two, maybe? LMK what you end up doing!
I made them smaller and baked them 9 min. Turned out great. I made 45 cookies. They were awesome!
So cute cookies! Thanks you shared this recipes at my link party! Regards
I tried these last night, and while they were very good (and gone in a day and a half), they weren’t the best I’ve made. If I can recommend some….the following would be the best ones I’ve ever made:
http://notwithoutsalt.com/2009/01/28/the-last-chocolate-chip-cookie/comment-page-2/#comment-12855
I take it as a compliment that you ate the entire batch of cookies within a day – means they weren’t too shabby :) Thanks for trying them!
Ok, you have sold me! I cannot wait to try these cookies immediately! There is nothing like a freshly baked, perfect chocolate chip cookies, and these look so great!
Please LMK if you make them – I think you’ll be so happy! They’re my new go-to!
That photo of the half cookie with the melted chocolate – GORGEOUS! You know I’m going to make this and then eat every last cookie, right?
Well at least it doesn’t make 4 dozen :)
Wow, I have to say, these are by far the best looking chocolate chip cookies I have ever seen! Got Milk?
Thanks for the compliments!
I had to try these right away. I made them with my kids last night and they were amazing!
That’s awesome, Jessica! Thank you so much for trying them right away and glad you had amazing results and they were kid-approved, too! :)
the melted chocolate is making my mouth water!
Oh my goodness! These look so wonderful Averie! I wanted to try the New York Times cookies that you posted, but I may just try these instead. I love soft cookies and lots of chocolate, so I’m certain that these would be a hit!
In my humble opinion, these blow the pants off the NYT cookies and are much less ‘fussy’-feeling to make. LMK if you end up making either of them!
All these cookies look amazing!!
Thanks & I love the name of your blog!
Another one of your recipes pinned. I so want to try these. You are trying to kill me with all these delicious recipes.
Thanks for the pin, Julie! and these are the cookies to try if you’re going to try some!
It’s funnny that something as basic as a cookie can go so wrong when baking, I’ve had to go through so many batches to perfect my cookies and what makes it difficult is that everyone has their different preferences. These look so incredibly tasty!! X
It is amazing to me, yes, that something as simple as butter, sugar, eggs, and flour in little ball shapes can go so horribly wrong but it sure can – and I’ve tested hundreds of recipes to prove it :) And yes, taste preferences – another variable!
I wrote more extensively about in the New York Times cookies post, which I linked to in this one. And that there are so.many.things that can go wrong with cookies and so many variables!
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/11/new-york-times-chocolate-chips-cookies-from-jacques-torres.html
I am blown away at how incredibly delicious these look! I mean…is there anything better looking than a hot, out of the oven, ooey, gooey, melted chocolate chip cookie?! Your chocolate chunks look sooo good! :-)
Unfortunately, Seraphim and I are super duper allergic to corn, even in little amounts. Bummer. But, we can safely ogle your images any time we want! Gorgeous photos, Averie! YUM! :-)
I always forget about your corn allergy! I seriously just space it out. On something like a box of cake mix for those bars that you and I love so much, the white choc/yellow cake mix layered ones – do you have to buy specialty everything? Because I have known people with severe corn allergies and there is corn/trace corn in EVERYTHING. Our food supply is so contaminated for lack of a better word, corn.is.everywhere. You don’t realize this til you’re highly allergic but I fully get it; of all allergies, it’s honestly the one I’d want the least! Gluten is pervasive, corn is epic in terms of how everything is touched by it. Okay that was long and random but I feel you :)
I say try this recipe without the cornstarch and see what happens!
Yep! I have to buy specialty everything. Even baking powder that I use is a special kind that doesn’t have cornstarch in it. It IS in everything, so I read every label and if I can’t get it without corn, I figure out how to make it myself or substitute something else. Will give these a whirl without the corn and see! :-)
I’ve said it before and I will say it again (and probably again) I just love how much I learn from your posts…I had no idea about the bread flour…nor about chilling the dough so the cookies stay fluffier…each time I read your post I hope I retain my knowledge each time I bake/cook….so what is your next quest ;-)
Sometimes I feel like a broken record when I say things over and over, but I guess it’s still new to some people and glad you always learn some good stuff!
This post is chock full of cookie info!
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/11/new-york-times-chocolate-chips-cookies-from-jacques-torres.html
I love the tag line, chocolate chip and chunk cookies with cornstarch. You’re to cute! These look great and your photos are stunning. I love seeing all of those gooey chocolate chips. There’s nothing like a chocolate chip cookie straight from the oven. Zoe really wishes you lived in Northern CA, as I have been baking less lately and you are baking up a storm. She hovers over your blog and your photos. She even bookmarked your blog on her computer! Isn’t that so cute?
OK, still getting use to WP. Thanks for your encouraging comment yesterday!
xoxo,
Jackie
That’s so sweet of Zoe and if you’re ever down here, I have plenty of goodies to donate at all times!
BTW I didnt get a comment reply from you – I didnt with blogger either but I rarely remember to go back and check sites for comment replies so when the dust settles, your readers will love comment reply notification. That way you know you’re not just replying to thin air and no one sees it! In time, not a big deal, obviously :)
And yes the cornstarch is key in these babies!
Chocolate chip cookies are easily the most made and requested cookie I have in my arsenal! No matter how many batches come out of the oven, it never seems to be enough. Whenever my dad comes home, I make sure to send him back to Germany with at least two dozen big, soft CCC’s. Yours look so perfectly gooey and delicious, it’s easy to see why they just don’t get boring!
You are so sweet to bake for your dad and send him back with cookies! I bet you earn some major brownie points :)
I’ve never put bread flour in my cookies but I’ll definitely have to give it a try. I use so much bread flour in my yeast bread I’m surprised I’ve never added to cookies by mistake.
Second, yes, I do too add cornstarch to cookies, although I don’t do that too often since I like mine on the buttery-melt-in-your-mouth side.
And last, that oozing chocolate is calling my name!
Thanks for the Pin and you are the bread QUEEN! I covet all your breads and would love to make bread with you one day! And I’m surprised given that that you haven’t put it into the cookies by mistake too…ha! It lends great chewiness and I highly! recommend it!
And the cornstarch is a nice trick and glad to hear you’re on board with that too sometimes.
Luxurious puddles indeed! Look at those melty chocolate gobs of heaven. And holy puffy cookie.. I am swooning.
The best puddles ever!
That melty chocolate is calling my name!!! Pinned!
Thank you for the Pin and thanks for linking up my other cookies in your post today! You’re so sweet, Dorothy :)
I actually mail ordered Levain’s oatmeal raisin cookies. I posted the review on my blog over the weekend, but for the most part I don’t think they lived up to the hype. I have a copycat recipe I may still try. It’s so hard to find the best cookie recipes.
I just skimmed the post and they look really!! puffy! Like biscuits almost! I like my oatmeal cookies really dense and chewy, not as airy or ‘cakey’ so I have to say I personally wouldn’t have been in love either but preferences are so different. I urge you to try this recipe – I am SO PICKY and I give it the best marks!
It’s so tempting to make crazy cookies this time of year (you know the flavors, peppermint, gingerbread, eggnog, etc…) but gosh, you make it just as tempting to stick to the basics! Doesn’t the cornstarch work wonders?! I tried it in a batch of cookies last week and was in love instantly. I love that you used the two types of chocolate, and chocolate chunks are sooo good in chocolate chip cookies because they allow for maximum meltage (yes, maximum meltage :))
It’s funny when I was googling for the levain cookies your site came up #1 in the searches! And then there were a jilion copycat recipes and none of them are the same! Of all the copycats, your Levains look the best and that they’d yield the results that I’d like the best. Did you like love-love them? Or still on the hunt for ‘perfection’?
And yes cornstarch AND two types of choc rule the world!
That’s funny! I did love the Levain Bakery copycat cookies I made, but part of me likes to believe you can always improve the chocolate chip cookie… as in, declare “these are the best cookies I’ve ever made!” and then move on to try to one-up them. ;)
That’s the problem with declaring any cookie the ‘best ever’ – then the next one comes along and one-ups it! Or cake, or pie, or cinnamon rolls, or you name it, there’s always another latest and greatest but I really do feel like this is a SOLID cookie recipe that will last me ages!
The melted chocolate chip looks delicious in the photo. I’ve never made cookies with cornstarch before. They look really scrumptious though. I think my favorite cookies have to be simple shortbread icebox cookies with white frosting and sprinkles. They are so good and melt in your mouth. They have so much butter in them so I only make them at Christmas. It takes two days, but it’s definitely worth it.
They sound like a project but the best things sometimes are!
Hi! I’m pinning this page! These cookies look amazing! I’m glad I clicked on your link from Crazy Sweet Tuesday!!
Thanks for the pin! And thanks for clicking over and saying hi! Nice to see new faces by way of Dorothy! :)
My husband would pass out looking at these pictures. He’s a sucker for warm, melty cho chip cookies!!
Lol. They are such an easy cookie too – you’d whip them up with your eyes closed!
Those look amazing. Heavens!!! And the photos are just as lovely!
Thanks for doing all the legwork on finding the perfect chocolate chip cookie, Averie! These seriously look amazing – an interesting recipe for sure with the cornstarch. I can jjust taste all that melty chocolate…
What I love about your blog, Averie, is that I can eat all those cookies with my eyes and don’t have that sweet aftertaste, that makes me run to the refrigerator in search for a pickle or hot pepper, and keeps me away from the real cookies. :) Your photos are amazing, yes, AMAZING!
Do I use a cornstarch? Yes, and you know the rest… :) Although, I do plan to make a few batches of cookies to give as gifts for the holidays, and I know your recipes work.
Averie, Do you have a chocolate that you can suggest to use in molds?
I rarely make candy in molds but I’d just used baking chocolate and melt it! So easy! I like TJs 72% pound plus bars or use something milkier depending on your goal and taste preferences. Or melted choc chips will work!
Thanks! wish me luck with my new sweet project… :)
ooooooooooh you know how I am about chocolate chip cookies! These are giving me a massive craving! So chocolatey!!!!!
They are SO choclaty and I loved it!
I’ve never heard of cornstarch in a cookie! But these look amazing…those gooey chocolate chips!! Mmm!!
Cornstarch is in pudding mix and I know you love your pudding cookies and I bet you’d love these!
These cookies look to die for. When the chocolate center is all soft and gooey then I know that it’s a recipe for me. I’m currently busy with Christmas cookie baking but the recipe will be pinned and the cookies baked right after the holidays!!
I was going to wait to bake them after the holidays too but seriously they are just too good & I’m glad I didn’t wait! I have more true ‘holiday’ cookies coming up the next few weeks :)
You had me at chocolate chips and chunks! I love everything about these cookies! :)
And thank you for the Pin :)
Your cookies always look SO good. You seriously need to have your own cookie line :)
Wouldn’t that be a fun business to start taste-testing for :)
those look like my perfect cookie and i have neverheard of using cornstarch but i have heard of the pudding thing so that makes sense. I will be making these next time i need to bring a baked good somewhere over the christmas season!
LMK if you try them!
i just pinned these. YES please!
I want a chocolate chip cookie so bad right now after seeing this! I’m always on the hunt for the perfect recipe…this one looks like a winner!
Those look soooooo good! I absolutely LOVE chocolate chip cookies, and I will definitely be trying those.
They are my new fave – please LMK if you do try them!
I just absolutely adore your photos. You are amazing– both chef and photographer. One day I will come close to your photos. I need a new camera first. Any suggestions for a first-time-wannabe food photographer?
It really depends on your budget. And you can spend thousands on gear but if you don’t food style, shoot with natural light, and aren’t prepared to edit the images in post processing to some extent, none of the gear matters. The most important thing you can do is to shoot with natural light and food style, make the food look as GORGEOUS on the plate and in the frame as possible. Then after you have that, THEN spend the money on a camera + lens…I talk about this in the posts I’ve linked here towards the bottom
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/photography
Wow! this is so yummy, Averie that I wanna eat get them in the monitor right now to it. I should try baking this cookies. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Margaret!
I’m literally mesmerized by these cookies!! They are Perfect…perfect height, perfect ratio of chocolate-to-dough, and they have that irresistible wrinkly-ness. :D
I didn’t know that brown sugar helped to preserve a cookies softness! Thanks for the tip. Now I’m going to go daydream about chocolate chip cookies… (luckily I have cornstarch!). :)
Yes it does preserve softness in such a great way – which is why the Cooks Illustrated recipes always tend to stay softer, and this one too – compared to ones that have equal white and brown ratios.
And I am glad I have you mesmerized :) Thanks for the pin!
Looking at this post reminds me of cookie heaven your cookies look amazing!! I never would have thought about putting cornstarch in cookies I hope it wont alter the taste. I am loving the skillet cookie it looks so good..
No it’s just starch, two little teaspoons in an entire big batch of cookies, so no effect on taste – just a positive effect on results!
There is nothing better than fresh chocolate chip cookies right out of the oven. Those pictures with the melted chocolate chips=heaven!
Those really melty ones are the chunks – they melt so beautifully and ooze like that :)
I saw you and Sally’s comment conversation about adding cornstarch to cookies and I have to say I am quite intrigued by the idea. I need to try it. These are studded with chocolate so I know I would love them!
I know you love the CI recipe but honestly, you have GOT To try this one. I think it will give your beloved recipe a run for it’s money – sure did for me!
It’s definitely that time of year – cookie baking season! These look awesome. I bet the cornstarch makes them extra chewy and delicious. I love the gooey chocolate oozing out of these in the photos! Drool-worthy!
I love the oozing chocolate too and yes the cornstarch just works a little miracle – two mere teaspoons in a whole batch, but it’s a great little trick and I loved these!
I haven’t made cookies with cornstarch but after reading about what it does for them, I’m very tempted to try it. I dug out an old toaster oven to get by with for a while, so I think I could pull off half a batch of these. I love the chips and chunks of chocolate in there too. My usual standby has just been Nestlé Tollhouse, so I think I just found a replacement for it in this recipe!
You will never go back to that recipe I don’t think after this – or try the Cooks Illustrated that I linked. But these honestly are the softest and the chewiest, and just the best overall CCC recipe I’ve tried pretty much ever. And that oven of yours – gah! LMK how it’s going and what you decide on getting!
Ok Averie, between these and the molasses ones you posted a little bit ago, it’s becoming realllllly hard to not just want to say screw it to the paleo thing and bake them all up! I’m thinking both recipes need to be tried for the holidays though at some point, they look perfect! :)
These and the molassses ones are both two new faves – and if I do say so, worthy of screwing the paleo thing for awhile for! Although your pumpkin bars do look crazy good!
Get in my belly. I want to live next door to you so I can smell the amazingness all day long, every day. And just “happen” to stop by when you’ve got these cookies (or the molasses choco chip, or the super-vanilla, or….) coming out of the oven. DANG.
This post is basically cookie heaven! Love it! Plus I always feel like I”m on the lookout for the perfect choc chip cookie…definitely need to try these!
They are my new fave CCC recipe and I am *extremely* picky and give this one the high honors. I bet you’d love them!
Two kinds of chocolate in a soft, puffy cookie…sounds like my kind of cookie for sure! I really do need to jump on this corn starch band wagon! Now I know why I enjoy those pudding cookies so much though…the good starch quality that keeps them so soft and chewy!!!
When I put two and two together with pudding cookies and cornstarch, I realized that ah-hah! THAT’S why they’re so soft. And now no need for pudding mix – I know you love your pudding cookies and I KNOW if you make these you’ll be in heaven!
I love the idea of two different kinds of chocolate! These look phenomenal.
I adore your posts. I always learn something new. Thank you for that!
I am glad that you feel like you always learn something – I try to share what I know and it’s nice to know people learn things!
These look and sound absolutely amazing! These sound like something my husband would just dream about! I’ll try this out sometime this week! Thanks Averie!
If you do try them, please LMK how they go over!
They look incredible Averie! I adore this cookie recipe, as you know. So happy you got the chance to make them and are now convinced! I use baking soda when I make the recipe myself as well. Never tried using bread flour though, although I did plan to get it over the weekend and I didn’t! The combination of chips and chunks- perfection! They remind me of your oozing chocolate molasses cookies! There are so many wonderful qualities about this recipe – it’s straightforward, it’s quick, it’s easy. Each time I bake them, the centers do appear undone but they firm up as they rest coming out of the oven. And you are right – they get softer on day 2! i have some day 2 cornstarch cookies right here in the kitchen – soft as ever! Yours look so doughy, which I love. :) Great job with these!!!
They were so oozing with chocolate – chips and chunks – and it was perfect :) And I am glad I finally tried them too and now I understand why you love them so much!
These look mighty tasty, and the consistency is what I am always after in my perfect cookie! YUM!
Thanks, Liz! And I have been ‘following’ you; commenting on like 6 blogs that you were just at, minutes before me :) Great minds apparently think alike and read the same blogs :)