Chocolate Chip Turtle Cookies — The BEST chocolate chip cookies stuffed with TURTLES candies!! Soft, chewy, and buttery with caramel and chocolate! They’ll be your new FAVORITE chocolate chip cookies!!
I’ve always loved TURTLES® candies. They’re the perfect combination of nuts, caramel and chocolate, and they just make people happy. Especially me.
I’ve previously baked TURTLES® candies into chocolate peanut butter cookies before but never into chocolate chip cookies and I’m so glad I did because these are in my top 5 cookie recipes of all time. Yep, that good.
I adapted one of my recipes for chocolate chip cookies but rather than using softened butter, I browned it.
That was an excellent decision because the nutty, rich flavor of the browned butter enhances the nutty flavor in the TURTLES® Minis Original Pecan flavor that I incorporated into the cookies. The Minis are about half the size of the classic candy, and sold in bags, and I found them in the candy aisle of my regular grocery store.
The cookies are big, bakery-style cookies. They’re wonderfully chewy from the melted butter, soft from the cornstarch, and loaded with texture from the chocolate chips and crunchy yet chewy TURTLES® Minis.
There are so many layers of texture and flavor going on and I adored every bite. Browned butter, chocolate, caramel, vanilla.
Ingredients for Turtle Cookies
To make the chocolate chip turtle cookies, you’ll need the following:
- Unsalted butter
- Egg
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Cornstarch
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Turtles minis
- Chocolate chips
How to Make Turtle Cookies
The chocolate turtle cookies are easy to make and come together quickly — but plan ahead because the dough has to chill for a couple of hours before it can be baked! Here’s an overview of how the cookies are made:
- Brown the butter (detailed instructions in the recipe card below).
- Whisk together the slightly cooled browned butter, egg, vanilla, and sugars.
- Add the dry ingredients.
- Gently fold in the Turtles minis and the chocolate chips.
- Shape the cookie dough into balls, then cover with plastic wrap and chill for 4 hours.
- Once the dough has had ample time to chill, bake until golden around the edges and barely set in the center.
Can I Add Pecans?
Of course! There are already pecans in the Turtles minis, but you’re welcome to add chopped pecans to the cookie dough too.
Simply replace some of the chocolate chips with the pecans so the dough doesn’t become too overloaded with mix-ins.
Does the Cookie Dough Have to Be Chilled?
Yes! It’s mandatory that the dough be chilled for at least 4 hours, or overnight, before baking — no exceptions or the cookies will bake flat, thin, and spread like crazy.
Tips for Making Pecan Turtle Cookies
Because the butter is browned and melted rather than creamed, the dough may seem oily yet crumbly. Sounds paradoxical but it’s possible.
The chocolate chips and TURTLES® Minis may want to slip out of the dough but smoosh them in as best as you can.
After the dough mounds are formed, I add a few more chocolate chips to the top of each.
Don’t overbake the chocolate turtle cookies because they taste better a bit underbaked.
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Chocolate Chip Turtle Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, browned
- 1 large egg
- ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ⅔ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- one 5-ounce bag TURTLES® Minis, halved
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus more for topping each cookie
Instructions
- Brown the butter (click for a detailed tutorial) by cooking butter over medium heat in a medium saucepan until it’s amber to brown in color, about 5 minutes depending on pan size. I swirl the pan in the last minute or so to make sure I can really see the color changes. Butter will go through stages of hissing, sputtering, and making noise until the water cooks off at which point the browning occurs. Butter will smell nutty and aromatic.
- Pour butter into a large mixing bowl, making sure to scrape the bottom of the saucepan with a spatula and transfer any browned bits (they have wonderful flavor) from the bottom of pan into the mixing bowl. Wait momentarily before adding the egg so you don’t scramble it.
- Add the egg, sugars, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Add flour, cornstarch (keeps cookies soft) baking soda, salt, and stir to combine. Dough may seem crumbly yet oily, this is okay.
- Add the TURTLES® Minis, chocolate chips, and stir to combine.
- Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form approximately 11 to 12 equal-sized mounds of dough, roll into balls, and flatten about halfway. Tip – Strategically place a halved TURTLES® Minis on top of each mound of dough and add a few more chocolate chips for a visual pop of chocolate.
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, up to 5 days. Do not bake with unchilled dough because cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray. Place dough mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I use a half-sheet pan and bake 8 cookies per sheet) and bake for about 12 to 13.5 minutes (if your cookies are smaller than mine, reduce baking time) or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center; don’t overbake. Cookies firm up as they cool.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and don’t use a rack.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Turtle Desserts:
Homemade Chocolate Turtles — Fast, easy, no-bake and just 4 ingredients! Chewy, gooey, salty-and-sweet! Homemade always tastes better! Yum!!
Chocolate Peanut Butter Turtle Cookies — Soft and chewy cookies with a Turtle in the middle and drizzled with salted caramel!
The Best Turtle Brownies – Super fudgy and loaded with chocolate, pecans and caramel! So.crazy.good!
Turtle Poke Cake — The flavor of the famous candy in a decadent chocolate cake with tons of caramel and pecans! Easy, super soft and moist, and a crowd favorite!
Post is brought to you by TURTLES® Candies. The recipes, images, text, and opinions expressed are my own. #TURTLES