Easy Bakery-Style Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

You’ve spent your life searching for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe. Here’s the one you can’t live without. Walnuts optional, these soft, golden cookies will deliver the house-down boots. 

Share them, and get ready to hear phrases tossed out such as:

OMG! What bakery are these from?

Take them away! I’ve already had too many!

This is not a chocolate chip cookie recipe that claims to be easy but takes overnight or longer to make. These cookies have only a one-hour resting period. They’re also a breeze to whip up, requiring no stand or hand mixer.

Why Are These Chocolate Chip Cookies Show Stoppers?

• • They are soft. Do you know when you rest your head after a long day on your favorite pillow, the world disappears for a moment, and a sense of calm washes over you? Gift that feeling to your mouth, stat.
  • They taste better each day. I love the warmth and flavor of fresh-baked cookies, but if these cookies even last into the next day, you will be rewarded with a smooth, fudgy texture. If they make it to Day 3, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how the flavors evolve. If they make it to Day 4 and beyond, I’d like to hear how you’ve mastered the art of willpower. Note, though, that these cookies are best for up to 1 week.
  • The edges do not form a dry, crumbly texture as they age. I wish I could say the same for myself.

Ingredient Notes

• • Salted Butter: I prefer salted over unsalted butter for this recipe, adding additional salt as necessary. I like to aim for 2,000 mg of sodium [total] from butter/salt IN the recipe to get the desired taste, so do not fret if you only have unsalted butter on hand. The recipe calls for melted butter, but if you like your cookies to be on the cakey side, use butter that has been softened to room temperature.
  • Brown Sugar: I prefer a combination of light and dark brown sugar to achieve a robust molasses flavor without being too overpowering.
  • Maple Syrup: To round out the flavor profile and add chewiness, reach for Amber or Dark maple syrup. Molasses is a great alternative for this recipe if you don’t have maple syrup.
  • Glucose Syrup: This is one of my secret weapons for soft chocolate chunk cookies that stay fresh for days. You can substitute for light corn syrup or agave syrup, but you’ll want to use 3/4 of the amount since plain glucose syrup is much more viscous. While corn syrup does contain glucose, it also contains vanilla flavoring and salt, which will impact the final taste of your cookies.
  • Corn Starch: This recipe has a higher moisture content than the average chocolate chip cookie, and corn starch helps to hold everything together.
  • Chocolate Chunks/Chips: I like a balance of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips and 60% cacao chocolate chunks. The mini chips are added before baking, but I save the chunks for pressing into the baked cookies once they are out of the oven for the extra gooey factor. 
  • Sea Salt Flakes: Combined with the chocolate chunks, this ingredient is the perfect finishing touch to an already delicious cookie. You can leave this out to reduce the salt content, but I promise it is worth it. 
  • Walnuts: I put walnuts in EVERYTHING. They are rich in Omega-3s, and since I despise the taste of fish—it is a necessary component of my diet. Sub out for other nuts or remove them altogether and replace with additional mini chocolate chips. 
  • Eggs: I use Large eggs in baking, and I always forget to pull them out in advance so that they get to room temperature. Never fear! In a bowl, cover cold eggs in lukewarm water for five minutes. 

This Recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookies Is the Easiest

No stand or hand mixer? No problem. You can make these chocolate chunk cookies using wooden spoons, measuring cups and spoons, mixing bowls, and baking sheets. 

Though I recommend the use of a digital scale (and gem scale, if you’re fancy) to weigh out ingredients, you can use standard measuring utensils to get the job done. Gem (aka. milligram) scales are perfect for measuring ingredients such as baking powder for added precision. Here is an example of what a gem scale looks like, but there are many options. (Please note: I am not affiliated with Amazon nor do I make any commission on the sale of this product.)

Troubleshooting

First and foremost, this recipe for chocolate chip cookies is so easy that you shouldn’t have any trouble. However, I recommend following the tips below to ensure you get bakery-quality results. It could be the difference between a perfect, flat, or fat cookie.

Oven Temperature

If the temp is too hot, the cookies will spread. If too cold, they won’t spread enough. I know that my oven takes 17 minutes from the start of preheating to when the center of the oven interior registers 350 degrees on a thermometer. Guess what? My oven signals it is preheated to 350 degrees at 9 minutes, whereas the thermometer will read 250. Invest in an oven-safe thermometer–it is worth it.

Dry Ingredient Measurements

There are three main methods to measure dry ingredients, and I’ve ordered them based on consistency in the final product.

• • Scale. This is the best method for measuring dry (and wet) ingredients to achieve consistent bakes. Position a container on the scale, tare it to 0, and add your ingredient. Be sure to use the same unit of measurement that the recipe calls for.
  • Spoon and Level. Fluff your ingredient, spoon it into a measuring cup, and level off. This method is preferred if you are not using a scale, but it can result in less weight than the recipe calls for.
  • Scoop and Level. Drag your measuring cup into a container, scoop the ingredients out, and level off. This method typically adds more weight than the recipe calls for. 

A good rule of thumb is to use a scale if the recipe features ingredients by weight (even if they have measurements in cups) since that is how the author is doing it. If no weights are mentioned, spoon and level yo. 

Wet Ingredient Measurements

Using a scale is the best way to measure wet ingredients. Use a liquid measuring cup if you do not have a scale on hand. Avoid using standard measuring cups on wet ingredients.

Resting period

The recipe suggests the dough rests in the fridge for one hour or longer. Is it a hot day? Is your fridge like mine at exactly 37 degrees? Have you opened the door a bunch? Multiple factors can yield mixed results when resting the dough. I like to use a cookie scoop to determine if the dough is ready. It isn’t cold enough if the dough sticks to the scoop even when pressing the release lever. If you have to use force to get your scoop into the dough, it is too cold. The just-right point is when you can easily scoop and release the dough. If you don’t own a cookie scoop, you can use a TBSP to test.

Butter Temperature

If you add the butter to the sugar too soon, the sugars will melt and the dough will spread more than it should when baked. You need some sugary friction to keep the dough from spreading too far, so give your butter ample time to rest. Before I mise en place my workstation, I melt the butter and set it aside. 

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