Equipment
* optional
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 250 g all-purpose flour
- 3 g baking soda
- 3 g kosher salt
Wet Ingredients
- 150 g unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 150 g dark brown sugar, packed
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 10 ml vanilla extract
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 egg yolk, room temperature
Mix-ins
- 200 g semisweet chocolate chips
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 203 kcal
- Protein
- 2 g
- Carbohydrates
- 28 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sugar
- 18 g
- Sodium
- 108 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 6 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 3 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 0 g
- Cholesterol
- 34 mg
- Potassium
- 67 mg
- Calcium
- 16 mg
- Iron
- 0.6 mg
- Magnesium
- 15 mg
- Phosphorus
- 37 mg
- Zinc
- 0.3 mg
- Vitamin A
- 58 mcg
- Vitamin D
- 0.1 mcg
- Vitamin E
- 0.3 mg
- Vitamin K
- 1 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.0 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.1 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.02 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.03 mg
- Niacin
- 0.2 mg
- Folate
- 7 mcg
- Water
- 5 g
- Alcohol
- 0 g
- Caffeine
- 6 mg
Sources: USDA FoodData Central
Method
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and kosher salt until thoroughly combined.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the melted unsalted butter, dark brown sugar, and granulated sugar vigorously until no sugar lumps remain and the mixture forms a thick paste. Whisk in the vanilla extract, whole egg, and egg yolk until the batter is smooth and slightly lightened in color.
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the dry flour mixture into the wet ingredients until just combined. Stop folding when a few streaks of flour still remain to avoid overworking the dough.
Fold the semisweet chocolate chips into the dough until evenly distributed. The remaining flour streaks will incorporate during this step.
Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap or a lid and chill the dough in the refrigerator for exactly 30 minutes. This hydrates the flour and solidifies the butter, preventing the cookies from spreading too thin in the oven.
While the dough is chilling, preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F).
Using a cookie scoop or two spoons, portion the chilled dough into roughly 45g balls (about 1.5 to 2 tablespoons each). Place them on the prepared baking sheet, leaving at least 5cm (2 inches) of space between each dough ball.
Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 10 to 12 minutes. The cookies are done when the edges are visibly golden brown and set, but the centers still look slightly pale, puffy, and underbaked.
Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the hot baking sheet for 5 minutes. They will continue to bake and set from the residual heat. Afterward, transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Chef's Notes
- The secret to a chewy center is the higher ratio of brown sugar to white sugar, combined with the extra egg yolk, which adds fat and moisture without extra protein.
- Pulling the cookies from the oven when the centers look slightly underbaked is crucial. The carryover cooking on the hot baking sheet during the resting phase finishes the bake perfectly.
- For aesthetic bakery-style cookies, reserve a small handful of chocolate chips and press them gently into the tops of the dough balls right before baking.
- Using melted butter rather than creamed softened butter bypasses aeration. Less air in the dough results in a denser, chewier texture rather than a light, cakey one.
Storage
Refrigerator: 5 days — Store unbaked dough in an airtight container. Baked cookies are best stored at room temperature.
Freezer: 3 months — Freeze portioned dough balls on a baking sheet, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag. Bake directly from frozen, adding 1-2 minutes to the bake time.
Reheating: Microwave a baked cookie for 5-8 seconds to restore the warm, gooey texture.
Troubleshooting
Cookies spread flat and merged together on the pan
Cause: The melted butter was too hot when mixed, or the dough was not chilled sufficiently before baking.
Fix: Cannot be fixed once baked. For remaining unbaked dough, chill in the refrigerator for an additional 30 to 60 minutes.
Prevention: Ensure melted butter has cooled to room temperature before adding sugars, and always chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
Cookies are tough, dry, or cake-like instead of chewy
Cause: Too much flour was added, or the dough was overworked during the folding stage.
Fix: Cannot be fixed
Prevention: Weigh your flour using a digital scale rather than using measuring cups, and mix only until the flour disappears.
Centers are entirely raw after cooling
Cause: Oven temperature was running low, or the dough balls were made too large.
Fix: Return to a 180°C oven for 2-3 minutes immediately if noticed early, though texture may be slightly compromised.
Prevention: Use an oven thermometer to verify temperature accuracy and weigh dough balls to ensure even sizing.
Cultural Context
The chocolate chip cookie is a hallmark of American baking ingenuity, originally invented in the late 1930s by Ruth Graves Wakefield at the Toll House Inn in Massachusetts. By adapting a butter drop dough recipe with chopped bits of a Nestlé semi-sweet chocolate bar, she inadvertently created what would become the United States' most iconic and beloved baked good.
