Fat, fudgy, and supremely chocolatey, these ULTIMATE Chocolate Cookies are loaded with melty chocolate! Made with four different types of chocolate and rolled in a cocoa-sugar topping, these are guaranteed to satisfy even the most hardcore choco-fanatic.
A Chocolate Lover’s Dream
Oh, these chocolate cookies.
I haven’t been so in love with a cookie since my Worst Chocolate Chip Cookies (or maybe just since the last cookie recipe I shared, honestly 🤷🏼♀️). These are a chocolate lover’s dream, rich, gooey chocolate cookies positively loaded with melty chocolate and a cocoa sugar topping… this really is the ultimate chocolate cookie recipe.
They’re thick and chewy (think like my Monster Cookies, minus the oat-y texture) and decadent and fudgy like my favorite brownies, only in cookie form.
And that cocoa sugar topping (with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt) just puts them right over the top 💜
The cookie dough is simple to make — there’s no electric mixer required (thanks to the fact that we’re using melted butter) and only 30 minutes of chilling. You could make the dough up to a week in advance, just store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
The cookie dough is also pretty darn good on its own, though for health reasons I should probably recommend you check out my Edible Cookie Dough instead if you’re looking for a cookie dough fix.
Tips for Making Chocolate Cookies
- Make sure you let your butter cool for at least 10 minutes or until no longer hot to the touch before adding our sugar. Butter that is too hot will melt your sugar and you’ll end up with a greasy mess.
- Light or dark brown sugar will work fine in this recipe. If I have both on hand, I’ll usually use a blend of the two. Dark brown sugar contains more molasses, so it lends a richer, slightly sweeter taste (but the difference is subtle in the finished chocolate cookie).
- The instant coffee in the recipe is optional. Adding it won’t make your cookies taste like coffee, it will just enhance the chocolate flavors that are already present.
- If desired, reserve some chocolate chips for pressing into the tops of the cookies once they’ve finished baking (but while they are still warm). This is completely optional, it just makes the cookies look nicer! They’ll taste the same if you do this step or not!
- These cookies should still be soft and the centers may seem even a little under-done when they come out of the oven. Allow cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet where they’ll finish cooking. This ensures you’ll have nice, soft, chewy cookies even after they’ve cooled.
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Enjoy!
More Recipes for Chocolate Lovers
Be sure to check out the How to Make the Ultimate Chocolate Cookies video at the bottom of the recipe! If you enjoy watching, make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel where I’ve already uploaded over 100 recipe videos that you can watch for free!
Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled at least 10-15 minutes (226g)
- 1 1/4 cups light or dark brown sugar firmly packed (250g)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar 100g
- 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk room temperature preferred
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 280g
- 1/2 cup natural cocoa powder 50g
- 1 teaspoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon instant coffee optional
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips¹ (85g)
- ½ cup milk chocolate chips (85g)
- ½ cup mini chocolate chips (85g)
Cocoa Sugar (for rolling)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 Tablespoon cocoa powder
- Sea salt for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- Combine melted (cooled) butter and sugars and stir until well-combined.
- Add egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir well.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, instant coffee (if using), baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Gradually add dry ingredients to wet, stirring until completely combined.
- Stir in chocolate chips, if desired reserve approximately ⅓ cup of assorted chocolate chips for pressing into cookies after baking.
- Cover dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Once dough has nearly finished chilling, preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Prepare cocoa sugar topping by whisking together ½ cup granulated sugar and ½ Tablespoon cocoa powder.
- Once dough has finished chilling and oven is preheated, remove dough from refrigerator. Scoop into 1 ½ Tablespoon-sized balls and roll between your palms to form a smooth ball. Roll through cocoa sugar until entirely coated and then transfer to prepared baking sheet. Space cookies at least 2” apart.
- Bake cookies in 350F (175C) oven for 11-12 minutes. If desired, gently press reserved chocolate chips into the tops of warm cookies within 1 minute of removing from oven.
- Allow cookies to cool completely on baking sheet before enjoying.
sandra Thornton says
I made the cookies and they are tasty. However, when they were completely cooled I put them in a zip lock bag to keep them fresh and they cracked and broke apart.
Sam says
Hi Sandra! Were they too hard? The culprit could be that they might’ve been baked for too long or the flour might have been over-measured (was the dough very stiff?), these are the most likely culprits for crumbly cookies. I’m definitely happy to help troubleshoot further, though! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the taste!
sandra Thornton says
I measure the way to you taught. The one thing I did not do was let them cool completely on the cookie sheet. I put them on wax paper to cool. Could this be the problem?
Sam says
That may have been the issue. If you move them too early they tend to be a little more fragile.
Trisha says
I made the cookies but the batter was dry. What could be the problem?
Sam says
Hi Trisha! If the batter was dry, most likely the culprit is that the flour was over-measured. When measuring the flour I recommend stirring it first, then spooning the flour into your measuring cup then leveling it off with a straightedge (like the back of a knife), never scoop the flour into the measuring cup (which can pack it in and leave you with a lot more flour than you realize). Another option would be to use an inexpensive kitchen scale to measure the flour. I really hope that helps!
Anna says
I made the cookies and we all really liked them a lot!
I looove soft baked cookies and these really are the perfect consistancy.
Next time I’m going to try these using milk chocolate only since the dark sugar already adds some “dark” tasting tones.
I also like the salty touch on these!
Sam says
I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed the chocolate cookies, Anna! Thank you so much for commenting, I really appreciate it 🙂
Joanne says
I baked your worst chocolate chip cookies and they were fantastic! I can imagine how yummy these chocolate cookies taste especially with the cocoa sugar topping.
Sam says
I hope you try them and love them! 🙂
Kim says
Sam – what do you think of the pourable brown sugar as opposed to the stuff that gets hard as a rock? Thank you!
Sam says
Hi Kim! I’ve honestly never baked with the pourable brown sugar but I don’t think that should be a problem. If you try it out I would love to hear how it turns out for you!