Go no further! While many have called these the best chocolate chip cookies, I assure you they are actually the worst, and this recipe might actually ruin your life.
Consider yourself warned.
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies are the Worst
I can only assume that something must have gone horribly wrong to bring you here today.
Amidst a cherry-picked Pinterest Sea of “perfect chocolate chip cookies”, a Google Forest of the “best chocolate chip cookies”, and dog-eared cookbooks of “award winning” and your family favorites, you have somehow found yourself here, face-to-cookie with the actual worst chocolate chip cookie recipe.
Oh, I know what you’re thinking: It’s just a cookie, right?
I mean, sure, they look innocent enough. Golden with melty chocolate chips, crinkled edges and chewy, melt-in-your-mouth interiors… but one bite and you’re positively ruined for life.
These cookies will consume your life, shrink your jeans, and steal your boyfriend (I wouldn’t put it past them, anyway).
They even contain a secret ingredient.
A Secret Ingredient You’ll Wish You Never Discovered
How obnoxiously cliche, and, even more obnoxiously, intriguing.
I won’t drag it out. The secret ingredient is maple syrup. And sure, pure maple syrup (priced per ounce nearly the same as gold) would work just wonderfully here. But, if you have a sticky bottle of Aunt Jemima in your cabinet (as I happened to when I set out on the unholy quest for a secret ingredient for the worst-but-should-be best chocolate chip cookies), that will work just fine, too.
What kind of self-respecting cookie doesn’t demand purity and quality?
Only the worst kind.
Ingredients (& Secret Ingredients)
I credit (or, rather, blame) this “secret ingredient” for being the greatest offender in this positively worst chocolate chip cookie recipe. It gives the cookies a subtle, caramelized flavor as well as long-lasting chewiness and softness (these cookies stay soft for days, and the cornstarch helps with that as well), and the flavor is other-worldly.
And, while anyone who takes a bite will be able to detect the extra richness of flavor, not a single taste-tester was able to identify exactly what the secret ingredient actually is. Just that they were enjoying “really, really good cookies”.
OK, so what’s so bad about really good chocolate chip cookies?
How about the fact that they will consume you as you consume them? I’m not kidding about them wrecking your relationships.
Mom’s favorite chocolate chip cookie? Ditch it. You will snub your nose at every “favorite” cookie (chocolate chip or not) of the past and struggle to hold back scornful laughs at anyone who comments on their own personal best chocolate chip cookies. Nobody likes a cookie snob, and yet here you are.
Here comes that girl again, the one who’s too good for Chips Ahoy.
A Cookie Recipe for Ruining Your Life
Be prepared for weight gain. It creeps up slowly, the cookies gently embracing you at first, then clinging to your thighs, your stomach, tighter and tighter until yoga pants are your only way out of the house. If you’re worried about your significant other noticing, don’t bother. They don’t notice anything anymore, only whether or not there are more chocolate chip cookies readily available for consumption.
Perhaps worst of all is that this recipe can be made so easily. There’s no stand mixer or even an electric hand-held one required. They can be stirred by hand, dirtying only two bowls.
They do need to chill for at least 30 minutes, which would only serve as a deterrent if 25 of those minutes weren’t spent sneaking copious chunks of cookie dough from the refrigerator.
If you’ve made it this far, I fear it may already be too late for you.
It’s too late for me, sadly, and I’ve made these cookies nearly a dozen times in the past two weeks. I’m swapping gym time for cookie time to keep my refrigerator well-stocked with dough, and the photo shoot for this post took three times as long as it should have because I kept eating the subjects.
If you can, stick to the “best” chocolate chip cookies. Stick to Grandma’s chocolate chip cookie recipe and the old family favorites. Those cookies are safe, your friends, made to be consumed by you.
These cookies will consume you, instead.
Good luck out there. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did you run into cookies that spread all over the baking sheet in the oven? Here are your most likely culprits:
The butter was too hot when you added your sugar, causing the sugar to melt and creating a greasy cookie dough that never stood a chance.
You didn’t add enough flour. If the flour was under-measured, your cookies could spread when baking.
Your baking powder/baking soda was bad. These need to be stored properly and often will expire after 6 months, if yours is old, that could be the problem.
The dough didn’t chill long enough. If your dough is still very sticky after 30 minutes, let it chill longer.
You put your cookie dough on a hot cookie sheet. It actually starts to melt before it can even begin baking.
If your cookies are spreading too much, you can try stirring in a bit more flour or just chilling them (covered) for longer.
It could be that your flour was over-measured. Never scoop your flour directly into your measuring cup, it packs the flour into the cup and you end up with way more than the recipe actually calls for. Instead, use a scale (this is the scale that I use) or use a spoon to pour the flour into your measuring cup and then level off the top with a straightedge (like the back of a knife).
Honey or light or dark corn syrup would work instead of the syrup, just note that the flavor will be slightly different.
Easily one of the most-asked questions that I get, I suspect those who ask this question were merely so distracted by the siren call of these cookies that they were unable to read the blog post. Just know that they would be the best chocolate chip cookies… if they didn’t turn you into a cookie obsessed monster at first bite.
If you’re looking for something a little tamer but still delicious, check out my best chocolate chip cookie recipe, instead.
Let’s bake together! Subscribe to my email list to be notified of all my newest recipes and find my video tutorials on YouTube.
The WORST Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter melted and then cooled until no longer warm to the touch (see note)
- 1 ½ cups (300 g) light brown sugar firmly packed
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature preferred
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60 ml) maple syrup²
- 3 ⅓ cups (415 g) all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups (340 g) chocolate chips I used half regular semisweet chips and half mini semisweet chips
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- In a large bowl, stir together melted butter and sugars.1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, 1 ½ cups (300 g) light brown sugar, ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- Add eggs, one at a time, stirring until combined.2 large eggs
- Stir in vanilla extract and maple syrup.1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ cup (60 ml) maple syrup²
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.3 ⅓ cups (415 g) all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons cornstarch, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt
- Gradually add flour mixture to wet ingredients, stirring until completely combined.
- Stir in chocolate chips.2 cups (340 g) chocolate chips
- Cover bowl with clear wrap and allow to chill for at least 30 minutes (chilling!? I told you, this recipe is the worst) and up to 3 days (the cookies look and taste even better after a longer chill. Note the dough will be harder to scoop after a longer chill time, just let it sit at room temperature a bit until it's scoopable)
- While the dough is chilling, preheat oven to 350F (175C) and prepare cookie sheets by lining with parchment paper (if you don’t have parchment paper, you can bake directly on an ungreased cookie sheet).
- Scoop about 2 Tablespoons of cookie dough and roll into balls, making them slightly taller than they are wide. Place them at least 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheet.
- Bake about 13 minutes (cookies will appear to be a bit underdone, but edges should be just beginning to turn golden brown).
- Allow cookies to cool completely on cookie sheet. If desired, gently press a few chocolate chips on top of the warm cookies.
- Keep unbaked cookie dough in fridge while waiting to put the next batch in the oven, and do not place cookie dough on a hot cookie sheet.
Notes
¹Butter
You do not want your butter to be too hot or it may melt the sugar and you’ll have a very runny dough. Best practice would be to cut the butter into about Tablespoon-sized pieces, microwave in 10-second increments (stirring after each) until it is just completely melted, and then allow it to sit for 5 minutes. If your butter is too hot it could make your cookie dough or resulting cookies greasy.²Maple Syrup
I don’t recommend leaving out the maple syrup, it is critical to the flavor and is what makes these truly the “worst” chocolate chip cookies. In a pinch, honey or even corn syrup or golden syrup will work as a substitute to give you the same texture, but the flavor will not be the same. Pure maple syrup and imitation “pancake syrup” both work just fine here, the former lends itself to slightly flatter cookies and the latter to slightly thicker ones.Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. Cookie dough may be chilled, scooped, individually wrapped in plastic wrap and then frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 months.Gluten Free
A number of readers have commented that this recipe works well when substituting the flour 1:1 with Cup4Cup Gluten Free Flour, but I have not tested this myself.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Related Cookie Recipes That are Also Pretty Terrible But Not As Bad:
I originally published my chocolate chip cookie recipe on 3/21/16. I have since updated it to include new photos and a video, but the recipe has remained unchanged.
✌🏾Monia Ali✌🏾️
If I’m going to use foil how do I adjust the time or temperature?
Sam
I wouldn’t recommend using foil — just use an ungreased cookie sheet and then maybe check them a minute earlier. Hope that helps!!
GWonder
My silipat is perfect with this recipe also ❤️
Nicola
What kind of maple syrup did you use? Thanks.
Sam
I’ve used pure maple syrup and I’ve used processed “pancake syrup” and have loved them both ways! Most recently I used Aunt Jemima and they turned out fantastic!
MYA
By the ingredients I can already tell these cookies are crazy good! I’ve tried a recipe simialar but veganozed being the maple syrup being the star of the show and the cookies were so chewy they were almost toffe like
Sam
Mmm that sounds delicious! I hope you love them, Mya!!
LILy
Can’t you use honey instead of syrup?
Sam
I haven’t tried them using honey so I’m not sure
Kristi
Baked these Lil Devils tonite! They are absolutely the best cookies by far! My kids love them & unfortunately so do I! Even my extremely picky 17 year old liked them. He said they were just “all right” but he consumed 7 in just a few mins! My oldest daughter was ready to fight him because he “took way to many” according to her. Will use this recipe from now on!! Thanks so much for sharing!!!
Sam
Yay! I’m so glad that everyone enjoyed them! Thanks so much for commenting, Kristi! 🙂
Alison
My goodness, you are right… These are absolutely HORRIBLE! Haha, but really, my husband only likes soft chewy cookies (I feel the same way but try my best NOT to eat cookies in general) and these were perfect. Definitely sweet but what else do you want with a cookie… Also, I like salty cookies (weird, maybe) so I used salted butter and salt as you called for it… Just how I like it. So if there are any others out there that like salty/sweet cookies, this worked great. Thanks for the recipe, definitely signing up to see your others!
Sam
Haha! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe, Alison! Thank you for commenting! 🙂
Alison
My goodness, you are right… These are absolutely HORRIBLE! Haha, but really, my husband only likes soft chewy cookies (I feel the same way but try my best NOT to eat cookies in general) and these were perfect. Definitely sweet but what else do you want with a cookie… Also, I like salty cookies (weird, maybe) so I used salted butter and salt as you called for it… Just how I like it. So if there are any others out there that like salty/sweet cookies, this worked great. Thanks for the recipe, definitely signing up to see your others!
Anna
I made these cookies last night. Being that my family is from Maine, I had to try these because of the maple syrup. As I was reading the recipe, I realized that this recipe called for A LOT of sugar (Definitely more sugar than my family is accustomed to eating.). I reduced the sugar by 3/4 cup. I also forgot to add in the last 1/4 cup of flour. They were still quite sweet. I chilled the dough for the recommended 30 minutes. We have a gas stove. It runs at a normal temp (based on the oven thermometer.). I used a tablespoon to measure out the dough. I didn’t bother to form them more than what they were coming out of the measuring spoon. I baked them on top of parchment paper, which was placed over top of a large, well used, Pampered Chef pizza stone. I ended up having to bake the cookies for 4 extra minutes (So, 17 minutes total.). I also had two pizza stones in the oven on two different racks. The cookies on the bottom were not as done as the ones on top. The cookies on the top rack came out cakier than the ones on the lower rack, which came out fuggier. I let them cool on their stones. Next time, I’m cutting the brown sugar by 1/2 yet again, so I’ll only be using 1/2 C brown sugar, 1/4 cup white sugar and 1/4 -1/3 cup of real maple syrup. We actually couldn’t taste the maple flavour at all in the cookies. If I would have followed the recipe exactly, we would not have been able to eat them because of the sugar content. In that case I would have to have given the recipe a 1 out of 5, but since I omitted half the sugar, they turned out almost perfect for us. I took photos, but don’t see a way to post them here.
Sam
Glad you enjoyed overall. I don’t have an option to share pictures in my comments but you can always share on my Facebook page or tag me on Instagram.
Carolyn
Best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made and taste soft and fresh the next day (and probably the third, if they lasted that long). Followed the recipe precisely. I think cooling the butter, and dough (along with the corn starch) is the key to these cookies success.
Recipe seems like it would do well with different add ins and variations. I may try adding cocoa and oats next time.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Carolyn! Love the idea of the add-ins! Thanks for coming back to let me know how they turned out for you 🙂
Na'Esa
Hey Sam I was wondering will adding the Maple Syrup change the flavor of the cookie? I’m making these for a family picnic & didn’t want them to be overly sweet.
Sam
Hi Na’Esa, I’m not sure exactly what you mean. Are you asking if it will make them taste like maple syrup? I don’t think that they taste like maple syrup, neither did any of my taste testers, I think the maple syrup just gives them an extra depth of flavor that most chocolate chip cookies don’t have. I hope that helps, but please let me know if you have any other questions! 🙂
Allie
Love these cookies! Mine do not spread like yours though. I use an ice cream scoop and they stay in that shape. What could that mean? Yours just look so pretty.
Sam
Hi Allie! It sounds like too much flour may have been used, try to measure the flour by spooning it into a measuring cup (rather than packing it in or scooping) and then level off using a straightedge like the back of a knife. I hope that helps!
Joanna
Sam,
Omg! You were so right, these were the WORST CCC.=X They were everything you said they were.:) I tried your recipe yesterday and love how the maple adds to the sweetness and I think to the chewy factor as well. I did cook mine until the edges & tops were light brown. The edges were just the way we love our CCC(alil crunchy on the outside; but chewy in the middle). If there was an attachment button for pics, I’d show you how mines came out. We will be using your recipe from now on. Thank you for sharing it especially the secret ingredient. At first I was skeptical; but now I’m a total believer.:)
Sam
😀 I am SO GLAD to hear that you enjoyed them, Joanna!! Thank you for letting me know how they turned out for you!! 🙂
Rabea
Hi! Did you measure 1 cup of butter before or after melting it? Thanks
Sam
Hi Rabea, it would be measured before. 1 cup of butter is 2 sticks US or 226 grams. I hope that helps! 🙂
Rachel Resnikoff
I’m looking forward to trying these. I’ve never put cornstarch in cookies before; I’m guessing this might account for them staying soft longer? Is this the case?
I actually prefer my cookies crunchy (at least on the outside). So, I’m considering leaving the cornstarch out. Your thoughts?
Thanks,
Rachel
Sam
Hi Rachel! The cornstarch does help keep them soft, but if you’re looking for crunchy cookies I don’t know that I’d recommend baking these. You *could* try baking them a little longer than indicated to help make them crunchy on the outside, but I’m not sure how well that would work as there are a lot of elements to these cookies that make them soft and chewy beyond the cornstarch — the melted butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, etc.
Hanna
Hi! So baking large, think, chewy chocolate chip cookies are my style. I don’t know why, but they are. I like to give them to people as presents to so that makes it easier. Do you think it would still come out if I put a lot of dough in one cookie so it was really big?
Sam
Hi Hanna! It depends on exactly how big you’re trying to make the cookies.
If you mean making them with say… 3-4 Tablespoons of dough, I’d say you’d be fine (though they would need to bake longer). However if you’re thinking like a cookie-cake made on a pizza pan, I would worry that the edges would crisp and get hard while the centers would stay quite underbaked, does that make sense?