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.
Peter
Made them last night… absolutely scrumptious 😋
Margaret
Can I leave dough in fridge over night
Sam
Sure thing! 🙂
Karla
I haven’t even baked these yet, and i already know they’re the best worst cookie EVER. Modifications include reducing sugar (boy, you Americans dig things super sweet!), using one 250gm bag of DARK chocolate chips and topping up to two cups with pecan chunks. OMG, the BATTER, though! It’s remarkable i haven’t eaten it all waiting for the oven to heat….
Thanks for this miracle!
Sam
I think you’ll love them even more when they finish baking. 🙂
Quinlan
This is my go-to recipe but I do have to admit to tweaking it constantly 😅 lately I’ve been doing brown butter instead of just melted butter and topping it with a bit of flaky salt before they go in the oven
I always make a double batch and keep them prepped in my freezer so I can pull out like a ball or two and then pop them in the oven from frozen.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoy them so much! 🙂
TAVANA K BAIN
This recipe is AMAZING!!!🙂🙃The cookies are the BEST I have ever baked!!! moist, chocolatey and delicious!!!! I must say the syrup does enhance the flavor.Thank you.Thank you. Thank you. Blessings.😘😋🤗👏🍪
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Tavana! 🙂
cookie lover
im just in love with this!!
i did honey instead of syrup and i wasnt the clearest with the mesarments but they are so good!!! i baked the first tray at just 175C and 10 minutes they were a bit burned ( they are still tastefull cuz the cookies are so good nothing can ruin them ) and the next one i baked at 150C for 8 minutes and left them in the oven for another 5 minutes they were perfect and my whole fam keeps asking for more cookies! this is by far my fac recipy
Rose
AWSOME cookie
Easy to make. I make them weekly. My husband loves ❤️Them. Thanks for a fast fun recipe!
Sam
I am so glad that this recipe has become a staple in your house, Rose. Thanks so much for commenting. 🙂
TAVANA K BAIN
AWESOMENESS!!!!
Dusty
Thanks for this! Gonna give them a whirl on my day off.
Sam
I hope you love them! 🙂
Helen
This is the best chocolate chip cookies. I simply loved it. I have tried other recipes and always come back to this. Whenever I feel like having chocolate chip cookies, this is my to go recipe, and this is foolproof every single time. Try chilling it for 2 days in the fridge then bake it. It tastes even better !!!. I simply don’t know why there are negative comments here, don’t believe it. If you watch her video, it is very clear and if you follow the directions, you cannot go wrong.
Sam
Thank you so much, Helen! I am so glad you enjoyed them so much! 🙂
Sharon
Just wanted to let you know that I love your recipes! I always had issues with making cookies, but with your instructions and tips, I am making great cookies….finally. I love these chocolate chip cookies, with no changes to the recipe. I have made lots of you cakes and cookies, with no flops and they were all loved. Thanks so much!!!
Sharon
Sam
You are very welcome, Sharon! I’m so glad you enjoyed them. I love to hear the success stories. 🙂
Clark
Ummm…… So I’m going to assume, or at least hope that you’re being sarcastic about the maple syrup and gold comparison. Pure maple syrup is $1/oz max, gold is over $1000/oz. Love the cookies though
Anon
these cookies are the worst, I was in the middle of a keto diet but they tempted me… And here I am, no longer losing weight lol. The cookies turned out legendary. After a while the same cookie got slightly boring so I added walnuts and
oh my god
the walnuts made it better
Now my entire diet is just these cookies
Sam
Well that sounds like a really good diet to me. 😉
Jenni
These cookies turn everyone in my house back into little kids. Everytime I bake these the kitchen parade starts and then the battle to hold onto them until they cool begins . I even have one that eats too much and gets a stomach ache and everyone gets sugar zoomies and alot of laughs. This silliness is EVERY single time! All this from a cookie!
I absolutely love them. Recipes that bring family together and become the centerpiece of great memories and laughter is what makes them special…priceless. Thank you for that! 😋
Sam
I am so happy to read this, Jenni! I’m so glad these cookies bring so much joy to your household, comments like this are what keep me sharing my recipes, thank you so much for commenting <3
Aisha
These cookies have become a staple in my house. My son requested them as his desert for his HS graduation, and I trade them to my neighbors of house work. They are universally loved and my only change to the recipe is to add my chocolate chips lol. Thank you!
Sam
I am so thrilled to hear this, Aisha! Thank you so much for letting me know what a hit this recipe has been in your household, I really appreciate it! 🙂
Karen
I have been baking for over 35 years and these were without a doubt the WORST chocolate chips cookies I have ever made – and I’m dead serious – not being sarcastic at all. I may as well called them chocolate chip pancakes – they spread out so thin. I followed the recipe to a “t” and followed ALL the tips at the end of the recipe – and it was a huge flop – and huge disappointment for the company I had over. Will never make these again… going back to my “mrs fields” copycat recipe … ugh!
Sam
Hi Karen! I’m so sorry to hear this. Unfortunately if you cookies spread out too much while baking the sugars may have been added to the butter while it was still hot. This will cause the sugars to melt and your cookies to spread too much. 🙁
Karen kordan
Hi Sam…. thank you for the reply, but like I said, I’ve been baking for more than 35 years. I know when butter is hot. (I should have taken a picture, because the butter was even cooler than yours looked in the video). Anyhow – I added 1/2 cup of flour and 1/4 tsp of salt to the remaining cookie batter that I had left (it was probably 1/2 of the batter) and baked some more cookies and they turned out perfectly. I know in my mind that 99% of chocolate chip cookie recipes have the ratio of 1/2 cup of butter to 2 cups of flour, and when I tried your recipe I questioned that but saw that the reviews were great and followed the recipe…. but if I ever make these again, I would absolutely use 4 cups of flour… 3-1/4 cups of flour is simply not enough IMHO. I DO like the addition of maple syrup tho!
Kimbra Stanek
After many recipes and years of baking this has been my go to Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe for the last 3 years. They are my sweet treat I keep in the freezer. I always use pure maple syrup, Ghirardelli semi-sweet chips and I love the idea of using half mini semi sweet chips in the recipe. Only things I adjusted were my cookie scoop size and baking time and I also use your idea of making them slightly taller when rolling them in balls to bake. Just thought I’d finally post a Thank You for your recipe.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Kimbra! 🙂
Bob
You know I made a BIG mistake making these for Christmas for my customers….they have been begging for MORE here in MAY and they have started asking ….these cookies are the WORST hahahah
Sam
🤣 Sounds like a great problem to have. 😉