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.
Lena
This is my favorite choco chip recipe ever, constantly getting asked by people to make them a batch!! I wanted to know though, can I make a batch and just leave it in the freezer so that way whenever someone asks for some, I can just take them out the freezer and start baking?
Sam
Sure thing! I actually did a post on how to freeze cookie dough recently. I ALWAYS have these in my freezer. 🙂
Carissa
I’ve made this recipe a few times however I forgot to add the cornstarch! The batch is cooling in the fridge. Will the cookies turn out ok?
Sam
Hi Carissa! They should still be ok. They may spread a little bit more and may not be quite as soft. Enjoy! 🙂
Kate
Hi .. i d been making this recipe for years now.. but I am curious… has it always been 2tsp of cornstarch? I just made a batch and they seem completely different and I can’t find where I messed up. I swear it used to be 1tsp of cornstarch!!
Sam
Hi Kate! It has always been 2 tsp. What happened to the cookies? I may be able to help trouble shoot. If they didn’t spread, is it possible there was too much flour in the cookies? Do you weigh your flour?
Silva Minasian
Any tips on doubling the recipe?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Silva! This recipe doubles nicely. You shouldn’t have any issues 😊
Pulse
Yummy! I added some chopped pecans too. Thank you for a different recipe. 🙂
Ila
You are an excellent writer!!! So entertaining I think I’ll make a batch and then re read the post while I mindlessly consume the worst cookie ever💕💕💕💕💕💕😋😋😋😋😋😋😋😋😋😋😋😋
Samantha
Hi! These look amazing, but I just have one question. I only have dark brown sugar- can I use it in place of light brown sugar? Would it work as well?
Sam
Hi Samantha! You can use the dark brown sugar here. The cookies will just be a little bit sweeter and more rich. 🙂
Kathy
Hi,
These are my favorite cookies and need to make a non-dairy version. Any recommendations on which non-dairy option for butter to use? Thanks!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Kathy! A few others have used vegan butter with success. This isn’t our area of expertise, so we can’t give a specific recommendation unfortunately 🙁
Emily
Hey Kathy! I made these with Country Crock olive oil based plant butter once and they turned out great 😊 I’ve made them many times but once when we were dairy free for my daughter’s allergy (which she thankfully outgrew) and you shouldn’t have any trouble. Be sure to use dairy free chocolate chips as well!
Nicole
The best, I mean worst chocolate chip cookies ever! My family eat these cookies so fast that I only got one. Even my son, who hates chocolate, couldn’t stay away.
Miyuki
Hello. Do you have a metric measurement of this recipe by any chance? Cups here in Japan is small compared in the US. Thank you
Sam
Hi Miyuki! You can find all of the metric measurements in parentheses after the ingredients. 🙂
Nik
Way too sweet. So sweet they make your teeth hurt. Wanted to love them, but definitely couldn’t.
Katherine
You can try adding dark chocolate and sprinkle sea salt over the top to even the sweetness.
Kathy Kish
We loved this recipe and will continue to use it as the best chocolate chip cookie out there. Thank you so much for this recipe!!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks so much for the review, Kathy ❤️ Enjoy!
Kaitlin
Can I add Almond extract to these? I love Almond extract just not sure how it will effect the maple syrup.
Sam
Hi Kaitlin! Almond extract should work just fine. 🙂
Bridget
I make these allllll of the time! I just got an order for gluten free. Anyone had success?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yes! Several people have had success making them gluten-free. 😊
Meredith
This is the most amazing chocolate chip cookie recipe I have ever made! I swapped out AP flour for oat flour and I felt it made the recipe taste even better! I have tried countless recipes with amazing ratings, to only end up throwing it out because my family always felt they were missing something.. and then I made this recipe and now I ONLY make this recipe when my family wants cookies because it truly tastes like when my grandma would make cookies when I was younger and no premade dough or store bought can come close ! I make a huge batch and I freeze cookie portions so whenever I am craving cookies, I can just pull them out of the freezer and pop them in the oven!
Christine
Did yiu just grind up old fashioned oats to make your oat flour?
Meredith
No I bought oat flour but I’m sure you can just grind up oats but just make sure to grind it up enough that it’s super fine bc I am not sure how it will turn out if large oat bits are in it…
Emily
These cookies have been an absolute favorite of mine since I found them in 2016. I love to go all out using Irish butter and Mexican vanilla for the richest flavor! I recently made a batch and froze 2 dozen balls of dough to cook at a later time. I was wondering how I should adjust the cooking time when I make them from frozen. Thanks!
GiannaTheChef
Just bake them 2-5 minutes longer than normal! Freezing balls of dough is a good idea…