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.
Amber-Ann L Ellis
Okay. Mine came out puffy and not at all addictive.
Mistakes that could be contributing factors: I used my kitchen-aid mixer for everything.Kept it running on 1 the whole time and just chucked things in. I accidentally added one cup of flower before id added all the wet ingredients. I didn’t patiently add one egg at a time (but they were room temperature!) and i used salted butter and didn’t reduce the other salt.
Which was my fatal mistake?
Mariana
I love this recipe and have made it a couple times. I just recently made them and they came out like scones. I have double acting baking powder only and i cant remember what i did the last two times to get them perfect. If i use only double acting powder do i need to use baking soda at all? Or should i use 1/2tsp each?
Sam
Hmm, that’s odd! Double acting baking powder shouldn’t be the problem… do you usually measure your ingredients using measuring cups or weights? It sounds like too much flour may have accidentally been added, could that have been it?
Valeska Moya
Hi Sam, I don’t have parchment paper at my house for the cookie sheet, what can I do instead?
Sam
You can just bake them right on the cookie sheet (no need to grease it or anything), they may just need a minute less. I hope you love them!
Katie
My body is sad it found your recipe. Although my cookies came out a lot thicker than the ones in your pictures, they were amazing. Disgustingly amazing. Plus your blog post was an awesome bonus- I’ll make anything that has me laughing out loud 😊
Sam
Haha, I’m just now seeing this but I’m so glad you found my blog, even if it did make your body sad! 😂
Kaycee
Sam, Sam, Sam!!!! I’m so happy I found your recipes! They’re so delicious and so easy to follow. I have made your chocolate chip muffins (twice), banana muffins, and now these horrible, horrible chocolate chip cookies. They are the absolute WORST cookies I’ve ever had….so much so that I can’t wait to make them again!!!!!!!!!!
I should note that this is my first time ever making homemade cookies (Nestle Tollhouse doesn’t count) and they turned out great.
The only issue I ran into is the cookie bottoms browned a little more than I would have liked. I used parchment paper but I’m thinking about getting a silicone baking mat. Any thoughts on using this? Or maybe I left them in the oven too long?
Anyhoo, I’m going to try them again this week using Aunt Jemima’s instead of maple syrup (just to see if I notice a difference), parchment paper (before I invest in a silicone mat), and taking them out the oven just a tad bit sooner than I did the first time. I’ll update my post once I make them.
Thanks again for the recipe.
Sam
I’m so glad they were such a hit and that you are enjoying the recipes, Kaycee!! 🙂 I haven’t had any issues with the bottoms browning on parchment so it’s possible maybe they were in the oven a minute or two to long, but I also do LOVE using my silicone baking mat and it would probably help with the cookie bottoms (I use a Silpat one).
Thank you so much for commenting and I’m sorry that I’m just now seeing your comment!
Sheri
Not sure what happened but my cookies poofed up beautifully in the oven & then just completely flattened like pancakes in the oven. I let the dough chill over 1 hour & all of my ingredients were fresh(baking soda, etc). I followed the directions to a T & i’ve been baking for over 30 years. Not sure if anyone else has had the same issue. Don’t think I would make them again. Did anyone else have the same issue?
Kim
Hi Sam, I was wondering if I can use salted butter instead of unsalted? Would I just illuminate the salt it calls for since using salted butter or does it matter. Thanks so much.
Sam
Hi Kim, you can definitely use salted butter, just cut the salt that the recipe calls for down to 1/2 teaspoon instead of 1 teaspoon. I hope that helps, and I really hope you love the cookies 🙂
Marcie
Has anyone made them with actual maple syrup? I’m afraid the taste/consistency will change without the corn syrup from the pancake syrup (e.g., Aunt Jemima).
Sam
I’ve made them with real maple syrup plenty of times, they will be fine 🙂 I hope you love them!
Amy
Sam – would you say it’s better to use pure maple syrup or something like Log Cabin? Or does it even matter? Thanks so much. Can’t wait to try these!
Sam
Hi Amy! Honestly it doesn’t matter very much in the outcome, I prefer pancake syrup because I feel like the flavor comes through slightly more (probably because of the artificial flavors in it, honestly) and because it’s cheaper but I’ve made it with both kinds of syrup and they always come out fantastic, so the choice is yours! 🙂
Amy Briggs
Awesome! I’m going with pancake syrup (we aren’t huge pure maple syrup fans)! I really appreciate the quick reply! Heading to the kitchen now! Thanks again! ~Amy.
Casey Threatte
Just made them today, for the 1st time with some “small batch” vermont rum barrel aged maple syrup!
Sugarspun….I hate You! (In a very good kind of way!)😙
Kaycee
I made them with real maple syrup and they’re fantastic. Next time I may use Aunt Jemima’s to see if I notice a difference.
I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. These are great!
Carol
Came out flat but delicious.
Lori
I made them tonight with half pancake syrup and half real maple syrup, I prefer them with all pancakes Syrup just has a better flavor. I made them last week with all pancakes syrup just had a better maple flavor. These cookies are delicious and very addictive . Love them!
Sam
I’ve found the same, and while I do love pure maple syrup I always pick the pancake syrup for these cookies now. Glad to hear they were a hit, Lori!! 🙂
Crystal
These cookies look amazing however I have a request for walnut chocolate chip cookies. What would you recommend? Could I use half the chocolate chips and replace the other half with walnuts?
Sam
You could definitely do that! You don’t want to overload the dough with add-ins, but you could probably even get away with 1 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and a cup of chopped walnuts. Sounds delicious! 🙂
Crystal
So I tried the recipe as is (figured I’d try the walnuts next time). They were tasty but they were much flatter than the ones in your pictures. Also the cookies varied in how they cooked from one side of the cookie sheet to the other. Any suggestions? I’m new at baking so I need all the help I can get!
Sam
Hmm, it sounds like your oven may be baking unevenly, I would get an oven thermometer to make sure it is at the right temperature (my old oven was always 20 degrees colder than what it said, and that can really mess up a recipe) and maybe try rotating the pan halfway through the baking time since it sounds like one side is cooking faster than the other.
The flatness may be because the oven temperature isn’t right or they may need just a bit more flour, if your oven is fine I’d add an extra Tablespoon or two. I hope that helps!
Sharlene ross
Doubled this recipe to give some cookie dough to my neighbors during a snowstorm (needed to borrow baking soda!!). Came out great doubled, and we’re a hit!! These cookies are truly the best!! Thanks for sharing!!!!
Kristen
ummm….so 2-3 TBSP is a LOT more than you used in the video (and won’t make that many cookies). The cookies are HUGE and I had to bake them extra. Maybe you meant tsp? That scoop you are using isn’t that big!
Sam
Nope, it’s meant to be Tbsp and the recipe is written for that 🙂 I’m using a 1 1/2 Tbsp-sized scoop and I make heaping spoonfuls or use two of them to make a cookie dough ball. You can definitely make them smaller if you want, though, they will just need less time to cook. I’d say the cookies in the video are probably closer to 2 Tbsp than 3.
Azya
These are amazing! We use this recipe 2 times a week and they are delicous! My 10 year old likes to make them and even though they are a bit difficult for her, she loves them!
Sam
I’m so glad to hear that you enjoy them so much! And major kudos to your 10 year old for making them herself!!! 🙂
Andria
I followed the recipe exactly. My dough was dry and struggled to stay in shape on the pan. I made them last night and today they are hard as a rock. Any idea? I used pure maple syrup and followed each step precisely.
Sam
Hmm, did you weigh the flour or did you use a measuring cup? It sounds like there was too much flour in the dough.
If you use a measuring cup, I would recommend spooning the flour into the measuring cup and then leveling it off rather than dipping and scooping. I hope that helps!
Leah
All I have is “lite” syrup… will that do?
Sam
I haven’t tried it but I think Lite syrup would be fine
Sheree A Gunn
Even with the disclosure, I was not prepared for this Deliciousness. Thank you for this recipe. Just as awful as promised.