Chocolate Chunk Cookies
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This chocolate chunk cookie recipe delivers the ultimate cookie—chewy with perfectly crisp edges and gooey chunks of chocolate in every bite!
I’ve been baking chocolate chip cookies since the fifth grade, and the classic Nestlé Toll House recipe still holds up. I’ve tried making improvements—resting the dough overnight, browning the butter, and swapping flours—but the extra effort rarely makes a noticeable difference. That said, the Toll House recipe has its flaws (sorry, Toll House!). As written, the cookies often turn out too flat.
To make the cookies more foolproof, I use a bit less sugar, more flour, and always chill the dough. This chocolate chunk cookie recipe is a slightly upgraded version, featuring two types of chocolate chunks instead of basic chocolate chips. Tender, puffy, and fudgy with perfectly crisp edges, they truly are the ultimate cookies!
What You’ll Need To Make Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Butter: Softened butter creates a tender, chewy texture and slightly puffy cookies; it also adds richness.
- Granulated Sugar & Dark Brown Sugar: Together, they add sweetness, moisture, and a hint of molasses flavor, helping the cookies develop a crisp edge and chewy center.
- Vanilla Extract: Rounds out the sweetness and adds depth to the cookie’s flavor.
- Large Eggs: Give the cookies structure and moisture.
- Salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances the rich chocolate flavor.
- Baking Soda: Helps the cookies rise and develop a lovely golden color.
- All-Purpose Flour: Forms the cookie’s base and structure. I highly recommend King Arthur All-Purpose Flour for this recipe—it’s high in protein and gluten and helps the cookies hold their shape.
- Bittersweet Chocolate: Adds gooey pockets of intense chocolate flavor.
- Milk Chocolate: Balances the bittersweet chocolate with a creamy sweetness and smooth texture.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
To begin, combine the butter and both sugars in the bowl of a hand-held or stand mixer.
Beat until light, fluffy, and cafe au lait-colored. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary.
Add the vanilla and eggs and beat for 2 minutes more. Scrape down the bowl.
Add the salt and baking soda and beat briefly until evenly combined.
Add the flour and both chocolates.
Mix on low speed until the flour is completely blended and the chocolate is evenly distributed throughout the dough.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or scrape the dough into an airtight container and let rest in the refrigerator until firm, a few hours. When you’re ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop the dough in 1.5-tablespoon balls onto prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
Bake for 11 to 13 minutes, until golden around the edges but still soft and pale in the center. Let cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days; freeze for longer storage.
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Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (packed) dark brown sugar (fine to substitute light)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2½ cups all purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off (preferably King Arthur flour - see note)
- 6 oz bittersweet chocolate, best quality such as Ghriardelli, roughly chopped
- 2 oz milk chocolate, best quality such as Ghirardelli, finely chopped
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and both sugars for 3 minutes, or until light, fluffy, and cafe au lait-colored (use high speed on a hand mixer and medium speed on a stand mixer). Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary. Add the vanilla and eggs and beat for 2 minutes more. Scrape down the bowl. Add the salt and baking soda and beat briefly until evenly combined. Add the flour and both chocolates, and mix on low speed until the flour is completely blended and the chocolate is evenly distributed throughout the dough.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or scrape the dough into an airtight container and let rest in the refrigerator until firm, a few hours. (Alternatively, if you don't want to wait, form the dough into balls on the baking sheet as instructed below and chill in the fridge until firm, about 30 minutes.)
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set a rack in the middle position. Line a 13 x 18-in (33 x 46-cm) baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Drop the dough in firmly packed 1.5-tablespoon balls onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. (I use a #40/1.5-T cookie scoop with a wire trigger.) Bake for 11 to 13 minutes, until golden around the edges but still soft and pale in the center. Let cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining cookie dough. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Some readers have had issues with the cookies being flat. This can happen as a result of using a "softer" flour. I highly recommend King Arthur All Purpose Flour for this recipe—it is high in protein and gluten, and helps cookies hold their shape.
- Freezing Instructions: The cookie dough can be frozen for up to 3 months. Roll the dough into balls, let set on a baking sheet in the freezer, then place in a sealable bag and press out as much air as possible. Bake as needed directly from the freezer. (Allow 1 to 2 minutes longer in the oven.) The baked cookies can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Let the cookies cool completely and store in an airtight container separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Before serving, remove the cookies from the container and let them come to room temperature.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Best cookies ever! So good. However, I will never scoop them after being in the refrigerator again. Lol 😉
🙂
So, ingredients were mixed about 2 hrs ago, then refrigerated. First batch in oven melted flat. To remedy, do you suggest leave remaining dough in fridge overnight? Add flour now? Add flour later? Aargh. Thx
Hi J, While 2 hours should be sufficient, I think you could try chilling them for a bit longer (or overnight). And, you could experiment by adding a little more flour to part of the batch to see if that makes a difference in the baked cookies. Hope that helps!
Love this recipe especially for my B & B. I have ready made cookie dough in the freezer for my sweet treats I put out nightly. Since I do a different baked good each night, this is a life saver to be ready made. I used cheap Safeway brand flour with no issues. Possibly some of the reviewers didn’t let the dough firm up enough.
Wow! Sweet treats nightly, what a great Host! Where is your B & B located?
These are the best chocolate chip/chunk cookies I’ve ever made – by far. Crisp and chewy, even after a few days. I made the first batch three nights ago after chilling the dough only an hour or so, and those were great. I ate the last one today and it was still crisp and chewy. The second batch is in the oven now, straight from the refrigerator, and with about 5 minutes to go, they look fantastic. Thanks for a winner!
Jenn, leaving these in the frig makes scooping difficult. Should I let the dough warm up after taking it from the frig or should I form the cookies and let them sit in the frig. It was a nightmare trying to scoop the dough after sitting overnight
I wouldn’t let the cookie dough come to room temperature; if you do, the cookies will be flat when you bake them. If you’d like, you can scoop the dough before putting it into the fridge.
I thought I had a REALLY GOOD chocolate chip recipe until I tried this one! Oh my goodness! It is my new FAVE. I don’t think it is possible to have a better one!! 🙂 !!
Hi Jenn, I found out I used the wrong measuring cup and only added half the amount of the flour. Can I let the dough come to room temperature (I chilled it overnight) and add the other half of the flour and save the batch?
Hi Serena, Yes I think that’d be fine. 🙂
This is my go to recipe for chocolate chip cookies… my families favorite! This recipe makes perfect cookies every time I make them according to the recipe. Sometimes I substitute dark chocolate chips and it still tastes great.
Made these cookies last weekend and they were great! Puffed up nicely and had great chocolate flavor. I followed the recipe and instructions exactly, and chilled for 8 hours. Will definitely make these again!
Hi Jenn,
I wanted to take a minute to thank you for your hard work! I have made several of your recipes including this one, and all of them have been yummy and very well liked by my family. I love to cook and bake, and I find your recipes to be easy to make and time consuming enough to produce great results. I think the balance you have between your training and being a busy mom resonate in your recipes and make them doable by any home cook. I’ve already preordered your cookbook, and I’m anxious to try out those recipes!! As for this recipe, I’ve made chocolate chip cookies for years, and I’ve always thought that the softness of the butter makes the difference between flat cookies and those that aren’t flat enough. The extra mixing and refrigeration of the dough keeps the texture more consistent and helps produce great results every time. Again, your trial and error has solved a problem for me! Again, thanks for your hard work and for inspiring me to try new recipes!