These HUGE, thick chocolate chip cookies are the kind you’d find front and center in a bakery case. My recipe takes just 15 minutes to prep before chilling and yields an incredible, gourmet chocolate chip cookie. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Bakery-Inspired Chocolate Chip Cookies
We’ve made giant and mini chocolate chip cookies, thin & crispy chocolate chip cookies, and even my best chocolate chip cookies… but these thick chocolate chip cookies are a first! Another gourmet-style cookie, these super thick and fat cookies are tender, soft, melt-in-your mouth, and oh-so-chocolatey.
They’re the sort you’d spy behind bakery glass and just wouldn’t be able to resist ordering one… or a dozen.
But before we get started, it’s so important that I note that while they are thick, these cookies are NOT cakey (dry, cakey cookies are unwelcome here!).
In order to achieve this tricky balance of melt-in-your-mouth-ness AND pillowy thickness, it’s very important you don’t accidentally overmeasure your flour, or your cookies could actually end up cakey. I recommend using a kitchen scale to be safe, but if you don’t have one of those (you should really get one), check out my post on how to (properly) measure flour!
What You Need
Most of these ingredients will be pretty familiar, but let’s chat about a few that can be customized to your liking:
- Brown sugar. You can use either light or dark brown sugar, or do what I do and use equal parts of each. Personally, I find that using all dark brown sugar yields a cookie that’s just a bit too rich.
- Cake flour. For someone who doesn’t stand for cakey cookies, I’ve found cake flour has made its way into an awful lot of my cookie recipes, recently. From my blueberry muffin cookies and coffee cake cookies to my Lofthouse cookies, I’ve found that, while not a typical cookie ingredient, cake flour contributes to the thick, tender texture we’re going for here. It creates a fine crumb that really does melt in your mouth. You can substitute all-purpose flour (instructions below), but the texture won’t be the same.
- Vanilla extract. I love using my homemade vanilla extract in these cookies. By the way… if you start making a batch of homemade vanilla now, it will be ready just in time for holiday baking 😉
- Chocolate. Chocolate chips work great (opt for semisweet), but I really enjoy using 8-10 oz of chopped dark chocolate or semisweet chocolate bars. The bars just melt nicer and leave varying sizes of chocolate throughout the dough.
- Cornstarch. Okay, this one isn’t customizable or negotiable, but it is highly important and therefore worth mentioning! Cornstarch helps with the thickness of these cookies (it prevents them from spreading too much) and their melt-in-your-mouth (I have repeated this phrase so often only because it is so relevant, I promise) tenderness. Don’t skip it!
SAM’S TIP: Add the dry ingredients gradually! If you add the flour all at once, you will have a tough time mixing everything together and your dough will be dryer and more difficult to work with than necessary (and this is already a stiff dough).
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Thick Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Cream together the softened butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and stir well to combine.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then gradually add them to the wet ingredients.
- Fold in the chocolate until thoroughly incorporated, then cover the dough and let it chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Scoop ⅓-cup sized scoops onto a parchment lined baking sheets, spacing at least 2″ apart.
- Bake for 13-14 minutes at 375F or until the edges look slightly golden brown. The centers will still be a bit underdone and fragile when you remove them from the oven, so let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet before enjoying.
SAM’S TIP: I use an ice cream scoop for this dough since we are going for huge chocolate chip cookies. You can always drop the dough right on the baking sheet, but I like to roll mine into smooth balls to make them more uniform first.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you don’t let these cookies cool completely on their baking sheets, they will likely fall apart on you (they are super fragile while warm). This isn’t a bad thing, but it can be unexpected if you are were planning to enjoy the cookies right after baking!
Yes! This dough can stay tightly covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. The dough might be a bit hard to scoop at first, so you can let it sit at room temperature for a bit to soften back up.
Unfortunately I don’t have a great substitute. I know sometimes bakers use tapioca starch and arrowroot powder instead, but I’m not sure how they would work here. If you do try either of these, please let me know how it goes for you!
Love these cookies? Try my thick peanut butter chocolate chunk cookies next!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Big Thick Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar firmly packed (use light, dark, or a blend of the two)
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature preferred
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups (450 g) cake flour (SEE NOTE – DO NOT SUB ALL PURPOSE FLOUR WITHOUT READING NOTE!!)
- 2 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 cup (340 g) semisweet chocolate chips see note
Recommended Equipment
- Ice cream scoop
Instructions
- Combine butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer (or stand mixer) to beat until light and well-creamed.1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar, ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- Add eggs and vanilla extract and stir well.2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.4 cups (450 g) cake flour, 2 Tablespoon cornstarch, 2 teaspoon baking powder, ¾ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- Gradually add dry ingredients to wet, stirring until completely combined.
- Add chocolate chips and use a spatula to fold in until well distributed.2 cup (340 g) semisweet chocolate chips
- Cover bowl and chill for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat oven to 375F (190C).
- Once dough has chilled, uncover and scoop into ⅓-cup sized scoops (I use an ice cream scoop). Drop onto prepared baking sheet, spacing at least 2” apart, and bake for 13-14 minutes, until edges are just beginning to turn light golden brown. Allow cookies to cool before removing from the baking sheet, cookies will be fragile and prone to breaking while warm and will appear under-baked in the center if they’re broken into before they’re cooled completely.
Notes
Flour
I recommend cake flour for best results. However, you may substitute all-purpose flour (cookies will be less tender). Use 3 ⅔ cup (450g) all-purpose flour. DO NOT use 4 cups of all-purpose flour and please DO NOT make a cake flour substitute where you remove some of the flour and replace it with an equal amount of cornstarch. You’ll end up using too much flour! The commenters who complained of too dry cookies made these mistakes, don’t be one of them!Chocolate
I like to use a blend of mini and regular-sized chocolate chips or I’ll chop up 8 oz of semisweet chocolate and use that instead.Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Cookies may also be frozen after baking and cooling. Wrap tightly and frreeze up to several months.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.
Naomi
Incredible! Definitely recommend using cake flour, and weighing your flour! I saw a couple reviews saying that these cookies were crumbly, it calls for too much flour, etc. Well, cake flour is MUCH lighter than all-purpose, so if you substitute the cake flour, you’ll use a lot less. Weighing it takes out the guesswork, so get a kitchen scale already and MAKE THESE COOKIES! Also make sure to take them out of the oven as soon as you see the edges browning. They’ll look raw in the middle, but I promise that’s what you want with just about any cookie recipe. They will continue cooking on the pan, and once they’re room temperature they’ll be set up and perfect! I also recommend reading the recipe intro and watching the video. Happy baking!
Jill
Your recipe has 2 Tbs of cornstarch however your description has 2 tsp cornstarch? Which is accurate?
The dough is very thick! We will see!!!
Sam
Hi Jill! I am not seeing the discrepancy that you are referring to. You should have 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch. The baking powder is 2 teaspoons. 🙂
Naomi Lowderman
Hello! I have a question about the flour. While measuring and weighing my flour for this recipe, I’m hitting 450g at around 3 cups. Should I go ahead and add the other 1 cup, or stick to 450g? I’m so torn!
Sam
Hi Naomi! The weight measurement is the most accurate so stick to that. 🙂
Naomi Lowderman
I simply couldn’t wait for your reply because my mouth was watering, so I went ahead and made them using the weight measurement and Oh Em Gee!!!!!! These are absolutely fabulous 👌 I did change one thing, something I’d read from a levain copycat recipe; use cold butter, cut into little cubes and cream with sugars. I have no idea if that made any difference, but I’m about to make another batch using your butter method to find out! (yeah, that’s totally the only reason I’m making more of these huge, delectable treats 😉🤤) Thanks Sam!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Naomi! 🙂
Samantha
I made these yesterday for an Australia Day event yesterday and they were incredible!
A billion points for putting the ingredient in cups and grams AND for putting the ingredient amounts in in each section of the instructions!!!! No having to have 2 tabs open, having to scroll back and forth or google conversions. It made the process so fast and i cant wait to try more of your recipes just for these points alone.
Thankfully i rolled all the dough and left some in the fridge, so ive got some left overs that we wont have to share 🙂
Thankyou!
Naomi Lowderman
I really appreciate the measurements in the instructions as well! Very convenient
Anthony Bello
These are amazing cookies!!! You are so right about the cake flour!! I took your advice & chopped up some chocolate bars in various pieces & they came out so delicious! I constantly have the family to make these again.
THANKS for the recipe, I keep this on standby for days that need cheering up!
Cheryl
These are the worst cookies I have ever made! The ratio of wet ingredients to dry was horrible. I followed the directions and they turned out very dry. My significant other is going to have to drink a gallon of milk with them. I will not make them again!
Sam
Hi Cheryl! How frustrating. The dough is thick, but so long as you measure the flour properly (use a scale or use the stir, spoon, and level method) and mix it properly (not all at once!) it should come together all fine. If the cookies were too dry *after* baking, this is a sure sign they were over-baked. If it helps, I have a video tutorial so you can compare your dough/results to mine. You will also want to check to make sure all of your ingredients are fresh. I hope that helps!
Amy
I have made this recipe a few times, and it never disappoints. They are soft, moist, and better tasting than those you buy from the bakery. I always reduce the amount of chocolate as I prefer a smaller chocolate-to-dough ratio (approx 150g). Today was the first time I added some shredded coconut and chopped walnuts. They turned out delicious, and I may add some more next time.
Liz
I followed the instructions as you directed. It’s not a sweet cookie, but the cookies still are good and turned out great! I’ll keep the recipe and definitely make them again.
Allen Feldman
Hi-
I’m not following your comment about the amount of flour. The recipe says 4 cups– is that wrong? I noted also that the standard toll house recipe is 2 1/4 cups of flour.
Thanks so much!
Sam
Hi Allen! What comment about flour? The amount listed (4 cups) is correct. These cookies are much thicker than the standard tollhouse recipes so they use much more flour. I hope that helps and I hope you love the cookies!
Helen
WAY too dry. I weighed all the ingredients according to the ingredient list, and there was just too much flour. The consistency was crumbly after dry was added to wet. I have no idea how people are getting a workable consistency from following this recipe.
Sam
Hi Helen! I’m so sorry to hear you experienced this! Did you watch the video? It could help you pinpoint any potential issues. 🙁
Ana
I agree it was a waste of ingredients 2.5 cups is more than enough. tried it twice and it did not work out too dry and hard and difficult to work with
Sam
I’m so sorry to hear this happened, Ana! Did you make any substitutions? Did you weigh your flour? It sounds like you may have had a touch too much flour in the dough. You can watch me make it on video if that helps. 🙂
Marci
LOVE these! I’ve been looking for a great, thick cookie, and this more than delivers. I always double the recipe and substitute chocolate chips for chunks. I also make some with heath bars and some with m&ms. Perfect!
Sam
I’m so thrilled to hear this, Marci! Your additions sound amazing, going to have to try that some time, yum! Thank you so much for trying my recipe and letting me know how it turned out for you, I hope you find more recipes on my website that you love just as much!
Naomi Lopez
I wanted to bake but I forgot I was out of AP flour. Not gonna lie, I was skeptical go use cake flour for cookies but these were sooooo much better than imagined. Will definitely make again. 10/10
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed them, Naomi! Thanks for the review 😊
Maria
Just wondering if these cookies get soggy after few days.
Sam
They do not 🙂
Storm
Hi there, I absolutely love these as does everyone I know but how could I make them chocolate?
Sam
Hi Storm! It would take a bit of experimenting. You could likely swap some flour for cocoa, but I can’t say for sure how much. I think this is something I could experiment with. 🙂
Storm
I have been doing some experimenting and feel like I’ve nailed it! Replaced 50g flour with Dutch processed cocoa then added extra liquid (a shot of espresso and some macadamia oil) and it turns into this amazing brownie-esque cookie!
Sam
Awesome! Thank you for the feedback! I’m glad you’ve been enjoying them! :0
Ni
hi when you say large egg, how much is the weight? in India we don’t get large ones. please let me know in grams if possible
Sam
57-63g with the shell. 🙂
Karen
I have been looking for a big cookie recipe and this is it. I just made these and they turned out awesome. follow the recipe exactly and you won’t go wrong. I used 1/2 cup each of light and dark brown sugary. I will be making these for our Christmas cookie exchange.
Kathy
Hey!
If one wanted to add nuts to this recipe, would you suggest using 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1 cup of chopped nuts, in place of the 2 cups of chocolate chips, rather than just adding nuts to the original recipe?
Your recipes and instructions are fabulous!
Thank you
Sam
Hi Kathy! Adding nuts will make the cookies less likely to spread and slightly more dry. I think you could probably use 1/2 c if you don’t reduce the chocolate added in, or up to a cup if you reduce the chocolate. 🙂
Bryce Garrett
This recipe calls for too much flour. 4 cups to 1 cup of butter is just not right. A bag of chocolate chips states 2 cups of flour is standard. These were dry and weird. Skip this recipe and find another.
Sam
Hi Bryce! As we discussed through email it sounds like you made a miscalculation when converting your recipe resulting in using way too much flour. I would recommend following the weights and measurements listed and you’ll have much better results. 🙂
Shaheen
Can we add nutella stuffings in this recipe?
Sam
Hi Shaheen! I haven’t tried it, but I think it could work. 🙂