Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
These chewy chocolate chip cookies take the classic cookie and add brown sugar to give them an ultra-soft and decadently chewy texture you’re going to love.
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Table of Contents
- About Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
- What’s in these chewy chocolate chip cookies?
- What makes these cookies chewy?
- Can you make these cookies in advance?
- How long are chocolate chip cookies good for?
- Can you freeze these cookies?
- Do you have to chill the dough?
- Notes & tips for this chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe
- More fun cookie recipes
- How to make chewy chocolate chip cookies
- Recipe Details
About Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Nothing beats a classic chocolate chip cookie except for a chewy and ultra-moist chocolate chip cookie.
And that’s exactly what these cookies are: everything that’s great about the classic baked dessert with a little extra oomph, thanks to a slightly different ratio of ingredients and a dash of brown sugar.
What’s in these chewy chocolate chip cookies?
To make a batch of these classic chewy cookies, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- All-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, egg, unsalted butter, and vanilla – Classic baking ingredients for delicious cookies.
- Granulated sugar and light brown sugar – For adding sweetness and chewiness.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips – Because every chocolate chip cookie needs chocolate chips! You can use any type that you’d like (milk, bittersweet, white, etc) but semi-sweet is the classic choice.
What makes these cookies chewy?
These cookies differ slightly from fluffy, bakery-style chocolate chip cookies due to the chewy texture, and that texture all comes down to the brown sugar. Brown sugar contains more moisture than granulated sugar (due to the molasses in it) and using it will cause most baked goods to have that “underbaked” goodness that works so well for cookies.
And when making these cookies, you can control how chewy you’d like them to be. For a lighter cookie, stick with light brown sugar. For a dense cookie, use dark brown sugar.
Can you make these cookies in advance?
Certainly!
Once the dough has been prepared, seal or cover the bowl and store it in the refrigerator for up to two to three days. And because this dough is designed to be chilled before baking, you can take it out of the refrigerator and immediately start forming the cookies – no need to wait!
How long are chocolate chip cookies good for?
Once prepared and cooled, these chewy chocolate chip cookies can be stored in a sealed container on the counter for up to five days.
Can you freeze these cookies?
If you’d like to always have a batch of these cookies on hand, the easiest way is to freeze them for later. There are two ways you can do this.
To freeze the raw dough:
- Mix all ingredients, then scoop out about one tablespoon of dough and roll it into a ball (the same way you would before baking).
- Place cookie dough balls on a tray and freeze for at least two hours or until outside is no longer tacky. Once firm, transfer to a freezer bag or a storage container with a sealable lid.
- Cookie dough can be stored for up to six months. When ready to bake, thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then bake like normal.
To freeze the baked cookies:
- Bake cookies and allow to cool completely.
- Store cookies in a single layer in a freezer bag or storage container. If you need to stack the cookies, separate each layer with a sheet of wax paper.
- Baked cookies and be stored for up to three months.
Do you have to chill the dough?
This particular recipe calls for chilling the cookie dough for at least three hours.
I know it can be frustrating to put your baking on hold, but chilling the dough is totally worth the impact it has on your baking when it comes to cookies.
The short explanation for chilling has to do with the butter. The firmer the butter is at the time of baking, the slower it will melt, which makes cookies less likely to spread while baking. So, as a general rule of thumb, chilling the dough will lead to more dense, fluffy cookies while not chilling will lead to flatter, chewier cookies. This is not always the case, though. Whether you need to chill depends largely on the amount of butter used AND the composition of the other ingredients.
If you’d like a more in-depth explanation of chilling dough (with examples!) then check out this article: To Chill or not to Chill.
Notes & tips for this chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe
- When making this recipe, be sure to use both granulated sugar and brown sugar. Both add sweetness, but the brown sugar also adds just the right amount of chewiness (and is part of what gives these chewy chocolate chip cookies their name.)
- If you’re doing a lot of baking, I highly recommend having some silicone baking mats on hand. Baking cookies takes enough time without having to cut or measure parchment paper. Or if you prefer using parchment paper, you can try using pre-cut parchment paper sheets instead.
- Plus, some quality baking sheets are a must for a cookie-baking extravaganza!
- For this recipe, I highly recommend using a stand mixer or a hand mixer. This recipe would be difficult to make by hand with a whisk.
More fun cookie recipes
How to make chewy chocolate chip cookies
This next part is only a photo tutorial of the recipe steps. If you’re looking for the full recipe measurements and instructions, scroll down to Recipe Details.
Step 1 – In a medium bowl, whisk together the following ingredients: flour, baking soda, and salt. Set this bowl aside for now.
Step 2 – Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, cream together the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until fluffy.
Step 3 – Mix in the egg and vanilla, then blend in the dry ingredients until a smooth batter forms.
Step 4 – Add the semi-sweet chocolate chips, then use a spatula to gently fold them into the batter.
Step 5 – Using a scoop up one or two tablespoons of dough, roll it into a ball, and place the cookie ball on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper. Repeat this still until all dough has been used.
Step 6 – Bake!
Step 7 – Serve and enjoy!
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set bowl aside.1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Using a stand mixer (or hand mixer + large bowl), cream together butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.1 cup unsalted butter, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- Drop mixer speed to low and mix in egg and vanilla until incorporated and smooth, about 2-4 minutes.1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Keeping speed on low, quickly scoop in dry ingredients, adding about 1/3 to 1/2 cup at a time. Once added, continue to mix until dry ingredients first appear to be incorporated; be careful not to overmix.
- Remove bowl from mixer. Add semi-sweet chocolate chips to bowl, then use a spatula to gently fold them into batter.3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Cover bowl and chill dough in refrigerator for 2-3 hours or freeze for 1 hour.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then set aside.
- Remove dough from refrigerator. Scoop out about 1-2 tablespoons of cookie dough and roll into a ball (about 1-2 inches wide), then place cookie ball on prepared baking sheet. Repeat this step until all dough is used, placing cookies about 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden and center is still a tad doughy.
- Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Serve immediately.
Nutrition
I do my best to provide nutrition information, but please keep in mind that I’m not a certified nutritionist. Any nutritional information discussed or disclosed in this post should only be seen as my best amateur estimates of the correct values.
