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Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

4.88 from 85 votes
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These chocolate chip cookies are soft, cake-like, and have a completely different texture than a normal chocolate chip cookie! These are definitely for the people who love soft cookies rather than a chewy chocolate chip cookie or (my personal favorite!) a classic crispy chocolate chip cookie.

soft chocolate chip cookies on a turquoise platter

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

These soft cookies were the result of testing chocolate chip cookies many, many years ago when I first started this website, and it’s defintely time for updated photos! This recipe is always a hit with people who are looking for soft chocolate chip cookies.

Even though I love crispy chocolate chip cookies, I, of course, ate a couple of these cakey bites, who can complain about a soft cookie with chocolate chips?

The Secret to Soft, Cakey Cookies

The secret to making soft chocolate chip cookies is using only brown sugar ( no granulated sugar) and an extra egg as adding eggs to a cookie dough makes a baked good more cake-like. The third egg in this recipe is what helps achieve this. Most chocolate chip cookie recipes only have 2 eggs.

soft cakey chocolate chip cookies in a pile

How to Make Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is just a quick recap of the method to make these cookies, please see the recipe card below to get the complete instructions and the list of ingredients.

  • Cream your butter and sugar together until they are light and fluffy. Add in the eggs. Add the vanilla as well.
  • Whisk together your dry ingredients and add to the butter/sugar mixture. Combine well then add the chocolate chips, mixing until they are spread through the dough evenly.
  • Drop by well-rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased or parchment-lined sheet.
  • Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes until golden brown.

Baking Tips

Make sure to underbake these cookies slightly as you don’t want to dry these cookies out. They will dry out easier as there is more egg in the cookie dough.

Don’t flatten the cookies before baking, leave them in a rounded shape on the cookie sheet and they will bake up better.

soft cakey chocolate chip cookies in a pile on a turquoise platter

How to Store These Cookies

Keep these cookies stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temperature or freeze them in a freezer-safe container or bag for up to 6 months.

If you want to soften these cookies place a piece of bread in the container with the cookies. They will absorb the extra moisture from the bread and soften right up!

More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes

So for all you cakey cookie lovers out there, this is the soft chocolate chip cookie recipe for you! So tell me, are you team soft cookie or team crispy cookie?

Happy baking!

Love,

Karlynn

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Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies that are soft and pillowy inside. Perfect for those of you who like a cake-like texture to your cookies!
4.88 from 85 votes
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
8 minutes
Total Time
13 minutes
Course
Dessert
Cuisine
cookies
Servings
36
Calories
121
Author
Karlynn Johnston

Ingredients
 

  • 2 ¼ cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¾ cup butter
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  • With a hand mixer or in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. 
  • Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating in completely after each addition. Add in the vanilla.
  • Slowly add the flour mixture, beating on low speed until just combined.
  • Add in the chocolate chips, stirring in until they are spread through the dough evenly.
  • Drop by well-rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets. Do not press them down if you want a lovely rounded cakey cookie.
  • Bake for 8-10 minutes until golden brown around the edges and the middles are set. They will spread out slightly but still stay wonderfully puffy and cakey.
  • Cool on baking sheets completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 6 months.

Recipe Notes

  • Slightly underbaking these cookies will yield better results, do not overbake as they will dry out.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 121kcal, Carbohydrates: 15g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 26mg, Sodium: 134mg, Potassium: 52mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 143IU, Calcium: 13mg, Iron: 1mg

All calories and info are based on a third party calculator and are only an estimate. Actual nutritional info will vary with brands used, your measuring methods, portion sizes and more.

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Chocolate chip cookies that are soft and pillowy inside. Perfect for those of you who like a cake-like texture to your cookies!

Karlynn Johnston

I’m a busy mom of two, wife & cookbook author who loves creating fast, fresh meals for my little family on the Canadian prairies. Karlynn Facts: I'm allergic to broccoli. I've never met a cocktail that I didn't like. I would rather burn down my house than clean it. Most of all, I love helping YOU get dinner ready because there's nothing more important than connecting with our loved ones around the dinner table!

Learn more about me

Reader Interactions

Comments & Recipe Tips Share a tip or comment!

  1. Carmie Lynch says

    I made these and they are cake like but my husband asked if I forgot the sugar as he said they aren’t very sweet. Could white sugar be missing?

  2. Ikball says

    Now they are out but it feels just like sponge and tastes even i mixed them oretty well still tastes like egg. We had to throw them and this is the first time that we throw anything to the trash. These are the most disgusting cookies i ever had.

  3. Ikball says

    Hey, thanks fpr the recipe! Well… There isnt enough flour, it was smelling TERRİBLE while putting them in the owen, and while they are baking they just melted, became ONE giant and really thin cookie. I havent tasted it yet but it looks really bad.

  4. Krysmaticka says

    Made this recipe and added some MnMs, crushed walnuts, and extra chocolate chips! Haven’t tasted yet but they look amazing!!!

  5. staceymaier says

    Perfect. Thanks. Not too sweet. Fluffy and yummy. I always end up cutting sugar in half in most recipes as I find most baking just too sweet. The batter was nice and thick, and buttery. Oh.. the butter lol. I used my own eggs and that made them slightly yellow.

    Thanks for the wonderful recipe.

  6. Cyndi says

    My boyfriend has been begging for cake style chocolate chip cookies, found this recipe and decided to give it a shot. Halfway through, while I was mixing the ingredients, I realized that I had put in double the flour..of course I only had 3 eggs in the house…so had to make an egg run to the grocery store..sure wish I raised chickens.

    But now we have a DOUBLE barch of the best cookies ever!

    Thank you.

  7. Serene77 says

    So these taste amazing however mine were flat…. but my butter was soft if my butter was harder would that make them fuller?

    • thekitchenmagpie says

      Serene77 Cool the batter in the fridge and then try!

  8. guest says

    Made these today.I’m an experienced baker and I love fluffly cookies –  was looking for a new recipe.Followed the directions exactly – they were delicious and soft but flat. I was looking for a puffier cookie.. The dough seemed somewhat too thin to me to make them fluffy. I will try again and add an extra 1/4 cup of flour.

  9. FATTYBOOMBOOM says

    MMM NICE, BIG, FAT COOKIES, THEY LOOK GREAT…FORGOT THE SALT OOPS, BUT FOUND A 1/4 CUP OF WHITE CHOC CHIPS.THEY ARE DELISH & NOT TOO SWEET 🙂

  10. Busymama says

    I added 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice, and they are PERFECT!!  Today was our baking lesson, and these were easy and fun for my kids to help me bake.

  11. Deb says

    OMG! Thank you for this recipe! Beyond yummy! I did 1/2 brown sugar and 1/2 granulated. They came out perfect. 

  12. Ferfy says

    OMGosh, I’ve been looking for years for a cakey chocolate cookie recipe and these look Perfect! YUM!  I don’t have a stand mixer but I do have a hand mixer…however I actually prefer to mix by hand……will it change the cakeyness depending on what I use?  I would like he cakeyest cookie possible, could you tell me which one is best for total cakeyness!  (I am sooooooo makng myself hungry now for a cakey cookie, you too?

    …lol)  Thanks much Kitchen Magpie!

  13. Dan says

    Delicious cookies!  My personal preference is for a sweeter cookie.  Any way to keep the fluffy nature of this cookie and add some granulated sugar to increase the sweetness I wonder?

    • thekitchenmagpie says

      @Dan try half brown and half white sugar… that might do it! 

    • Amanda says

      @Dan  did you try the adjusted recipe or find a way to do this?

      • AmyGale1 says

        @Amanda 

        I tried the half/half sugar and it worked out just fine 😀

  14. CynCyndee says

    Wow I just made these….they are mmmmmazing!!!!!!!!

  15. thekitchenmagpie says

    @Lisa  I always use salted butter, and ALWAYS butter in cookies!

  16. Lisa says

    Did you use real butter, salted or unsalted? Or margarine? I am so excited to try this recipe!

    • thekitchenmagpie says

      @Lisa  I always use salted butter, and ALWAYS butter in cookies! IF you use salted, leave out the salt though! 

  17. ivy33401 says

    These are the best chocolate cookies ever! Since finding this recipe 2 years ago, this has been the only chocolate chip recipe I use.  Anytime I make these for my family, a  potluck or just to share they are always, and I mean always, a huge hit! Thanks for posting this recipe and I wish you much success!

    • thekitchenmagpie says

      ivy33401  Thanks for the lovely words, you made my day!!

  18. indecisivelyblogging says

    I’m making these tonight!  I’m thankful for finding this post because I can’t stand how flat my chocolate chip cookies always are!!

  19. yobbbbbb says

    I made these and they were not sweet enough for my taste.  

  20. CatherineBarth says

    These are beautiful and fluffy, as advertised! I doubled the recipe for game night tomorrow, and so far, so good. I do wish they were just a tad sweeter, so I think next time I’ll use a tad more brown sugar, some granulated, and about a 1/2 tsp more vanilla. Other than that, they’re delicious and go really well with milk!

    • Amanda says

      CatherineBarth  did you find a way t make them sweeter but still cakey?

  21. K D says

    Mine came out as typical choc chip cookies (flat and chewy)… except they are super salty. I wish I had followed my first instinct and cut the salt in half, but I wanted to follow the recipe exactly just in case. Looking at the recipe, I can’t figure out WHY they would be fluffy. What did the author do that isn’t posted?

    • thekitchenmagpie says

      @K D Less butter, less sugar and more eggs = cakey cookies. Adding in the eggs one at a time as written adds air and leavening. Simple kitchen science.

  22. LeahPrettyPlease says

    These are so yummy, I did however have to add 4 extra heaping TBSP of flower because the batter was way too thin, but they are absolutely the yummiest cookie I have ever eaten. Not to mention the softest as well

  23. paulajane says

    thankyou! i have been looking for the perfect fluffy choc chip cookie for ages and after making yours, i was in heaven!

    i added the maple syrup like other suggested, and i also mixed the chocolate drops with white chocolate to mix it u a bit… perfection!

  24. blfisher says

    I just got done making these and they are wonderful! I’ve already eaten three and a half, and I made BIG cookies lol. I wish they were just a bit sweeter, so next time I might add a couple tablespoons of granulated sugar or use sweeter chocolate (I used dark chocolate chips this time). Very wonderful recipe, thank you so much for sharing! 

  25. SandraKrytus says

    I just made this recipe and it is certainly a cake tyoe cookie. I think I baked the first sheet a minute too long. They were still soft but dry. Also, as you would expect, there was a difference between a dark single thickness cookie sheet and a bright aluminum air cookie sheet. I will be making them again trying different baking times with different cookie sheets. I liked the suggestion from Kitty to add a tsp of maple flavoring to sweeten them. I would also prefer more chips so might also add another half bag of chips. A very good recipe worth tweaking for personal taste.

  26. lozartist says

    These are the best cookies ever! Other recipes are too crunchy or chewy or use cake flour to be obnoxious. I LOVE these!

    • thekitchenmagpie says

      lozartist Thanks for letting me know! Glad you liked them!

  27. KittySunshine says

    This recipe is amazing!  My cookies came out fluffy and chewy–perfect!  I used milk chocolate chips and added a tsp of maple flavoring to make them extra sweet.  This is definitely my new favorite cookie recipe!  (I baked these at high altitude at 400* for 7 1/2 minutes)

  28. Gabi says

    I just made these tonight and they are FANTASTIC!!!! I’ve already shared with my friends on Facebook. Never before had I been able to make soft, cakey cookies. Found this site on a google search for Chocolate Chip cookies and it looks like I will be making a lot of use of it!

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