This post may contain affiliate links. See my privacy policy for details.
This recipe actually IS The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe – it’s been the most popular chocolate chip cookie recipe on my entire website for almost a decade now! It made it into my first cookbook and has remained a reader favourite for years now thanks to it having ingredients that you have in your pantry, Just read all the hundreds of rave reviews that have been left over the years, this is the only chocolate chip cookie recipe you’ll ever need! If you don’t believe me – believe the tens of thousands of people that have baked these cookies over the years – they know their stuff!
How to Make Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies From Scratch
These are fast and easy chocolate chip cookies that turn out thick and chewy! Remember to under bake them slightly and they will turn out chewy. These thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies are the base for my Milk Chocolate Chip Cookies with Raisins, my Chocolate Mint Ritz Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies and my personal favourite Walnut Loaded Chunky Chocolate Chip Cookies. This chocolate chip cookie dough is perfect for making stuffed cookies of all types! If you are looking for crispy chocolate chip cookies, try my Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe, that one is MY all time favourite!
How to Freeze Baked Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chocolate chip cookies freeze exceptionally well and it’s easy to do! Bake them up and then store them in the freezer for snacks and school lunches.
- You are going to freeze the already baked cookies on a cookie sheet in one layer until they are frozen solid.
- Remove the frozen cookies from the cookie sheets and place into an airtight, freezer safe container.
- Place the cookies layer by layer (putting parchment paper or wax paper between the layers to make sure that they don’t stick together) and then seal with the lid.
- Freeze for up to 3-6 months.
- Defrost on the counter-top and enjoy!
How to Keep Your Cookies Fresh
I learned this trick from a professional bakers daughter! To keep your chocolate chip cookies fresh, seal them in a container with a piece of fresh bread (or at least not stale bread) The chocolate chip cookies will wick the moisture from the bread while they are sealed up in the container and you will have chocolate chip cookies that will last for 4-5 days on your counter top- and still be soft and chewy! I do NOT recommend anything else – I have seen apple slices and wet paper towels recommended – as flavors from the apple WILL wick into your cookies and paper towels are messier.
What type of flour do I use in chocolate chip cookies?
The best type of flour to use in chocolate chip cookies is unbleached, all purpose flour. The brand doesn’t really matter as long as it’s a brand that YOU like to use.
What type of butter do I use in chocolate chip cookies? Can I use salted butter?
The best butter to use in your baking is one that tastes good off the spoon – or you can taste test it on plain toast. You want to use a butter that is good quality and tastes delicious! This is what your cookies are going to taste like, so make sure it’s good! As for salted butter, I use salted butter all the time in my baking, just use a portion of the salt in the recipe if you are doing so. The rule of thumb is that you leave out 1/4 tsp of salt for every 1/2 cup of salted butter you use, so you would only use 3/4 tsp of salt in my recipe.
Do you need brown sugar for chocolate chip cookies? What kind?
You absolutely need brown sugar for chocolate chip cookies, or they will be too sweet and lack a depth of flavour. I use golden or light brown sugar in all of my cookie recipes, but I have a friend who uses dark in almost everything she bakes – and everything she makes turns out great as well! It will be a deeper, more molasses-ey flavor when you use a dark brown sugar. If you don’t have brown sugar, mix in 2 tbsp of molasses to every cup of white sugar that you are substituting.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Troubleshooting
Here is a list of the common problems you might encounter when making chocolate chip cookies – or most cookies, for that matter.
Problem: My cookies spread out and are flat.
- If it’s humid or hot, like with any other cookie recipe, you are going to have to adjust your methods. Chill the dough in the fridge before baking to combat heat, and with humidity add in a couple tbsp of flour until the dough firms up.
- If you have neither heat nor humidity and you have a wet dough – I hate to break it to you but your butter is cheap and has a high water content. It happens, a LOT and is massively important AND always overlooked when it comes to baking. There are 2 1/4 CUPS of flour and only 1/2 cup of butter – this is one of the driest cookie doughs out there.
- You also could have measured wrong, because there is no way 1/2 cup of butter mixed into that large amount of flour can be wet.
- You aren’t measuring the flour correctly OR you are using sifted flour. A lot of people don’t realize that your flour can come pre-sifted, which means that when you are measuring out your flour it will NEVER match recipes on the internet! Never buy pre-sifted flour unless it’s for a recipe that specifies it. Most households buy unsifted and use un-sifted.
- Your oven could be running at a different temperature, check it’s accuracy.
Problem: My cookies are tough and not chewy
Make sure to under bake the cookies. You only have to heat them up to 165 °F, to properly and safely cook the raw eggs in them. You can have ooey gooey chocolate chip cookies without adding honey or corn syrup, just simply under bake and enjoy!
You might have over-beaten the cookies. Don’t beat the dough as much next time
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
- Nothing beats the Original Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe!
- This recipe from Allrecipes has great ratings as well.
- Cakey Chocolate Chip Cookies from Martha Stewart
These chocolate chip cookies are very kid friendly, thick and delicious, strong enough to hold together in children’s lunches and small enough that you don’t feel too guilty sending them to school for a treat. This is a super delicious recipe and my go to for late night “Oh my god, I need a cookie” moments.
Happy baking!
Love,
Karlynn
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 12 minutes
- Total Time
- 17 minutes
- Course
- Dessert
- Cuisine
- American
- Servings
- 24
- Calories
- 220
- Author
- Karlynn Johnston
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 teaspoon salt ( use 1/2 tsp if you are using salted butter)
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Get out your baking sheets and line with parchment paper.
- Cream together your butter and sugar until it’s light and fluffy. Add in the eggs and vanilla, mixing thoroughly. .
- Whisk together the dry ingredients ,then beat them into the butter mixture until combined completely.
- When that is done, fold in the two cups of chocolate chips by hand, and prepare to put them on the parchment paper lined cookie sheets.
- Drop by rounded tablespoonful onto the baking sheets.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown and slightly underdone. Cool on the sheets completely. Store in closed containers
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Information
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.
Made this recipe?
Share a photo of what you made on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thekitchenmagpie or hashtag it #thekitchenmagpie.
Please rate this recipe in the comments below to help out your fellow cooks!
Learn to cook like the Kitchen Magpie
A Very Prairie Christmas Bakebook
Cookies, Candies, Cakes & More: Vintage Baking to Celebrate the Festive Season!
Flapper Pie and a Blue Prairie Sky
A Modern Baker’s Guide to Old-Fashioned Desserts
The Prairie Table
Suppers, Potlucks & Socials: Crowd-Pleasing Recipes to Bring People Together
Pin this to your Desserts Board and remember to FOLLOW ME ON PINTEREST for more great recipe ideas!
Tinaboucher says
YUM! Turned out awesome, sticking to this recipe from now on.
Pam Kossowan says
These are a staple in our house. I think I will try them with the mint Chocolate chips for a festive feel. OH Yum!
Karlynn Johnston says
Oh I like crunchy…I have a crunchy recipe if you are looking for it..like crunchy butter with chocolate chips. Welcome to the site Stacy!
Karlynn Johnston says
Always so glad to hear it!! It’s a favorite with a lot of people, just seems to be the right amount of everything! Welcome to the site Courtney!
Courtney says
I’m in love with this recipe. I’ve made these cookies about 4 times now, and they turn out perfectly every time.
Stacy R says
I just made these and they are delicious! Yes they flattened but they are so good. There were parts that had not flattened. So they were crunch and chewy! My husband is going to go crazy for these. Thanks : )
Karlynn says
Sugar is more than just sweet, it’s a dry ingredient that is needed in fairly precise amounts.You CAN change to brown sugar BUT the consistency will change. Each sugar does a different thing and I have about 4 different recipes for 4 different cookie results based on adjusting the sugar types.The ratio always stays the same, however, of sugar to butter to flour.
Joseph you made my day with your comment, THANK YOU! Nothing is better than a great chocolate chip cookie! Check out my other recipes such as the crisp ones, they are very buttery and crisp and would suit milk chocolate perfectly!
Joseph says
I love the warm happy face on my wife and little girls when they eat warm chocolate chip cookies with a glass of milk. So I decided I wanted to be the one to make them rather than Pillsbury. I have tried 6 different recopies that all failed the taste test for different reasons each time. This recipe was the light in the darkness for me. As a perfectionist, take it from me, these were perfect! They were also easy to make. Thank you sooo much for contributing to the warmest happy faces of my family.
Question: Should I change the amount of surgar in the recipe if I’m using milk chocolate chips? If so, how much?
Karlynn says
It has a LOT to do with where you live, fresh ingredients (especially baking soda!!). So glad you liked them Alora, welcome to my site!
Alora Marie says
Just made these, and they turned out perfectly! They are sooo chewy, and good. They didn’t turn out flat either, like a few others have mentioned. :)
Binna says
This is my first time on your blog and only the second time baking chocolate chip cookies from scratch and let me tell you, these are delicious! Mine didn’t flatten out, like some other posters are mentioning, at all!! I thank you as well as my kiddies and hubby & I will be checking out the rest of your blog now :)
Mandysh says
They don’t look as good as the recipe. They fall flat even when I put the dough in the fridge. They have a very bland taste and are extremely bitter. I was happy I tried them but don’t waste your time on this everyone.
thekitchenmagpie says
Sorry it didn’t work out for you! Flat cookies can be associated with your altitude and humidity.
You have me stumped at bitter taste, not one other person has mentioned that. That might be a vanilla quality issue (definitely a possibility) or another ingredient that’s gone bad. These are basic chocolate chip cookies,with ingredients completely the same as the famous Tollhouse recipe, (as all chocolate chip cookies recipes are, Tollhouse was the original!) just with the quantities adjusted for thicker texture, so a bitter taste doesn’t usually come into the equation with the ingredients above. (otherwise I think Tollhouse would be out of business!)
Katie says
I am going to try this recipe in a few minutes. I just wanted to let you know, your flour is another possibility to a bitter taste. I recently started to make something and it seemed off , my flour was too old, so i chucked it. Ever since I bought new flour…i haven’t has a bitter taste with anything i have baked!
PeterHoltan says
@Mandysh The recipe calls for baking soda, is it possible that you used baking powder instead? The wrong ingredient can have a huge effect on taste, texture and appearance. Or was the baking soda old? Baking soda loses it’s potency with time. Or did you leave the dough in the fridge too long. The reaction baking soda has with the acidic ingredients is immediate. If you wait too long to bake your cookies, the reaction will have ended.
Karlynn says
So glad you enjoyed them, welcome to the site!
DKB says
Mine turned out perfect! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Karlynn says
You are so welcome!! And welcome to my site Mariana!
MarianaPaulCasey says
Oooooh those were sooo good! We don’t have leftovers! Thank you!
Gothlyric says
Oh My Goodness!
KerryAnnie says
Mine flattened out but I think for two reasons; first, I nuked the butter because it was straight out of the freezer and I didn’t have the time to let it thaw to room temp (it was nearly liquid by the time I used it). Secondly, because I added too much vanilla extract as it turns out my tbsp is a 2 spoon:(. It’s a new set of measuring spoons, didn’t even think to check. Either way, they were still fantastic, thanks for the recepie!
smokeytea says
can i use marg in place of butter?
Tdot says
Just made these – they look identical to the picture – thanks for posting a quick, easy and yummy recipe! :)
whudatzgrl says
If you bake them straight on the cookie sheet, they do flatten out, due to the heat. The parchment paper provides a bit of a barrier from the heat so they won’t melt and spread as much. 🙂
Denyse says
Ours just turned out awesome, and they were made by my 16 yr old son 🙂
Frannie says
I would like to try this recipe, but need to know about Step 2. When combining the ingredients, do you mix with a spoon, whisk, or electric mixer. I trying not to over mix it. THX!
Nicole says
Just made these and mine turned out flat, too! I wonder if I mixed them too much? Did you hand mix any of the ingredients apart from the chocolate chips at the end?
Karlynn says
One of the commenters who’s flattened also lives at a high elevation, that might do it. Also humidity can affect them. Try refrigerating the cookies ON the sheets before baking?
Nicole says
No high elevation or humidity here. They were still really good! My husband said they were better than my mother’s recipe, uh oh. Haha. So these will probably because our new go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. 🙂
Nicole says
*become
Cheri says
I made these today and they turned out awesome. They never flattened out at all and seemed almost cake like. I loved them and will definately make them again!
thekitchenmagpie says
@Cheri Glad you liked them!
kim cayford says
How much salt????
Karlynn says
1 tsp if you are using unsalted butter in the recipe, thanks for catching that!
David Caron says
These look amazing! I can’t wait to make them!
Amy says
Mine flattened out too!! =( I do live at an elevation of 4000 ft. but I tried adding more flour & that didn’t seem to help at all!! Bummer! I’ve been trying to find a recipe where the cookies turn our like the ones you have pictured above for forever now!!
Karlynn says
Well, hells bells. There is so little butter in these that they really shouldn’t spread. How about chilling the dough before popping them in the oven? Chilled dough shouldn’t spread as much either…..give that a whirl?
Sooke lady says
@Karlynn mine were flat, too, and I’m at sea level. I will cool them in the fridge before i pop them in the oven next time. They taste fabulous!! thanks for a wonderful recipe:)
Emma says
Hi there! I was so intrigued by this recipe, thought the cookies looked amazing. I tried them out, and they do taste wonderful but they flattened like regular cookies. What should I do differently next time? Thanks!
Karlynn says
Try refrigerating the dough perhaps,with only half the butter these shouldn’t have spread at all, that’s really weird! High humidity can also affect cookies too.