The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies. After many years of recipes and experiments, this is the the final result of tweaking what I I think is the perfect chocolate chip cookie.
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
Soft and chewy with crispy edges and the perfect amount of rich chocolate morsels. I’ve never had better anywhere.
I have tried dozens of recipes over the years and this one is the best. Both crispy and chewy, this one satisfies all lovers of this cookie classic.
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies 2012 image.
14/04/2012 Update: When I first posted this recipe in the early days of this blog, I still baked chocolate chip cookies on a regular basis.
These days my 14 year old daughter, Olivia has taken over the job for the most part.
My 12 year old son Noah can turn out a mean batch of cookies all on his own too.
Actually I’ll confess that he actually made the batch in this updated photo. I even used it in my first cookbook!
Both kids are turning into very adept bakers and can both turn out perfect chocolate chip cookies from this outstanding recipe.
I like to use 50% dark chocolate chips for this recipe but you can use semisweet or milk chocolate if you prefer.
2020 Update. The chocolate chip cookie baking duties are still very much mostly out of my hands. My son Noah is the expert these days, and since he is now studying photography at university, he gets the credit for both baking and taking the photo of this latest batch.
It was high time for an updated photo of this recipe and I think it came out quite well.
Originally published October 2007. Updated June 2020.
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The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies – after many years of recipes and experiments, this is the the final result of tweaking what I I think is the perfect chocolate chip cookie. Soft and chewy with crispy edges and the perfect amount of rich chocolate morsels. I’ve never had better anywhere.
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or butterscotch flavoring, or both! Hint, hint.
- 1 cup semisweet or dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly spray one cookie sheet with spray oil or line with parchment paper.
- In a medium sized bowl whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and combine thoroughly.
- Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture. Mix only enough to incorporate flour. Do not over mix. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Form cookies by dropping a rounded teaspoon of dough on the prepared cookie sheet two inches apart.
- Bake until light brown around the edges, about 12-15 minutes, depending on cookie size.
- Over baking is the biggest problem with most chocolate chip cookies.
- Your oven temperature and the type of cookie sheet you use will vary the baking times considerably. When they are golden brown around the edges is the time to remove them from the oven. Thinking they are a little underdone is probably a good thing. Experiment by baking only a couple of cookies at a time to see what the perfect baking time is for your oven
- Cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before removing to a wire rack to cool thoroughly.
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Nutrition Information
Yield
18Serving Size
18 cookiesAmount Per Serving Calories 179Total Fat 8gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 25mgSodium 151mgCarbohydrates 24gFiber 1gSugar 16gProtein 2g
The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.
I can vouch that this is the ABSOLUTE best chocolate chip cookie recipe ever. I added toffee bar bits as well as chocolate chips. These were a hit at our house. Thanks for the recipe!
Great recipe Barry .i had no butterscotch flavour so I added almond with the vanilla & they were 👍🏻
There super, I love the cookies, I like them the most with marshmallows and chocolate chips!Thanks for the recipe,bye!
I sometimes add the toffee chips myself. Very very good. Glad you enjoyed them.
hi there , do you have a recipe for no cut glass cookies….
how about a recipes for balls made out of jello…not sure how to explain them but they r like snowballs…only u use jello…and they are colored..
Try asking for recipes on my Rock Recipes Facebook Group if you are on Facebook. Are the jello balls made with miniature marshmallows?
I made these today and added some pecan peices to the recipe with
the chocolate chips..and they are devine….thanks so much for the great recipes and keep them comming..im trying your pineapple upside down cake next..yummy
Barry, I’ve tried several of your recipes and everything turns out great. These chocolate chip cookies are now cooling on my counter. I used a baking stone at 350 and baked for 12 minutes exactly. PERFECT!
So glad you like them. They are amazingly good!
You sir, have defeated Alton Brown’s “The Chewy” with that cookie. Well done.
Been searching for a good chocolate chip cookie recipe for a long time, one that didn’t spread all over the pan. Really good! I made some of them really small, good for kids. Those took about 8 minutes to bake. Dough about the size of a large marble for those.
Well, my first attempt at making these was disappointing. I’m thinking I must have overcooked them as these cookies came out hard – like store bought cookies. May give them another try though just to be sure. Other than the too crispy results, they are tasty with a glass of milk.
Do you need to flatten the dough once you drop it onto the cookie sheet?
No need to flatten them. KanataNewf you’ve definitely overbaked them. Ovens vary so try cutting a couple of minutes off the bake time. It’s ok for them to look like they are not done completely.
Hi do these freeze well?
Yes indeed.
I used to make these all the time and they always came out perfect. Thick and yummy! Lately I have been making them, not mixing too much and being very cautious not to do so and they are coming out like super flat no matter what I do. So strange I can’t figure out what is happening. Any tips?
These are so good, I also added almonds, it added a crunch to them.
Today is national chocoalte chip cookie day (May 15) a great reason to bake (& eat) these delish looking cookies!! Love Rock Recipes!! I’m a fan 🙂
I’m always curious to see what people call the best choc chip cookie recipe because I think mine are impossible to beat… turns out we use identical recipes so I know you must be telling the truth!
How many cookies does a batch of this size make?
Just wondering about how many cookies this recipe will make? Anxious to try it! Thanks 🙂
Depends on how large you make them but about 2 dozen.
Can you tell me where I can purchase butterscotch flavoring (in St.John’s). I couldn’t get it at either supermarket and I think it would make a very nice flavor in the cookies 🙂
I usually can find it at the supermarket. Try Bulk Barn or Stockwoods.
I made a double batch of the chocolate chip cookies tonight.. Excellent. Then I made a single batch mixing half and half regular chocolate chips and peanut butter chips and a little cocoa powder to tell them apart. I liked the mixed cookie better. 🙂 Not too over powering on the chocolate chip or peanut butter chip.
thanks for the recipe. made it last night:) yummy! but for some reason they came out flat. any suggestions?
I baked these cookies tonight for the first time and the only problem was I should have made a double batch!!! Absolutely delicious!!! Thanks for posting 🙂
How many cookies does it yield? Thank you!
Btw, I’ve tried your apple muffins and they were extraordinaire!
Thanks, I do love those apple muffins too.
Depends on the size you make the cookies. I like to make them large, cafe style, for about 15 or so, but you can make them smaller for 18-24.
Hope this helped, Barry.
I love baking, and I am fairly good at it for a 15 yearold. But do you know why my chocolate chipp cookies always come out rather raised? I would like them the be a bit flatter, and spread out more. More so like the cookies in the picture
Are you using this recipe? I’d say overbaking is your issue.
These cookies are the best… I didn’t have any butterscotch flavor so I doubled the recipe and added the chips and some toasted pecans… they are beyond amazing!!!
Are these able to be frozen once baked??
Should be no problem to freeze them.
I have those cooling on my counter now and they are so delicious!!! Barry I have used so many of your recipes and it’s always a winner, just like those cookies!
So glad you like them. They have been made a hundred times or more in this house for sure. The cookies in the photo were actually made by my son a couple of years ago when he was about 13.
Super delicious! I accidentally used coarse salt but it was awesome….the salty with the chocolate chips was yummy! Thank you for a super easy recipe. Thumbs up!!
I tried the recipe and mine came out doughy/cakey trying to figure out what I did wrong. I was so sad when I ate them and they weren’t the cookies I was looking forward to.
Sounds like you over measured the flour. That has never happened in the hundreds of times we’ve made this recipe. Even my kids make them perfectly. In fact the pic in the recipe is from a batch made by my son.
What type of cookie sheet do you use? Love your recipes!
I always use aluminum for baking. Those darkernmetal alloy pans tend to carry the heat too quickly in my opinion.
Hi Barry, did you make larger cookies than a rounded tsp of dough? Your picture looks like they are larger. Do they bake up with a slight rise? I’ve been having problems with flat cookies, even when chilling the dough 🙁
Are you using real butter. Margarine is not great for cookies I find. I generally do make large cookies myself.
Absolute best chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve ever tried. I’ve been trying to find one this good for years – thank you!!
hi there, I’ve tried these twice now and the flavour is great but my cookies are baking puffy- they won’t flatten and become chewy. I am not overbaking them so I’m not sure what is going on! Following the recipe exactly..
I have a feeling you’ve mis-measured something. Loads of people make these without issues.
These cookies are deadly! I did not overbake, took them out with a tinge of color, totally let the cool for the required 10 minutes, and boy! Were they ever good. Crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. I made the second batch with Reeses pieces and they were also just as good. I did not have butterscotch flavouring, so I used vanilla and coconut flavouring, it was delicious.
hey thanks for using the word DEADLY! I’ve been trying to bring that back for years
Never went out of fashion here in NL!!!
Is this salted or unsalted butter?! Can’t wait to make these.
I generally use salted butter for baking unless specified.
These cookies are amazing but I am trying to cut down on sugar. If I reduce the amount of sugar will the texture change a lot?
Unfortunately, sugar, combining with butter is essential for a soft chewy type cookie texture. Reduce either and the texture quickly goes to crispy.
Hi Barry,
This is the best cookie recipe ever! I followed the recipe exactly and the cookies turned out very well. My 2 kids and husband just loved them! Thanks for a great cookie recipe.
Must say this is THE BEST chocolate chip cookie recipe i’ve ever made! Love your recipes Barry and your books. Looking forward to your new cookie book. Please continue cooking and sharing your delicious culinary masterpieces!
To whomever posted this recipe. I LOVE YOU. I could not suck more at cooking or baking or knowing what ingredients to mix or not to mix. I even hate going groceries shopping. And since I hate doing groceries(and i live alone), I found myself starving with my empty fridge. So I finally decided to give baking another shot. Now I don’t like too greasy food so I only used 1/2 sugar and vegetable oil instead of butter with 1/3 cup of protein powder. They were round like cakes but still crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Which is the best I could ask for. My go to cookie recipe now. YAY.
BEST COOKIES EVER! i have been baking them now quite often! Thanks for sharing this recipe with us 🙂
Best cookie I’ve made is from this recipe ! Thanks for sharing !
50 years, at least 40 choc/chip recipes, this is the best recipe I have ever baked. I tried Americas Test Kitchen browned butter recipe, that was my last fav, but these got them beat by a mile!!! Will give your browned butter recipe a try too, but I don’t think these can be beat. Just do not overbake, this takes a bit of getting used to,I kept thinking they would be raw, not so, after they cool they are fab!
Never too late to discover a new great recipe!
Do these cookies be baked on middle rack in oven? Ty
The simple answer is what works best for your oven. Mine is second rack from the bottom.
Middle rack for baking these ?
I use second rack from bottom but whatever works for your oven.
I am such a fan of your recipes! I was intrigued when you named them “The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie”. This is a cookie I make often. I have used my grandmother’s recipe for the last 40 years or so, with rave reviews. So I did a “blind test” – a batch of each recipe. (No one is EVER going to complain about too many cookies). I am somewhat chagrined to have to admit that your recipe won, “hands-down”! I have now updated my cookbook. Thanks again for sharing!!
So glad they were such a hit.
they were delish !!
I’m always looking for the best recipe for this simple cookie. I added some peanut butter chips and YUM! This is my new favorite!