RecipeTin Eats

Fast Prep, Big Flavours

Home Baking Recipes

Chocolate Chip Cookies (Soft!)

By:Nagi
274 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

A terrific chocolate chip cookie recipe that is dangerously easy and makes soft, buttery cookies! No creaming butter, no beater required, no refrigeration, no rolling dough into balls and these are not too sweet. The hardest part is waiting for the cookies to cool. Watch the video and see my mother getting in trouble for trying to swipe one off the tray!

Miracle SOFT Chocolate Chip Cookies that are almost impossibly easy - no creaming butter, no beater, no refrigeration, no rolling dough. These are magical! www.recipetineats.com

Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe

A long awaited reader request…. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve had people writing in asking for my chocolate chip cookie recipe!

In truth, I was sitting on it because I wanted to make sure I tested it properly for different measures in different countries. If you’ve ever tried a cookie recipe written by someone in another country and had it fail miserably, chances are that it’s because of the difference in cup, tablespoon and teaspoon measures between countries. As an example, 1 standard Australian cup of flour is 150g/5.3 oz whereas 1 standard US cup is 120g / 4.5 oz.

For most recipes, the difference between measures is not enough to affect the recipe or the difference is proportional across the whole recipe so it still works fine. However, for baking recipes, you really have to be careful. Especially cookies and cakes.

So that’s a little tip for you when using baking recipes – check the country of origin of the writer. If it’s not your country, proceed with caution! 😉

Oh – in case I forgot to make it really clear – yes I’ve tested this recipe using Australian & rest of world cups (all exc US are very similar) and US cups and weight measures.

Oh – and this is based on a Cooks’ Illustrated tried and tested recipe. That always helps!

Miracle SOFT Chocolate Chip Cookies that are almost impossibly easy - no creaming butter, no beater, no refrigeration, no rolling dough. These are magical! www.recipetineats.com

This chocolate chip cookie recipe may be a little different to most you’ve come across. It’s unique in that there’s no creaming butter, no electric beater is required, there’s no refrigeration of the dough (unless it’s stinking hot where you are!) and there’s no rolling dough.

Dump and mix. The batter will be quite soft at first because of the melted butter, but after 5 minutes or so, it firms up into a soft dough that can be scooped onto the baking tray and it holds its form perfectly. Using an ice cream scooper with a lever (seriously handy kitchen utensil – cookies, pancakes, MEATBALLS), it’s super quick to dollop the dough into perfect round mounds that spread into beautiful round cookies.

I’ve tried to capture how soft these cookies are in the recipe video (below the recipe). I hope I’ve succeeded. I also hope I’ve succeeded in showing you how straight forward these are to make.

Dangerous. I should have called these Dangerous Choc Chip Cookies.

Happy weekend everyone! – Nagi xx

For Cookie Monsters 🙋🏻‍♀️

Miracle SOFT Chocolate Chip Cookies that are almost impossibly easy - no creaming butter, no beater, no refrigeration, no rolling dough. These are magical! www.recipetineats.com

PS That moment when I smack my mother’s hand in the video….. I have been wanting an excuse to do that all my life….

PPS This recipe makes big cookies about 10cm/4″ wide. I have a cookie baking session planned this weekend and plan to test out different sizes for bake times and will update the recipe! <– Said baking session took place, recipe updated for directions for small cookies!

PPPS I don’t know why it is but my recipes always seem to come out with odd numbers. This recipe makes 13 cookies. THIRTEEN. My trays fit 6 each perfectly. Which means I have to have a third tray…..for just ONE cookie. 🙄

 WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe video!

Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.

Miracle SOFT Chocolate Chip Cookies that are almost impossibly easy - no creaming butter, no beater, no refrigeration, no rolling dough. These are magical! recipetineats.com

Soft Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Author: Nagi
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 22 mins
Total: 32 mins
Sweet
Western
4.97 from 108 votes
Servings13
Tap or hover to scale
Print
RECIPE VIDEO ABOVE. These may well be the easiest chocolate chip cookies in the world! These are big, soft, buttery and are made without a beater, no creaming butter, no refrigeration required and no rolling the dough into the balls. Adapted from Cooks Illustrated. Makes 13 large or 26-30 small. {This recipe will work no matter which country you live in - see Note 5. High altitude baking - see Note 6.}

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cups plain / all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp baking soda (bi carb soda)
  • 175g / 12 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into 2 cm/ 4/5" cubes (1.5 US sticks / 6 oz)
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar , packed (light or dark) (Note 1)
  • 1/2 cup caster sugar (US: granulated sugar)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips , separated (US: semi sweet chocolate chips or chunks)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 180C / 350F (standard) or 160C/320F (fan / convection). Place oven shelf in the middle of the oven.
  • Line 2 trays with baking / parchment paper.
  • Whisk the flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl.
  • Place the butter in a large heatproof bowl. Microwave until the butter is almost fully melted (25 sec for room temp butter, 40 sec for fridge cold butter on high).
  • Whisk to finish melting the butter. (Note 2)
  • Add brown and white sugar, whisk energetically for 15 seconds.
  • Add egg, yolk and vanilla, whisk well for 15 seconds.
  • Add flour mixture and mix until flour is almost fully incorporated.
  • Add 1 cup chocolate chips, stir to disperse and flour is fully incorporated. Batter will be quite loose.
  • Stand for 5 minutes for batter to firm up a bit so it is scoop-able into mounds. (Note 3)
  • LARGE COOKIES: Scoop up a level ice cream scoop / 3 tbsp / 1/4 cup (Note 4) and place on baking trays 5cm / 2" apart - 13 balls. Top with remaining choc chips (these remain on surface once baked = prettier).
  • SMALL COOKIES (26 - 30): Scoop up 1.5 tbsp (heaped tbsp measure) OR 1/2 an ice cream scoop (this works well). Place on baking trays 4cm / 1.75" apart, top with choc chops.
  • Bake 1 tray at a time. LARGE COOKIES: Bake for 8 minutes, then rotate the tray and bake for 3 minutes (11 minutes in total). SMALL COOKIES: Bake 6 minutes, turn then bake 3 minutes (9 min total). The cookies should be just golden on the edges and pale golden on top. They will be slightly puffed up.
  • Cool on the tray - they finish cooking. They will lose the puffiness while resting. Dig in and get your cookie fix!

Recipe Notes:

1. I switch between light and dark brown sugar, I use whatever I have. If I had both, I probably use light over dark more often. The flavour difference is not noticeable to me. Light brown sugar will produce a slightly paler cookie which does suggest its softness.
2. If the butter is fully melted in the microwave so it's transparent when you take it out, the cookie is not quite as soft. Not a deal breaker, just a little tip that makes a difference!
3. FIRMING UP BATTER: While the butter is warm, the batter is quite loose (see video). Standing for just 5 minutes firms up the batter, turning it into a soft cookie dough so when you drop mounds onto the tray, they stay in a mound shape. If it is super hot where you are, you may need to refrigerate for a bit.
4. A standard ice cream scooper is 3 tablespoons. The ones with levers like what I use in the video are a terrific utensil that I use more frequently for things like cookies, pancakes and even meatballs more than I do ice cream!
You can also make smaller cookies and I will update this recipe with a guide for baking times for different size cookies in the near future - there are cookie baking plans for this weekend!
5. HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING - a reader at 7200 ft reported that this worked perfectly with the sugar reduced to 3/4 cup (total).
DIFFERENT COUNTRY CUPS: No need to do any calculations to adjust, this recipe will work no matter which country you are in with the exception of Japan, please use weights provided.
Background: Measuring cups and teaspoons can differ between some countries. For most recipes, the difference is not material enough to affect the recipe. However, for baking recipes, it does make a difference. I've tested this recipe with US cups, Aussie cups (which is very close to rest of world) and weights. No difference!
6. STORING: Keeps great for 3 days in an airtight container and they freeze well too. Dough keeps great in the fridge for 3 days - it will firm up so roll into balls and place on tray, then add 1 minutes to the bake time. Cooked cookies freeze great - defrost before serving.
7. HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING: I'm thrilled to share that a reader, Marg (4 June 2017) who lives at high altitude (985 m/3200 ft) made the following adjustments: reduced total sugar to 1/2 cup (1/4 each brown and white), increased oven to 170C/340F, and used 2 eggs (to avoid having left over egg white). She said  the cookies spread a bit because she used 2 whole instead of 1 yolk + 1 egg per recipe, but they were not flat, were soft and she didn't miss the sugar. Would love to hear if anyone at high altitude makes this using 1 whole + 1 yolk + Marg's other adjustments!
The Cooks' Illustrated recipe I adapted my recipe from doesn't prescribe exact adjustments, but provided a guideline which Marg based her adjustments on: "For High-Altitude Baking: Problem: Cookies spread too much in the oven. Solution: Use less sugar. Increase the oven temperature and decrease the baking time. Problem: Cookies are too dry. Solution: Add an extra egg or yolk."
8. This is adapted from a Cooks' Illustrated recipe. I reduced sweetness (plus this made it a touch softer), cut out a step to brown butter (which they do to add more flavour which I don't miss when I exclude) and I reduced the butter a touch which I find makes the dough slightly quicker to make and consistently yields a better scoop-able dough without affecting the butteriness of the cookie. So...erm, I did actually change it quite a bit over the years. This recipe is my idea of a perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie that happens to be very simple to make!
9. Yes, this makes 13 large cookies. It is so annoying because my trays fit 6 each! Nutrition is per giant cookie, halve it for small cookies.

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 74gCalories: 325cal (16%)
Keywords: Chocolate chip cookie recipe
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

LIFE OF DOZER

At the coffee shop responding to messages and recipe questions on my site…..and Dozer wanting to know what I’m writing. That’s a nice way of saying he’s being annoying, shoving his face onto my computer!!

SaveSave

SaveSave

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

Read More

Related Posts

Close up of a slice of Blueberry Custard Cake

Custard Cake With Blueberries

Stack of Flourless Chocolate Brownies (gluten free) slices with milk and flowers in the background

Flourless Chocolate Brownies (gluten free)

Close up of colourful Christmas Cookies

Christmas Cookies! (Vanilla Biscuits/Sugar Cookies)

More Baking Recipes

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published.

Cooked this? Rate this recipe!




274 Comments

  1. Jamie Kephart says

    I’m excited to make these. Have you ever substituted butter with coconut oil? I’m wondering which is better if you have tried that way? I recently discovered coconut oil and I love using it—it’s esp delicious on pancakes!

    Reply

  2. Jacqui says

    5 stars
    Fantastic recipe as always! Thanks Nagi. Do you have brand recommendations (in Australia) for ingredients used in your baking recipes, like butter and choc chips?
    Also is vanilla essence and extract the same? If not, what is the difference? Thanks!

    Reply

    • Nagi says

      Hi Jacqui! I use several brands all available at my local grocery store – Allowrie, Dairy Farmers Butter, Devondale Butter and Lurpak come to mind. For chocolate chips it’s the ones in the normal baking section – Cadbury or Nestle. And I prefer natural vanilla extract. Vanilla essence has artificial flavours. N x

      Reply

  3. Amutha says

    5 stars
    It was such a simple easy recipe. The best part of the recipe was the fact that I didn’t need to refrigerate the dough (unlike most other recipes) . Saved a lot of time ! My girls enjoyed baking these cookies. Taste great too!

    Reply

  5. Adrian says

    5 stars
    I’ve made these a ton of times now, so good and so easy! Instead of just one type of choc chip I like to add 1 cup of mixed choc chips (white, caramilk, milk, dark) to the batter, and then top with a ton of extra mixed choc chips. They look phenomenal and taste great to boot!

    Reply

  6. Belle says

    I didn’t have any choc chips so I’ve used chocolate coated peanuts instead. They’re still cooling so I’m hoping they’re going to be ok!!

    Reply

  7. Lily says

    Hello, I want to use this recipe to make a cookie cake. Should I double the recipe if I want to bake it in a 9×13″ pan to make a cookie cake ?

    Reply

  9. Daaya says

    5 stars
    Who are you and where has your website been all my life
    You made yesterday the happiest baking day of my life 😍😍
    Gonna pass down the recipe for generations
    It’s perfect and not at all stressful
    Thanks a lot
    Wish to try out more recipes like this 😊

    Reply

  10. Sarah says

    Wow! Another amazing recipe! Thank you Nagi! My kids couldn’t wait for them to cool and said they are the best cookies they have tasted!! 🤩

    Reply

  12. Sarah says

    5 stars
    Hi ummm I know cookies are hard to mess up but I measured everything correctly my cookies spread out really thin and I could taste the baking soda so is there anything I’m doing wrong? I chill the dough slightly and use an oven thermometer but it still just melts.

    Reply

  13. Marissa says

    5 stars
    Thank you! I haven’t made choc chip cookies for so long because they never taste like the shop bought ones. These do! They actually have the taste and texture of subway cookies! I definitely made them too large and/or put them too close together so I’ll have to split them across 3-4 trays in future. I already can’t wait to make them again. I’m obsessed with your recipes!!

    Reply

  14. Dee kercher says

    5 stars
    Been making lots of choc chip cookies before and never turn out this good. My daughter can’t stop eating it. It’s chewy but has the crunchy around the side. I reduce the amount of sugar and salt tho. And it’s taste really good for us. I add extra chopped dark chocolate and replace the 1/4 cup of choc chip. Thanks for sharing the recipe, from now on I’ll use this recipe..

    Reply

  15. Deniz says

    5 stars
    This is the third recipe I tried on your page, won’t be the last! Amazing, spot on, like the others. It was also relatively easy to bake with the kids. I only halved the brown sugar amount as I had a very sweet kind. It came out perfect! Thank you!

    Reply

  18. Phyllis says

    I accidentally added baking powder instead of baking soda. The cookies came out fine but wondered what the difference would have been using the soda

    Reply

  20. Jane says

    5 stars
    OMG these are so easy to make they are dangerous! Best choc chip
    cookie I’ve made. I used a mix of milk and caramilk chips. I made mine with the small scoop. My waistline may not thank you but my taste buds sure do. Thanks for yet another great recipe.

    Reply
As Featured On