Crisp, golden brown edges, soft and chewy centers, and plenty of melty, gooey chocolate chips make these easy chocolate chip cookies a family favorite! No electric mixer, no softened butter, no extended chilling time — and ready in less than 1 hour.
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The perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe! Crispy on the outside but soft in the middle, chock full of chocolate chips. So good!!!
– Andrea
How to Make this Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe | Video
This recipe is slightly adapted from a recipe that one of my boys found in a children’s cookbook published by America’s Test Kitchen. I was initially intrigued by the cookies because of their ease, so imagine my surprise when we realized how delicious they taste, too!
What Makes this Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Easy?
Here’s why these homemade chocolate chip cookies are particularly simple:
- No softened butter. It might seem silly, but planning to make cookies usually requires remembering to leave the butter out to soften overnight or at least for a couple of hours — something I don’t usually think to do in advance. This recipe uses melted butter instead of softened butter, automatically eliminating one hassle.
- No electric mixer. Since we’re using melted butter instead of softened butter, there’s no need to pull out the stand mixer or electric hand mixer to cream together the butter and sugar. Instead, a hand whisk and a rubber spatula are the only tools that you need to bring the dough together.
- No extended chilling. To prevent most cookie doughs from spreading too thin in the oven, it’s often recommended that you chill the dough for at least a couple of hours (or overnight) before baking. But who can wait that long? These cookies chill for about 15 minutes while you preheat the oven and prepare the pans, and that’s it!
A Few Notes Before You Get Started
- Melted butter, rather than softened butter, is the key to an ultra chewy cookie! This is because butter is about 20% water, and melting the butter allows this water to mix more easily with the flour to create gluten — the proteins that make the cookies chewy. Since more moisture yields a chewy cookie, another way to achieve this desired texture is to use more brown sugar than granulated sugar. The molasses in the brown sugar draws in more moisture, making the cookies thicker, softer, and chewier.
- Allow the melted butter to cool slightly before using it in the recipe. This will help the cookies spread less in the oven, and will make the dough less sticky and easier to scoop.
- Line the baking sheets. Spraying the baking sheets with cooking spray or greasing with butter or lard creates a slippery surface that causes cookies to spread. Instead, line the baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat for “grip,” so that the cookies stay thick and chewy.
How to Make Easy Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies
These warm cookies will be on your table from start to finish in less than 1 hour! You’ll find step-by-step instructions in the recipe card below, but here’s the overview:
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. When measuring the flour, remember to spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife so that you don’t get too much flour in the bowl.
- Whisk together the sugars and melted butter in a large bowl.
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract to the butter mixture.
- Use a rubber spatula to stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Don’t overmix. Mixing the ingredients too much can add excessive air to the dough, causing the cookies to collapse and spread in the oven.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Cover the bowl and chill in the fridge or freezer for about 15 minutes while you heat oven and prepare the baking sheets.
- Use a cookie scoop to roll the dough into portions that are about 2 tablespoons each. Arrange the cookie dough balls on rimmed baking sheets that are lined with parchment paper. Placing a rounded ball of dough onto the baking sheet yields a taller, thicker, softer, and chewier cookie.
- Bake the cookies in a 325°F oven until the edges are set and beginning to brown, but the centers are still soft and puffy, about 15 minutes. Don’t over-bake the cookies. While they might look under-baked, the cookies will firm up as they cool, maintaining that great soft and chewy texture that we all love! Baking them for too long yields a crispy cookie.
- Transfer the cookies to a wire rack for 5 minutes, then enjoy with a cold glass of milk!
Preparation and Storage Tips
- How to Store: The cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. To extend the life of your cookies, wrap them tightly and freeze them for up to 3 months.
- How to Freeze Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough: You can freeze the cookie dough before baking. This dough freezes best if you portion it into balls first. Arrange the dough balls on a cookie sheet, freeze, and then wrap tightly in an airtight container or Ziploc bag. The dough will keep in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- How to Bake Frozen Dough: When ready to bake, just pull a couple of frozen dough balls from the oven and bake in a 325°F oven. You’ll need to add about 1-2 more minutes to the baking time since you’re starting with frozen dough.
I love this recipe. These may be the easiest cc cookies I have ever made and the taste is out of this world good. I also added an extra egg yolk for chewier. These are a hit for our family. Thank you for sharing it!
– Deb
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Watch How to Make It
Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Chill 15 minutes
Total: 40 minutes
Soft and chewy, these easy chocolate chip cookies don't require an electric mixer, softened butter, or an extended chilling time!
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) salted butter, melted and cooled
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 (12 ounce) package semi-sweet chocolate chips (about 2 cups)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, melted butter, and granulated sugar. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract until combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Use a rubber spatula to stir just until the ingredients are combined (and you don’t see any dry pockets of flour).
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Cover the bowl and chill for 15 minutes while you preheat the oven and prepare the baking sheets. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out 2 tablespoons of dough. Roll the dough between your hands to form a round ball. If the dough is still sticky and hard to work with, let it chill in the fridge until it's more firm. Repeat with the remaining dough. Place the dough balls about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake the cookies until the edges are set and beginning to brown, but the centers are still soft and puffy, about 15 minutes. The cookies will continue to firm up as they cool, so be sure that you don’t overbake them or they’ll be tough and crunchy. Use a spatula to transfer the cookies directly to a wire cooling rack. Let cool for at least 5 minutes, then enjoy!
Notes
- Allow the melted butter to cool slightly before using it in the recipe. This will help the cookies spread less in the oven, and will make the dough less sticky and easier to scoop.
- Line the Baking Sheets. Spraying the baking sheets with cooking spray or greasing with butter or lard creates a slippery surface that causes cookies to spread. Instead, line the baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat for “grip,” so that the cookies stay thick and chewy.
- Shape into Large Round Balls. Placing a rounded ball of dough onto the baking sheet yields a taller, thicker, softer, and chewier cookie.
- Recipe slightly adapted from America’s Test Kitchen.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookieCalories: 186kcalCarbohydrates: 24gProtein: 2gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.4gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 24mgSodium: 101mgPotassium: 90mgFiber: 1gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 161IUCalcium: 18mgIron: 1mg
Easy Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Variations
- For an ultra-chewy texture, add an extra egg yolk to the dough. You can also swap out half of the all-purpose flour for bread flour. Bread flour has a higher protein content and therefore creates a chewier bite.
- If you prefer a crispy chocolate chip cookie, use more granulated sugar than brown sugar. Bake the cookies for a few extra minutes.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips are the classic addition to chocolate chip cookies. That said, you can use any chocolate chips that you like. Try milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, or coarsely-chopped chocolate bars as well.
- We like salted butter for that sweet-and-salty contrast, but you can substitute with unsalted butter if that’s your preference.
- Mix-ins: feel free to add chopped nuts (like peanuts or pecans), rainbow sprinkles, raisins, dried cranberries — whatever! You can sprinkle some flaky sea salt on the cookies when they’re warm from the oven if you like an even saltier contrast to the sweet treats.
- Small batch: to prepare fewer cookies, just cut all of the ingredients in half.
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
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Kitchen Sink Cookie Recipe (Park Ranger Cookies)
2 hours hrs 32 minutes mins
Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies
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This recipe was originally published in November, 2022. It was updated in November, 2024.
The perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe! Crispy on the outside but soft in the middle, chock full of chocolate chips. So good!!!
Yay! Thank you, Andrea!
Unsalted or salted butter
Salted
I made these with my granddaughter on this rainy August afternoon. So easy and sooooo delicious. Will definitely be our go to cookie recipe! (Even with the accidental spill of extra vanilla they were great!)
We’re so happy to hear this, Penny! What a great rainy day activity. Thank you for trying them out and taking the time to leave your feedback.
Hi. Is there a way to make the cookie healthier for people who are diabetic, and, if so, how?
Hi, Kristin! I haven’t tried any substitutions myself, but I know that my mom has had good luck baking with a sugar-free blend like this and this. You might give those a try!
I love this recipe. These may be the easiest cc cookies I have ever made and the taste is out of this world good. I also added an extra egg yolk for chewier. These are a hit for our family. Thank you for sharing it
Thank you, Deb!
Just made these today and they were delicious … love the light crispy outside and soft inside. No more flat-as-a-pancake cookies for me!
We’re so happy to hear this, Joanne!
Tried this recipe to bake for my mother for mother’s day! They were delicious. Exactly how the recipe described them! Crispy on the outside and gooey and soft on the inside. My mom loved them!
That’s awesome, Kamberlyn! I know that your mom must have appreciated them!
I didn’t have brown sugar so I used coconut sugar instead. Great recipe. Cookies were delicious.
Awesome! Thank you, Camisha. I’m glad to know that it works well with the coconut sugar. 🙂
I might have missed it but how many cookies does this make?
30! The serving sizes are always listed in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
I don’t think I’d make these often because THEY’RE TOO DELICIOUS!
I nearly ate half the cookies in one day.
Jokes aside, this was my first time making cookies from scratch and I chose this recipe because it seemed pretty easy.
10/10 recommend.
Hah, thank you, Dosh! I’m so glad that you enjoyed them. They disappear fast in our house, too!
Delicious! I made these and was pleasantly surprise. My son loved them! They taste great and are very light.
Thank you
Wonderful! Thank you, Yadira!
Can you add peanut butter to the mix and how much would you Incorporate
Hi! We haven’t tested it and can’t guarantee the results, but you should be able to add 3/4 cup of peanut butter. You’ll likely need to add an extra 1/4 cup or so of flour! Please let us know how it turns out if you give it a try!
Yesss the job has be done, and they turned out perfect!!!! I used a little less than 3/4 cup peanut butter maybe half cup. The flour I used 1/4 plus a tablespoon and a half. I wish I could post a picture of them, they are a hittttttt for my peanut butter lovers this one is it. It doesn’t get any better then chocolate and peanut butter together in a cookie
We agree and are so glad you enjoyed them!
Yes the family did have you tired them yet if not I encourage to unless allergic hahaha and I would use half cup peanut butter if u want stronger peanut butter taste
MOM MARY ANN EWIGMEN I FOUND THE SEASONED MOM . COM EASY – CHOALTE CHIP -COOKIES DO U HAVE SOME CHOLATE CHIPS ARE CAN VICTORIA HUNT GET SOME MABE THIS WEEK FOR THE EWIGMEN REION
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Followed the recipe and method mostly faithfully and achieved the promised crisp edges & and chewy middles.
I subbed same amount dark brown sugar for light brown. I used unsalted butter instead of salted and added an extra 1/2 tsp to the dry ingredients.
I eyeballed the portioning of dough and thus was a little shy of the 2 Tbl, so my yield was 41 cookies, but still ended with the cookies I had hoped for, with a 15-16 minute baking time.
5 stars.
We’re glad you were able to make it work for you. Thank you for trying it out, Larry!
I’ve made cookies from this recipe twice and they taste absolutely delicious I mean HEAVENLY, I’m addicted. However, with the size of the doughballs the recipe calls for, not only is the recommended baking time not nearly long enough (I had to leave them in literally twice as long) but also they don’t get cooked well to the middle of the top of the cookie. Would recommend simply making the doughballs smaller and then it’s a perfect recipe. I always add the third egg for extra chewiness like the recipe author says you can, and I love the texture that way
Thank you for the feedback! We’re so glad you enjoy the recipe and are able to make it work for you.
I made these cookies today and they are delicious. Thanks for sharing this recipe. Have a great day.
Thank you, Jean! We’re so glad you enjoyed them.