When you're craving an easy chocolate treat, my recipe for Double Chocolate Chip Cookies is a clear winner! With chewy centers and loads of chips, this is truly the best chocolate cookie recipe.
It might be an understatement to say that I love chocolate. I'll take it in any form, Dark Chocolate Brownies, Chocolate Bundt Cake, and Dark Chocolate Brown Sugar Cookies. As far as I'm concerned, there can never be enough chocolate in this world.
And if you’re just like me, I’m sure you’ll love this chocolate cookie recipe. It's super simple to make, and these sweet treats are fantastic any time of the year!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Freezer-friendly. Get a jump start on your holiday baking! You can freeze the baked cookies, and the unbaked dough freezes well, too.
- The perfect soft and chewy consistency.
- Rich chocolate flavor. Double chocolate chip cookies are ultra-rich. My recipe includes a bit of instant coffee, to deepen the chocolate flavor!!
Ingredient Notes
See ingredient substitutions in the next section. ⬇️
To make the double chocolate chip cookies, you'll need:
- butter - If you can afford it, I recommend using European butter. It has less water in it than U.S. butter, which will prevent the cookie dough from spreading in the oven.
- semi-sweet chocolate chips
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- milk - Absolutely any kind of milk will work; even dairy-free varieties.
- vanilla extract
- instant coffee - You'll find instant coffee granules in the coffee aisle of the grocery store. It's usually packaged in a small box or jar, and stocked on the top shelf. Coffee brings out the chocolate flavor, and I promise, the cookies do not taste like coffee.
- large eggs
- white granulated sugar
- light brown sugar
- all-purpose flour
- baking soda - If the baking soda has been in your pantry for more than 4 months, be sure to test it for freshness before using it.
- salt - If you use salted butter, you can omit this ingredient.
📖 Time-Saving Tip - Testing Baking Soda or Baking Powder for Freshness
This simple little test can save you time and money, because if your leavener is expired, whatever you're baking wont rise in the oven! This test works for baking soda and baking powder:
- Add about ½ teaspoon of baking soda or powder to a small bowl. Stir in an equal amount of an acidic ingredient, like vinegar or citrus juice.
- If the solution doesn't start to bubble immediately, it's time to replace your leavener.
Substitutions and Recipe Variations
- butter - Plant-based butter sticks will probably work, but I haven't tested them with this recipe. Keep in mind that the extra water content in dairy free butter is likely to cause the cookies to spread in the oven. This means, they'll be less chewy.
- eggs - If you want to do some recipe testing with an egg substitute like flax meal, feel free. For tips and suggestions, read my article on Egg Substitutions for Baking.
- white sugar - To cut down on the calories of your double chocolate chip cookies, feel free to use any cup-for-cup granulated sugar substitute. Monkfruit sugar is a good option.
- chocolate chips - I don't recommend using milk chocolate chips because they are much sweeter than semi-sweet chips. Dark chocolate chunks also work well.
- light brown sugar: Dark brown sugar is a workable substitute, but the cookies will have a more pronounced molasses flavor.
- all-purpose Flour: If you'd like to make gluten free cookies, substitute the AP flour with any cup-for-cup gluten-free all-purpose flour. Popular brands include Bob's Red Mill and King Arthur Flour.
How to Make Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
Summary only. The complete recipe instructions are in the card at the bottom of this post ⬇️
- Melt the butter and chocolate chips over medium-low heat.
- Stir in the milk, instant coffee, vanilla extract, and cocoa powder.
- Combine the eggs and both sugars in a mixing bowl.
- Stir melted chocolate/butter mixture into the egg/sugar mixture.
- Incorporate the remaining dry ingredients.
- Portion dough balls 3 inches apart, and bake at 350°F. for 8 minutes.
Liz's Cookie Recipe Tips
- I recommend using an electric hand or stand mixer to make this recipe, because the dough is very thick and heavy.
- Use medium-low heat when you melt the chocolate and butter. Otherwise, you'll risk scorching the chocolate.
- Avoid over mixing the ingredients. To keep the cookies soft and chewy, it's important not to work the dough too much.
- Line your baking sheets with parchment paper to prevent the cookies from sticking to the pan.
- Be sure to preheat your oven. If the oven isn't hot enough, the dough will spread too much before the cookies begin to bake.
- Leave space on the pan for the dough to spread. These cookies have a tendency to spread a little bit in the oven. To prevent the dough balls from baking into one giant cookie, leave at least 2 inches of space between each portion of dough.
Storage and Reheating
If they are kept in a tightly sealed container, your chewy chocolate cookies should stay fresh for up to 4 days at room temperature, or for up to a week in the refrigerator.
Freezing: After baking and cooling them, you can freeze double chocolate chip cookies for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. Thaw completely before enjoying.
You can also freeze pre-portioned scoops of dough in the freezer and bake them in the oven at 350°F. for 10-15 minutes.
Frozen cookie dough will keep for 3-4 months. Scoop into balls and place them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Freeze for one hour, until solid, then transfer them to a freezer-safe container or storage bag. For tips, check out my post, How to Freeze Cookie Dough.
Storing Unbaked Cookie Dough: Any unbaked dough will keep in the fridge for 7-10 days if it's kept in a tightly covered container.
Reheating: If reheating from the freezer, let them come to room temperature on their own. Wrap them in a lightly moistened paper towel and then heat in the microwave for 15-30 seconds.
Want more cookie-storing tips? Read my post, how to make soft cookies, and keep them that way!
Chocolate Cookie Recipe FAQs
Because of their dark color, it can be tricky to know when chocolate cookies are done baking. For this recipe, allow them to bake for about 8 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are set, but the centers are still slightly soft. The cookies should take shape and not be mushy after about 2 minutes of cooling on the baking sheet.
If you want your cookies to spread out more, skip the step of chilling the dough. Additionally, right before you remove them from the oven, lightly tap the bottom of the baking sheet against the oven rack. Doing this will deflate some of the air, allowing them to spread out.
Other Chocolate Treats To Bake
Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks, divided in half
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons instant coffee or instant espresso
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- ⅓ cups light brown sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and them set aside.
- Melt butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Once butter is completely melted, add half of your chocolate chips and stir constantly until the chocolate melts completely.
- Remove saucepan from heat and stir in the milk, vanilla, instant coffee, and cocoa powder.
- In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to beat sugars and eggs on medium-high speed for 1-2 minutes, to combine.
- Stir in the melted chocolate/butter mixture and beat on medium speed for 1-2 minutes, to combine.
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add half of this to your chocolate mixture and beat until combined, then add the second half of your flour mixture.
- Stir in the second half of your chocolate chips.
- Arrange 2-tablespoon sized scoops of dough about 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake in preheated 350°F. oven for 7-8 minutes, until edges are set but centers are still slightly soft.
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving them to a cooling rack.
Helpful Notes and Tips From Liz
- I recommend using an electric hand or stand mixer to make this recipe, because the dough is very thick and heavy.
- Use medium-low heat when you melt the chocolate and butter. Otherwise, you'll risk scorching the chocolate.
- Avoid over mixing the ingredients. To keep the cookies soft and chewy, it's important not to work the dough too much.
- Be sure to preheat your oven. If the oven isn't hot enough, the dough will spread too much before the cookies begin to bake.
- Leave space on the pan for the dough to spread. These cookies have a tendency to spread a little bit in the oven. To prevent the dough balls from baking into one giant cookie, leave at least 2 inches of space between each portion of dough.
- Storage - Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to 5 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- Reheating – If reheating from the freezer, let them come to room temperature on their own. Wrap them in a lightly moistened paper towel and then heat in the microwave for 15-30 seconds.
Joanne Savino
Can I use regular finely ground coffee instead of instant?
Liz @ Tasty Treats & Eats
Yes, that would work!