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Thick Chocolate Chip Cookies!  These cookies are nice and golden on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside. Loaded up with tons of melted chocolate. The best part is the size. These cookies are thick and hearty!

Super thick chocolate chip cookie being picked up by a hand off a cooling wire rack.


 

My favorite thing about cookies, is possibly the dough. Which means these Texas sized cookies that remain soft and gooey in the center even when baked are my favorite thing ever! These cookies check all the boxes! 

  • Thick! 
  • Chewy
  • Buttery
  • Soft and gooey
  • Loaded with chocolate

How do you make thick cookies?

There’s several tricks and tips involved in this recipe that help to create the ultimate thick chocolate chip cookie.

  1. Use more Brown Sugar: We’re using mostly brown sugar instead of white. The light brown sugar creates a thicker, softer, and chewier cookie than using mostly white sugar.
  2. Baking Powder: We’re also using baking powder in these cookies instead of baking soda. Baking soda can help create crisper cookies, but we’re going for thick and soft.
  3. How you handle the dough: After we make the chocolate chip cookie dough, we’re also going to be careful about how we handle it. Don’t squish the dough! 
Step by step how to make thick cookies.

Handle the dough gently

To make the cookies, gently separate the dough into 6 pieces, but don’t form the dough into a ball shape. Most cookie recipes have you compress the dough and form a ball, or form it higher to help with the shape while baking.

But with this dough, we want to loosely form it into a shape, but don’t compress it. We want to keep the dough light and airy.

Chocolate chip cookie dough in a glass bowl.

Important Tips

  • The best dough will form if you use a hand mixer or stand mixer. This will allow you to throughly cream the butter and sugars.
  • If using a mixer, the dough might seem a bit crumbly. Moist, but not completely sticking together in a solid mound. This is ok. It’s due to the amount of flour in the recipe. This is another thing that makes the cookies so thick. Use your hands to mix the chocolate chips in all the way and you will see the dough come together.
  • Again, don’t squish the dough together. Keep it nice and airy. Form it just enough to make the cookie shape.
Balls of cookie dough on a baking sheet.

Can I make these cookies smaller?

This recipe is designed to create LARGE Thick Chocolate Chip Cookies. The best I can describe would be close to Levain Bakery. The recipe is designed to make 6 cookies.

However! This same dough can be used to make smaller size cookies, and they will still puff up thick when baking as long as you follow the instructions. Keep in mind that does change the serving size and nutrition information provided.

Other cookie recipes:

Thick Chocolate Chip Cookies

4.99 from 736 votes
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 16 minutes
Chill Time: 30 minutes
Total: 56 minutes
Servings: 6
Author: Serene
Thick Chocolate Chip Cookies!  These cookies are nice and golden on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside. Loaded up with tons of melted chocolate. The best part is the size. These cookies are thick and hearty!
Super thick chocolate chip cookie being picked up by a hand off a cooling wire rack.

Ingredients  

  • ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
  • ¾ cup light brown sugar
  • ¼ cup white sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • ¾ cup semi sweet chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup chopped pecans can be omitted

Instructions 

  • Line a large baking sheet with a silicone baking mat, set aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl add the butter and sugars. Using a hand or stand mixer cream the butter and sugars together until fluffy.
  • Add in the large egg, vanilla and mix until combined.
  • Add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix until combined. The dough might seem to be in crumbles as mentioned above.
  • Pour in the chocolate chips and pecans (if using) and use your hands to mix them in. This will bring the dough together. Be gentle though. We don’t want to compact the dough too much. We want to keep it as airy as possible.
  • Divide the dough into 6 pieces. Gently form into cookie form. Place on the baking sheet.
  • Chill the cookie dough for at least 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 during this time.
  • Bake the cookies for about 16-18 minutes. The outside will be golden brown.
  • Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to continue cooling. The cookies need to cool prior to serving. They are best at room temperature.

Video

Notes

Make ahead tip: You can make the cookie dough and keep it chilled in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months sealed in a freezer bag.
Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months, freeze them on a baking sheet first for a few hours, then add to a freezer bag to store. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 598kcal | Carbohydrates: 80g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 69mg | Sodium: 253mg | Potassium: 237mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 44g | Vitamin A: 524IU | Calcium: 74mg | Iron: 4mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Like this? Leave a comment below!

Recipe initially posted on May 23, 2018. Updated on March 6, 2020 with new images and new video. Only recipe change was a reduction in the amount of vanilla extract. Original photo of recipe below! My chocolate chips melted so much better in that batch!

A hand holding a split open thick chocolate chip cookie with melted chocolate chips.

Welcome to my kitchen!

Welcome to the House of Yumm!! My name is Serene. I’m the food photographer, recipe developer, and official taste tester around these parts.

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4.99 from 736 votes (633 ratings without comment)

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265 Comments

  1. Excellent! I made smaller sized ones which made a total of 18 thick delicious cookies! Bake time in a gas oven was only 11 minutes due to size. They turned out perfect. Thanks! Hope this helps if someone chooses to bake smaller sizes.

  2. YES! Finally a choc chip cookie recipe that stays thick and doesn’t flatten out. I just made these cookies and they are excellent. This recipe is now my go to!! Thank you for sharing with us.

  3. Good recipe. My final adjustments:
    1 tsp salt
    1 3/4 c flour

    They were a bit dry with the two cups of flour – and, I tried making this three different times, once with my mother, an esteemed baker, and we all agreed that the lack of salt was pronounced. Maybe 1/2 tsp is adequate if you are using salted butter. I’m not even into salty foods like chips or nuts, but again – salt in baking is vital for that balance, and it was noticeable.

    Other than those two points, I’d still award this recipe 4 stars because it gave me good direction for thick, softer centered, crumbly cookies.

    Last tip – if you are making smaller cookies, just remember to shape them as pictured, and make sure you adjust cooking time. 14 – 15 minutes was about right for 10 cookies.

  4. These look so good! I want to make them tomorrow for a party, but because of time constraints they’ll have to be done hours before people will arrive. Are the insides gooey or cake like? What is the texture like if you don’t eat them right away and will they still taste good later even if kept in an airtight container?

    1. The inside is gooey, more like cookie dough (they are fully cooked and safe to eat!) just gooey. Definitely not cake like. And they save great! To be honest, I have only been able to save them for a day before they are all eaten.. Keep them in an airtight container and they should last a couple of days at least.

  5. I have made these multiple times and my family loves them. Last time instead of chocolate chips I did some chopped dates and shredded coconut and they were amazing. Quick question though would I have to add more butter/ sugar if I add oatmeal to the recipe?

    1. I haven’t made them with oatmeal. That tends to dry cookies out and so you will need more wet ingredients to balance it. Baking is so tricky sometimes, it’s something you would have to try and see what happens.

    2. Hi. I tripled my batch and substituted 2 cups for ground oatmeal and added a tsp of cinnamon, omgness! Sooooo… Delicious! ? family absolutely loved them!

      P. S.
      I used 3 tsp of vanilla ?

  6. These look delicious. Will have to make them soon. Quick question, I love weighing my ingredients when baking what would the flour weigh in grams? Thanks I’m advanced. ?

  7. Preparation:
    – Straightforward and simple setup. Doubled the recipe for more dough (yumm!)
    – One piece of advice, prepare the dry ingredients (ie, flour, salt, and baking powder) first, whisk, and put them aside until its time to use them.
    – Had to use 1/2 cup of cake flour because I ran out of normal flour (little one’s birthday cake used it all up!)
    – Added extra chocolate chips (of course!)

    Cooking/Result
    – Used the convection setting in the oven to prevent uneven browning/cooking. Dropped the temperature to 350 degrees. Also decided to separate the dough into roughly 20 balls (so 10 per one recipe).
    – Had to cook for an extra 5 or so minutes (23 minutes total). Next time I’ll probably skip the convection setting and keep it at 375.

    Overall
    – Great recipe for a late night snack, perfect with a cold glass of milk.

  8. Preparation:
    – Straightforward and simple setup. Doubled the recipe for more dough (yum!)
    – One piece of advice, prepare the dry ingredients (ie, flour, salt, and baking powder) first, whisk, and put them aside until its time to use them.
    – Had to use 1/2 cup of cake flour because I ran out of normal flour (little ones birthday cake used it all up!)

    Cooking/Result
    – Used the convection setting in the oven to prevent uneven browning/cooking. Dropped the temperature to 350 degrees. Also decided to separate the dough into roughly 20 balls (so 10 per one recipe).
    – Cookies had to cook for roughly 5 minutes longer (23 minutes) to properly bake. Next time would probably not use the convection setting.

    Overall
    – These are perfect for late night cravings.
    – Smaller size is perfect for a late night snack, perfect with a cold glass of milk!