I had a mean craving for cookies today, and I wanted something extra gooey, chocolatey and delicious.
I decided to whip up a batch of these cookies today for a few reasons.
- They’re delicious.
- It makes a lot of cookies
- My family lost a loved one today, and the only thing I can ever think to do when people are sad or grieving is bring them food.
I’m hoping these cookies can help warm a grieving heart, if only for a brief moment. I’ll be delivering some to my aunt’s house tomorrow, hoping they give her a breath of comfort.
What makes these cookies so awesome?
Using melted butter is my favorite trick for this kind of cookie. I hate waiting for butter to be “softened” and can never seem to get it right in the microwave. Melt the butter and let it sit for a few minutes to cool down, and then whip it with the sugar for a full 5-10 minutes. The mixture should be light in color and fluffy when done. This makes alllllll the difference. It gives them almost a caramel-like undertone, and makes them gooey and soft.
You do not want to over-bake these cookies, either. They should be crisp on the outside and gooey on the inside.
Do I have to chill the dough before baking?
I recommend it! It will help the cookies to not spread as much, and nothing’s worse than when 12 cookies turn into one giant mess of cookies in the oven.
I recommend at least 20 minutes, but you could even chill it overnight covered in the refrigerator. While a batch of cookies is baking, I put the bowl of dough in the fridge to chill in between batches.
Can I freeze the dough?
Yes! I almost always do that. The easiest way is to form the dough balls on a cookie sheet, freeze them for 30 minutes, and then put them in a freezer bag. This way you can take out the number of cookies you need and leave the rest.
Alternatively, you can roll the cookie dough into a long and wrap in plastic wrap, more of a “slice and bake” style. This is always annoying to me because I have to let it warm up a little bit before I can work the dough into balls.
You may have to add a minute or two to the cooking time if cooking from frozen.
What kind of chocolate chips are best?
It’s really your preference! I like a mix of chocolate chips and chocolate chunks. I like a very chippy cookie (is chippy a word?) so for this recipe I used mini semi-sweet chocolate chips and milk chocolate chunks from chopped up candy bars. You could do just chocolate chips, just chocolate chunks, or any combination of the two.
I usually like a combination of semi-sweet and milk chocolate because I love the sweetness of the milk chocolate, but don’t want it to overpower the cookie.
What else can I use instead of chocolate?
If chocolate isn’t your thing, we can’t be friends. Kidding (sorta). You could swap it out for raisins, craisins, peanut butter chips, white chocolate chips, or anything else that suits your fancy! Get creative, let me know what you’ve tried and loved.
What kind of oatmeal should I use?
I would stay away from steel cut oats and instant oats. You’ll want to use rolled oats to get the best texture for these cookies.
These cookies hit the spot today, and I’m hoping my family loves them tomorrow. Let me know what you think!
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt butter and let cool for 5 minutes. Using a stand mixer, beat butter and sugars until fluffy and light in color (see picture). This will take 5-10 minutes on medium-high speed.
Beat in eggs until well combined.
Add all dry ingredients. Mix until well combined.
Add chocolate to batter. I recommend using a combination of chocolate chunks and chocolate chips.
Cover dough and chill in refrigerator for at least 20 minutes.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoon onto cookie sheet. Bake for 8-9 minutes, until cookies are crisp around the edges but still soft in the middle.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt butter and let cool for 5 minutes. Using a stand mixer, beat butter and sugars until fluffy and light in color (see picture). This will take 5-10 minutes on medium-high speed.
Beat in eggs until well combined.
Add all dry ingredients. Mix until well combined.
Add chocolate to batter. I recommend using a combination of chocolate chunks and chocolate chips.
Cover dough and chill in refrigerator for at least 20 minutes.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoon onto cookie sheet. Bake for 8-9 minutes, until cookies are crisp around the edges but still soft in the middle.