By Meal Prep Ideas 
These are really the very best Chocolate Cookies! Thick, soft-centered, and crispy-edged. All your basic cookie ingredients here plus dark cocoa powder and ground cardamom to make things extra festive!
These Chocolate Cookies Are Essential
Let no holiday pass without cookies! Really, let nothing pass without cookies.
Especially thick, soft-centered, crispy-edged, dark, rich, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cookies. Laced with espresso powder and with a snowy sprinkle of cardamom sugar on top (optional, but such a wintery treat).
They’re beautiful, festive, deeply delicious, and you’re going to be lucky if they last a day in your house. Be prepared when you set them out. People will come in droves…family, friends, neighbors, the Amazon delivery person may wander in and grab one for the road.
They are truly remarkable. So put some in your pockets before they’re gone.
Watch How To Make This Recipe
Bigger Is Better When It Comes To Cookies
This recipe will make about twenty-four very large cookies. We’re not messing around here with baby cookies. We want a cookie that says we mean it. Because we DO.
The larger size of the cookie also helps achieve that perfectly thick sunken soft middle. The kind you just want to curl up in, the kind that pull apart at each craggy little crack. The kind that makes you think, “Maybe I should eat just one of these”, but you know it will probably be two. Or ten.
Also, with a little bit of settling on the pan after you pull them out of the oven, not only will you have soft chewy middles but you also get those nice crispy little edges. That tiny crunch in each bite. And, yes, it’s all a part of the same cookie but it just tastes different, you know? The oven crisp edge with the melty fudgy center…
HELLO IS THIS A DREAM COOKIE OR WHAT? Honestly tearing up just writing about it.
And if you want JUST TWO HUGE CHOCOLATE COOKIES for a smaller-batch treat of this same caliber, you already know I’ve got that ready for you.
Ingredients For This Chocolate Cookie Recipe
Cardamom is interesting because you can’t exactly place it, but you can tell when it’s not there. It’s just slightly warmer, a tinge of something special, a little Christmasy speckle on your palate. It is certainly not required to make these cookies delicious, they are unbelievable with or without, but it really is worth a try. And let’s be serious here, you’re going to wind up making batch after batch of these on repeat, so why not dust one batch with this wintery spice?
To make the rest of the magic happen, you’ll want to gather up:
- your cookie basics: butter, brown sugar, eggs, flour, baking soda, salt
- vanilla
- cocoa powder
- extra sugar for rolling
- cardamom (optional)
- espresso powder (also optional, but let’s be fun)
A warm heart? A festive spirit? A readiness to chomp chocolate cookies for the rest of your holiday days? Also on the list.
How To Make Chocolate Cookies (Three Steps)
It’s hard to choose what to love most about these cookies, but the fact that they’re a real mix & bake, no-fuss kinda situation certainly makes the list!
- Make the dough. Cream butter and sugar and then add the eggs and vanilla until just combined. Then, in goes the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder (if using, but remember, let’s be fun), baking soda, and salt. Stir and mix it all together.
- Form into balls. About 1/4 cup per ball because you mean it (a large cookie scoop or ice cream scoop works great here). Roll each in the extra sugar (or cardamom sugar if you’re feeling festive!).
- Bake in batches. We recommend 6-8 at a time. Remove from oven and LET. THEM. REST. so you get the crispy edges and soft craggy middles. Transfer to a wire cooling rack.
Tips For Making These Cookies
- Splurge for good cocoa powder (if feasible) – Dutch process cocoa powder or dark cocoa powder especially makes really dark, rich, delicious cookies!
- Go for the cardamom sugar – the recipe says it’s optional, but the cardamom creates such a lovely, subtle warming, flavor that just really takes these up a notch.
- Freeze the baked cookies or dough – these are great ready-to-eat out of the freezer, or you can freeze before baking. I’d just make sure you roll the cookie dough balls prior to freezing.
- Let these cool completely before handling them – they are very delicate and can break easily. If you’re traveling with them to a holiday party, I’d line each layer in the container with parchment so they don’t stack directly on top of each other.
We’re feeling all the feelings these days. Admittedly, the Christmas music is already playing and we’re so ready for things to be glowy and merry and bright. We’re so ready to keep our stand mixers busy and our rolling pins dusted because there’s nothing quite like deep chocolatey cookie smells swirling through the air and your home being filled with the extra warmth from the oven. Merry, merry indeed. Happy cookie-making!
Chocolate Cookies: Frequently Asked Questions
How should I store these cookies to keep them soft and chewy?
Store them at room temp in an airtight container for maximum freshness.
Can you freeze the cookie dough?
Yes! To make it even easier when you’re ready to bake the cookies, form the cookies into cookie dough balls you can just pop on a baking sheet from the freezer.
Can you freeze the chocolate cookies after baking?
Yep! These are shockingly delicious cold/frozen and will keep for up to 6 months in the freezer!
Can I use regular cocoa powder?
Absolutely. The dark cocoa powder just adds a bit more rich flavor and deeper color.
What is the difference between unsweetened cocoa powder and Dutch process cocoa powder and what type of cocoa powder should I use?
Unsweetened cocoa powder is what you typically find in the grocery store – it’s lighter in color and a little sharper.
Dutch process cocoa powder is darker, smoother, and richer, and less acidic.
Either cocoa powder will work here, but I do love the dark and rich taste of the Dutch process!
What if I don’t need such a large batch?
Try these Two Huge Double Chocolate Cookies! Same delicious cookie, with just two for a perfect late-night snack.
Can I add chocolate chips to these cookies?
Yes! I’d recommend adding 1.5 cups of chocolate chips.
Could I make these chocolate crinkle cookies?
Sure could! I haven’t tried it personally, but I think if you finish it off by rolling in powdered sugar (instead of granulated or cane sugar), you would get a crinkle cookie. I’d love to hear in the comments if you give it a try!