Classic Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's always a good idea to have a classic chewy chocolate chip cookies recipe in your back pocket when you need it! These cookies are crisp on the edges and deliciously chewy on the inside. They are simply cookie perfection!

Crispy on the edges and chewy on the inside...

...with the perfect balance of cookie and chocolate chips.

That is the quintessential chocolate chip cookie, is it not??

This is a tried-and-true favorite in our house and whenever I have gifted them to friends, they can't stop raving about them!

If you're looking for a classic chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe to keep in your back pocket, read on!

How To Make The Cookies

Start with melted butter and beat in the brown and white sugar until you have a cohesive mixture. Using both brown and white sugar may seem like a bit much, but they each have their function! The brown sugar, with its molasses content, contributes to the cookie's chewiness and the white sugar contributes to the crispness in the edges.

Beat the eggs, vanilla and milk into the butter-sugar mixture, and then beat in the flour, baking soda, and salt. You will end up with a beautiful cookie batter that is then ready for the chocolate chips!

Stir the semi-sweet chocolate chips (chunks are also delicious!) into the cookie dough, then place the dough in the fridge for at least 30-60 minutes to firm up.

Using either a cookie scoop or simply rolling up balls of cookie dough in your hands, place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet, being careful not to overcrowd them and to allow for spreading.

Baking the Cookies

These are called chewy chocolate chip cookies for a reason, and if you want the perfect combination of crisp edges and chewy middles, it's important not to overbake the cookies!

You want to bake the cookies until the edges are a golden brown and the centers look slightly underdone. If you wait until the centers look like they are cooked through, then your cookies will not have that soft chewy quality we love.

If you remove them from the oven too early and the edges are not browned at all, the cookie will be too soft and not hold together very well. While you want the centers JUST under-done, you also don't want a raw cookie!

As the recipe states, bake for 9-11 minutes. Depending on your oven, 9 minutes may be enough, or you may have to go to 11. For the first time you bake these, start watching closely starting at 9 minutes to figure out the timing to achieve the perfect cookies in your oven!

Gluten-Free Cookie Options

Obviously, these chewy chocolate chip cookies are regular, all-purpose flour, gluten-filled cookies. But if you are gluten-free and want to enjoy delicious delectable cookies, too, make sure to check out:

• Soft and Chewy Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

• Gluten-Free Double Chocolate Cookies

For a non-chocolate chip option, my Coconut Almond Jam Thumbprint Cookies are also gluten-free and delicious!

If you're looking for a reliable classic chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe, you are going to love these gems. They're so good that people will think you've bought them from a bakery....but you can keep this your little secret if you want!

~ Lisa.

Classic Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's always a good idea to have a classic chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe in your back pocket when you need it! These cookies are crisp on the edges and deliciously chewy on the inside. They are simply cookie perfection!

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Cookies, Dessert

Cuisine: Western

Keyword: chocolate chip cookies

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 22 minutes

Chill time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 52 minutes

Makes: 18 cookies

Author: Lisa from A Day in the Kitchen

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 ¼ cups flour
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1 cup unsalted butter
• ▢ ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
• ▢ 1 egg yolk
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ 2 tablespoons milk
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

• In medium bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking soda. Set aside.
• Melt butter gently in a small pot over low heat. Do not let it come to a boil. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
• In large mixing bowl, combine melted butter and brown sugar and granulated sugar. Using a beater, cream the butter and sugar together until mixture is cohesive and thick.
• Add the full egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla to the butter-sugar and beat well to combine.
• Add the flour mixture to the butter-sugar mixture and mix well to form the cookie dough.
• Stir the semi-sweet chocolate chips into the cookie dough, mixing well.
• Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes. You can also store the dough in a sealed container in the fridge for a few days until you are ready to bake.

Baking the Cookies:

• Preheat oven 375 deg F (190 C).
• Using a cookie scoop or rolling dough between your hands, place cookie dough balls on a parchment lined baking sheet. Do not crowd the cookies and allow room for spread.
• Bake for 9-11 minutes until the edges are golden brown and the centers look very slightly under-cooked.
• Remove from oven and let cool on the pan a few minutes before transferring them to cool completely on a sheet of foil on the counter.

Notes

• Make the cookie dough ahead of time and store it in the fridge until you are ready to bake the cookies.
• If you like nuts in your cookies, reduce the amount of chocolate chips and substitute with the equivalent amount of chopped nuts.
• You can also shape the cookie dough into separate cookie balls and freeze them on a plate or sheet before storing the frozen cookie balls in a zippered freezer bag.
  • To bake from frozen, place the frozen cookie dough balls and bake them for about a minute more than the usual baking time.
• You can also store all the cookie dough in a freezer bag/sealable container and freeze for baking at a later date. Defrost the cookie dough in the fridge before shaping into balls.
• Bake until the cookie edges are golden brown and the centers look slightly undone.
• Store the cookies in a sealed container. I like cold cookies, so I keep mine in the fridge. 🙂
• Recipe adapted from Alton Brown's The Chewy and Nestle Tollhouse Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Have you tried this recipe?Mention @dayinthekitchen or tag #adayinthekitchen!

** This recipe was original published on December 10th, 2016 and republished on March 30th, 2021 with recipe updates, new photos, and writing.