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These Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies are about to be the BEST cookies you’ve ever tried.
This Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe has gone completely viral. It’s been featured on Good Morning America, and TikTok videos of people making this recipe have gotten millions of views.
I originally published this recipe in 2014 but just had to update it with recipe improvements and new photos. These cookies deserved it!
In fact, my recipe photographer Ashley, who shot all 50 recipes in my cookie cookbook, said this may just be my BEST COOKIE RECIPE yet. People have been known to fight over these cookies. Yes, they’re that good.
This Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe is kind of a mouthful to say. But when you actually have a mouthful of one of these cookies, I think you’re going to love me.
These are one of the most flavorful chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever tasted, and the texture is absolutely perfect. You NEED to try this recipe. If your friends and family are anything like mine, they plead and beg you to make it again and again.
Yes, this recipe is a little extra work. But the best things in life usually are.
You may even want to make a double batch so you have plenty of dough to freeze when the craving hits. Trust me… it WILL hit!
How to Make Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
How to Brown Butter:
- Use a stainless steel sauté pan for best results.
- Nonstick prevents the butter from browning completely and prevents you from being able to visually see how browned it’s getting. Same with the dark color of cast iron.
- Something with a wider surface area, like a sauté pan over a saucepan, encourages browning more quickly.
- Don’t step away from butter that’s browning after it’s melted. It can go from browned to burnt quickly.
- At the same time, don’t be afraid of letting that color develop. It should become a rich and fragrant amber.
- Scrape all the brown bits into the mixing bowl – that’s where the flavor lives!
- I highly recommend using unsalted butter – learn why here.
Do I Really Need to Use Bread Flour?
You don’t absolutely have to use bread flour, but it adds a ton of chewy texture to these Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies that’s worth the extra trip to the store. If you don’t have bread flour, then use a total of 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour in the recipe. Make sure to weigh your flour accurately. If you add too much flour, your cookies may end up dry, dense, or crumbly and barely spread.
Granulated Sugar + Dark Brown Sugar
- To make these Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies extra delicious, we’re using a combination of granulated white sugar and dark brown sugar.
- This combination brings sweetness, a fantastic texture, and a butterscotch flavor that’s so rich and delicious.
- The molasses in the brown sugar draws in more moisture, making the cookies thicker, softer, and chewier.
- You can use light brown sugar instead, but you may lose some of the additional flavor.
- Whatever you do, don’t lower the sugar in this recipe. Find out why here.
Eggs + an Extra Yolk
Eggs are essential to forming a beautifully pliable dough and cookies that stay soft for days – and we’re adding an extra yolk for extra richness and added chewiness. Eggs should be at room temperature when beginning your dough, but separate the one yolk from its white while cold for best results (yolks are more fragile and tend to break more easily when warmer).
Why is There Espresso Powder in This Recipe?
I really like the way the bitter espresso plays off the sweetness of the toffee and the nuttiness of the browned butter. It’s totally optional, if you don’t have it or don’t want to use it, feel free to simply omit it.
What Kind of Chocolate for Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies?
I like to use semisweet Ghirardelli baking bars and chop them up coarsely for this recipe. Feel free to use chocolate chips, but note that you won’t have the same delicious marbled result you get from chopping your own chocolate.
Where to Find Toffee Bits?
You can find them at many grocery stores in the Heath brand with the other chips in the baking aisle. If you can’t find them, I have a super easy recipe to DIY Homemade Toffee Bits which I used for these cookies here. It takes just 15 minutes and tastes so much better than store-bought!
Do I Really Have to Chill the Cookie Dough?
I know, it’s annoying, but I promise you it’s SO worth it, especially for this recipe which uses melted brown butter. Both the taste and texture of the cookie improve during this time. Think of it as a marinating time where everything just gets better and better!! Freezing does not work the same as chilling, so there are no shortcuts here. Learn more about this process, and why it’s so important, in this article here.
Can I Make Smaller Cookies?
Yes, though I much prefer the crisp edges, chewy texture, and soft center 3-tablespoon-sized Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies. If you want to bake smaller cookies, scoop into 1 1/2 tablespoon-sized balls and bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
Portioning the Cookie Dough Before vs. After Chilling
- I recommend following the directions in the recipe for chilling the dough in one big mass, and then portioning the dough because it prevents the dough from drying out while chilling.
- However, if you’re finding it too challenging to scoop the Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie dough at this point, feel free to scoop before chilling.
- There’s a bit more risk that your dough will dry out in the fridge this way, so just be sure to store the cookie dough balls in an airtight container or good quality ziptop bag, to prevent them from drying out.
- Then simply bake the pre-portioned Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies straight from the fridge after the 24-72 hour chill time!
Can I Freeze This Cookie Dough?
Yes! Freeze the portioned Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie dough balls after letting the dough marinate in the fridge for at least 24 hours. Place dough balls on a baking sheet and freeze until solid. Remove frozen balls of dough to an airtight container and store for up to 6 weeks. Click here for my full guide on how to freeze and bake frozen dough.
Tessa’s Favorite Tools for This Recipe
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes:
Visit my Chocolate Chip Cookie headquarters for more recipes, tips, and insights into the science of cookie baking!
-
2
sticks (227 grams) unsalted butter
-
1/2
(100 grams) cup granulated sugar
-
1
cup
(200 grams) lightly packed dark brown sugar
-
1 1/2
cups
(190 grams) all-purpose flour
-
1
cup
(127 grams) bread flour
-
1
teaspoon
baking soda
-
1
teaspoon
fine sea salt
-
1
teaspoon
instant espresso powder,
optional
-
1/2
teaspoon
baking powder
-
2
large eggs plus 1 egg yolk,
at room temperature
-
2
teaspoons
vanilla
-
10
ounces
(283 grams) semisweet chocolate,
chopped
-
1
cup
toffee bits,
homemade or Heath
-
Flaky sea salt,
for finishing
-
In a medium stainless sauté pan set over medium heat, melt the butter. Swirling the pan occasionally, continue to cook the butter. It should become foamy with audible cracking and popping noises. Once the crackling becomes quieter, continue to swirl the pan or stir until the butter develops a nutty aroma and brown bits start to form at the bottom. Once the bits are amber in color, remove from heat and pour into a mixing bowl. Be sure to keep the brown bits at the bottom of the pan as well, they hold so much flavor!
-
Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar to the hot butter, stirring to combine. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
-
In a medium bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, salt, espresso powder, and baking powder.
-
To the cooled butter mixture, whisk in the eggs, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Gradually stir in the flour mixture with a rubber spatula. Stir in the chocolate chunks and toffee bits. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours but no more than 72 hours.
-
Let dough sit at room temperature just until it is soft enough to scoop, about 1 hour.
-
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
-
Divide the dough into 3-tablespoon sized balls using a large cookie scoop and drop onto prepared baking sheets. Dough may be slightly challenging to scoop.
-
At this point, you can portion the dough, place it on a baking sheet, and freeze just until solid. Remove frozen balls of dough to an airtight container and store for up to 6 weeks.
-
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and sprinkle flaky sea salt on top of the cookies, if desired. Let cookies cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.
-
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
This post was originally published in 2014 and updated with recipe improvements, more tips, and new photos. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
November 2022 Baking Challenge
This recipe was one of two November 2022 chocolate chip cookie selections for our monthly baking challenge! Every month you can join the challenge by baking the recipe and snapping a photo for a chance to win prizes! Learn more about my monthly baking challenges here. Check out everyone’s cookies:
Hi, I wanted to know if it is possible to opt out the bread flour and just add in more all purpose flour? If so, how much more would you recommend?
Hi Anisa! Yes, you can use all all-purpose flour in place of the bread flour (as a 1:1 ratio) but check out the pink tip box above the recipe for all the info about WHY bread flour is totally worth the extra purchase here 🙂 Enjoy!
Thank you!
How much would 2 and a 1/2 cups of flour be in grams? Sorry, the measurements differ online so it gets quite confusing!
All-purpose flour and bread flour weigh the same, so you’ll just add the two together (317 grams). We have a free measuring guide that I think you’d find helpful! It lists all of the gram measurements for the most commonly used ingredients in our recipes. Please let us know what you think when you give this recipe a try 🙂
Would you guys recommend scooping before chilling? Instead of scooping after chilling. Really good cookies! I was so frustrated with scooping because I let them sit for over an hour and it was still tough to scoop.
Hi Grace! You can absolutely scoop before chilling! This can definitely make the process easier. There’s a bit more risk that your dough will dry out in the fridge this way, so just be sure to store the cookie dough balls in an airtight container, to prevent them from drying out. Then simply bake from the fridge 24-72 hours later! I hope that helps! Happy baking 🙂
Hi! I love this recipe and so does my family. My only question I have is they were a bit greasy even though the butter and sugar mixture was not hot when I incorporated the eggs and flour. Is there a way to fix this next time or am I doing something wrong? I chilled the dough for 24 hours and then froze them in balls before baking a day later! If I were to add a bit of cornstarch next time would that maybe help? Thank you so much 🙂
Hi Lucy! Yay, I’m so glad to hear that your family loves this cookie recipe! We have not experienced this greasiness issue, but feel free to experiment with adding a teaspoon to a tablespoon of cornstarch, or even a couple tablespoons of additional flour, to combat this greasiness. You can also chill this dough for up to 72 hours before freezing or baking, and the longer you chill, the more the flour will absorb the moisture in the cookies, among other things, so longer chilling might help here too 🙂
Hi Tessa! I made a batch and I absolutely love it! I was wondering if it’s okay to freeze the baked cookies to prolong its shelf-life?
Hi Lica! So happy you love this recipe 🙂 We’ve not tried freezing these cookies once baked, but freezing the dough and baking from frozen works perfectly – learn more about that here. I hope that helps!
Literally most amazing cookies EVERRR. I used light brown sugar but going to try with dark now, do you know which brand dark brown sugar Tessa uses?
Hi Ashi! So glad to hear that you loved these cookies! Tessa typically just uses store brand brown sugar (dark brown sugar in this cookie recipe). If your local store brand doesn’t feel soft, try using C&H Sugar brand. I hope that helps! Happy baking 🙂
Was skeptical they were not gonna turn out right just because it seemed too good to be true…but pleasantly surprised they turned out AMAZING! Highly recommend this recipe, and definitely recommend weighing all ingredients for precision. Chilled for a little under 24 hours and baked @ 350F ~13 min, cooled approximately 5 min before transferring to wire rack and these guys have impressed so many people around me. Thanks for the great recipe!
These are amazing! I make them every other Saturday so I can have the dough portioned out in my freezer!
Hi! I made these cookies twice already and they’ve been a huge hit! I’ve had some trouble because they’ve spread a lot but last time I doubled the recipe and froze part of it, so hopefully when I bake them, it’ll be fixed.
Do you think the dough could be used to make brookies?
So happy to hear how much you love this recipe, Alex! One quick tip to help with the spreading is to use a cookie cutter that is just slightly larger than the cookie’s diameter and run the cutter around the cookie to reshape it into a perfect, thicker circle. Tessa actually shared this trick over on Instagram! We haven’t tried making brookies with this dough, but please have fun experimenting and let us know how it goes! 🙂
I have made these cookies 10 times at the very least. I usually make a double batch so I can give cookies to coworkers, friends, and family. I have played around with the chocolate and THE ABSOLUTE BEST chocolate for this is the Tonys Chocolonely dark milk pretzel toffee bar. Everyone I have given these cookies to absolutely loves them! It’s such a fun recipe to make too!
These are my new favorite cookies and I am a hard cookie critic. I added about a tbls of espresso and used dark brown sugar. The toffee pieces are perfect when they get all chewy. Bomb!!!
Can I use light brown sugar instead of dark?
Hi Tina! As Tessa mentions in the pink tip box above the recipe, “You can use light brown sugar instead, but you may lose some of the additional flavor.” Let us know what you think of these cookies once you have given them a try! Happy baking 🙂
Made these and by far they are my absolute favorite. I used milk chocolate chips and Ghiradeli dark chocolate wafers chopped. My question is I need to make a chocolate chip cookie cake. Would this recipe work for one?
Hi Holly! We haven’t tried that, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work! You may have to experiment a little with bake times. Alternatively, check out Tessa’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake recipe here (you can add toffee bits to that recipe too!) Happy baking 🙂
My cookies are very thick, they never got flat and gooey like yours. What could cause this?
Hi Kelly! How do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure ingredients, especially flour, and end up with cookies that are too thick, don’t spread and aren’t gooey. Check out Tessa’s article here, where she talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time. I hope that helps! Happy baking 🙂
These have become my family’s new favorite cookie! I want to make the brown butter malted toffee cookie bars and have a question regarding the malted milk powder. Do you use the chocolate malted milk powder or the original malted milk powder( I assume is vanilla/white in color)
Hi Jeanine! We’re so glad to hear that your family enjoys these cookies so much! These cookies are a little different from the Brown Butter Malted Toffee Cookie Bars in Tessa’s Ultimate Cookie Handbook, but here is the link to the malted milk powder we typically use for those bars. We haven’t tried them with the chocolate version, but let us know if you do! Happy baking 🙂
So so amazing! I want to get flaky salt the next time I made them. My family was impatient so I cooked some after ten hours of chilling and am saving the rest of the batch to bake at the 72hr mark. I loved the article about the why behind chilling cookie dough.
Hello! I’ve gotten to the point where I have to keep a stash of these cookies in my freezer so that I can enjoy them on demand! I added walnuts and now I would like to add oats. Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are my favorite, BUT I love how your BBTCC cookie recipe is thick, chewy, crispy and sweet in all the right places! Do you have any suggestions how much oats to add to this recipe w/o drying out the dough? Should I substitute all-purpose flour for oat flour? I know that I can brown the butter for your oatmeal chocolate chip recipe, but I specifically want to add oats to this one : )
Hi Lex! We haven’t tried adding oats to these cookies, but as you mentioned, they are quite a drying ingredient, so it will definitely take some experimenting to nail! Take a look at some oatmeal cookie recipes such as this one, to get an idea of ratios, before trying it out for yourself. Let us know how it goes 🙂
Is there a certain process that you have to go through after freezing the cookie dough? Does it have to thaw or is the cooking time increased?
Hi Grace! Check out this article Tessa wrote on this exact topic. Happy baking! 🙂
Hi I followed your recipe perfectly (twice) and only got 21 1/2 cookies! I wonder why? I have the 3 tbsp cookie scoop and measure the ingredients. Any thoughts?
Hi Toni! Small discrepancies such as this can occur for a few reasons, like perhaps your 3-Tablespoon cookie scoop is a teeny bit larger than the one we used to test and develop this recipe – not all brands are exactly the same size. Or, perhaps you’re packing a little more dough into each scoop than we did. Either way, we hope you’re enjoying these cookies! Happy baking 🙂
Hi! I was hoping to brown the butter a day before making these. Is that possible to do? If so, should I refrigerate it after browning it and then bring it back to room temp before adding the rest of the ingredients or would it be okay left out overnight?
Thanks!
Hi Katie! We haven’t tried that, but it’s best to make the browned butter and continue with the rest of the recipe right away, because the sugars need to be added to the hot butter. If you need to make the butter the night before, I would recommend allowing it to cool, then place it in the fridge overnight, and when you’re ready to proceed with the rest of the recipe, gently reheat the butter until melted and hot, then add the sugars as instructed and continue with the rest of the recipe. Let us know how it goes if you give that variation a try! Happy baking 🙂
When I 8x or 16x this recipe, the cookies come out darker and also they deflate and become raw in the middle once cooled down. Is there something I should consider when multiplying everything by 8x?
Hi Rick! Perhaps everything (particularly the leavener) isn’t getting mixed in properly when multiplying by such a large amount. Deflating cookies is typically a leavening agent issue, so I’d recommend paying specific attention to ensuring it’s thoroughly and evenly distributed (along with everything else being evenly distributed, of course!) next time. I hope that helps 🙂 Happy baking!
I’ve made your recipes many times and these by far came out the worst. I followed all your directions exactly but my cookies did not rise at all. What do you think is the problem? Baking soda was old or something? So upset because these took so long to make!
Hi Kerry! I’m sorry to hear your cookies didn’t turn out as they should! Expired leavening agents could definitely be the issue here. If baking powder/soda sit around for a bit, they can lose their rising powder, which can result in flat cookies! Tessa talks about how to test for leavener freshness in this article here!
Another thing could be how well-chilled the cookies were before baking? These cookies need to be chilled in the fridge for at least 24 hours before baking, and this cannot be rushed in the freezer unfortunately. This gives the butter time to re-solidify, as well as allowing the moisture in the egg whites to hydrate the flour, yielding thicker cookies with much more depth of flavor and chewiness.
Also, are you weighing your ingredients? Weighing vs. measuring by volume can also have a huge impact on your baked goods, as it’s so easy to add too little or too much flour, sugar, etc to any recipe. Tessa also talks about how to measure properly in this article here.
I hope this helps, and if not, please feel free to reach out again and we can try to troubleshoot with you further! Happy baking 🙂
Best CC cookies I’ve ever made/had.
I’ve made these before and they were great. One issue was the toffee melted and made the edges too crunchy and was a bit difficult to swirl them with a round cookie cutter. I have another batch in the fridge waiting to be baked. Is there a way to not have toffee melt all along the edges? Also do the baked cookies freeze well?
Hi Rose! We have not experienced this issue, but it sounds like maybe your cookies are getting slightly overbaked. The cookie cutter trick should make them perfectly round easily when the cookies are slightly underbaked – which also prevents the toffee from over-hardening. Try shaving a minute or two off your bake time and see if that helps. We also have not tried freezing these cookies once baked, but freezing the dough and baking from frozen works perfectly – learn more about that here! Happy baking 🙂
I’ve made these a few times and they turn out amazing every time! By far the best chocolate chip cookie.
If wanting to make them within a less than 24 hr time frame, is there a suitable alternative to the 24 hour chill? Can the dough be put in the freezer for a few and then the fridge overnight to expedite the process?
Thank you!
Hi Lauren! We’re so happy to hear that you love these cookies! Unfortunately, there’s no way to expedite the process of the ‘marination’ period. Placing in the freezer just freezes the liquid in the dough, instead of allowing it to slowly work its magic in the fridge. Learn more about this in Tessa’s article here! Happy baking 🙂
Do you recommend making this by hand versus in a stand mixer?
Hi Angela! Yes, these cookies just need to be mixed by hand. Because the butter is browned first (and therefore melted), the creaming process most cookies need using a mixer isn’t necessary, and wouldn’t really work if you tried! Learn more about that here. I hope you enjoy these cookies – let us know what you think! 🙂
I’m from Brazil =)
Follow you on Instagram and I make a lot of your recipes! Sometimes I need to adapt some ingredients haha. It’s great, this cookies, I love It! Just eat three! Thank you for your dedication in everything!
How many grams is 2 1/2 cup flour?
Hi Vanessa! The gram measurements are written in the recipe. You need 1 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour and 1 cup (127 grams) bread flour. If you can’t find bread flour, you will use 317 grams of all-purpose flour instead – but the cookies won’t be quite as thick and chewy. Please check out all Tessa’s tips and info, in the pink tip box above the recipe. Happy baking!
I used a small scoop and used light brown sugar. They were easy to make and very good. Next time I will use the dark brown sugar and use my larger scoop.
I am so so so excited to make these for my me and my housemates! Do you recommend a certain brand of butter? I’m thinking of using Kerrygold but I know certain butters can yield different results, just want to see if you have a recommendation 🙂
Hi Sofia! Kerrygold is a European-style butter, containing a higher percentage of butterfat and a lower percentage of water content – making it utterly delicious to spread on bread, but this can sometimes complicate American-style baked good recipes. Tessa’s favorite butter for baking is Challenge Unsalted Butter, which is available widely in some parts of the US, and in select stores elsewhere. Use this store locator to find where to buy it near you! Otherwise, Trader Joe’s unsalted butter is a good choice too! I hope this helps. Let us know what you think if you give these cookies a try 🙂
These are so good! My friends loved them and I like to keep a stock pile in my freezer. Your recipes are so good that now I only go to your site.
Bit of a disaster this morning when I woke up and realised I forgot to add the granulated sugar to my cookie dough! Decided to bake (~11mins at 180 degC) anyway after a 12hr chill in the fridge and they turned out pretty good still thankfully!
This was my first time making them so I don’t have anything to compare to but they rose a bit with perhaps a slight cakey texture but still maintained a chew and a good sweetness even without the extra sugar (My boyfriend even said the dough tasted very ‘adult’ yesterday but I still didn’t catch the reduced sugar). I kept off the salt sprinkle but I think there is enough salt in the dough itself for balance here.
I’m in the UK so used a 70% cocoa chocolate and chopped up Daim bars for the toffee element and I think maybe a milkier chocolate would’ve made a better balanced cookie in this case but I will absolutely be making these again with the right sugar content to see!
Would love to hear your thoughts on the science of leaving out the granulated sugar (accidental or no!). I did all the remaining steps correctly and used the correct ingredients otherwise but obviously being in Europe have a higher butter fat content so not sure if that had a part to play in these turning out OK still.
Cheers!
Hi Jeff! I’m glad these cookies were still tasty, even without the sugar! Sugar brings so much to a cookie beyond just sweetness – it helps with moisture, spread and more. Tessa has a whole article dedicated to this – check it out here. I hope you give these cookies a try with the sugar sometime, to see how they compare. Happy baking!
Can I use instant coffee instead of instant espresso?!
Hi Lisa! You can, but you won’t get the same intensity of coffee flavor. You can just skip the espresso powder if you don’t have it 🙂
my daughter and I made these last night, followed directions exactly, had a scale to weight the ingredients. We both agree its the best chocolate chip cookie we have ever had AND have ever made. Fantastic. We will pass this recipe down in our family, PERFECT
I’m about to bake these tomorrow and am super excited! Can I grind regular espresso really fine with an espresso bean grinder to mimic espresso powder?
Hi Kelsey! That should work just fine 🙂 Let us know what you think of these cookies once you’ve given them a try!
The flavor is great, but so far I’ve made two cookie recipes on here an they look nothing like the photos. I measure everything with a scale, and make cookie often. With these they turned out greasy, flat, and pretty dark. Since i measured everything correctly and my ingredients were just purchased; i’m not really sure what went wrong. I’ll keep trying the recipes.
Hi Arielle! Hmm, that’s super strange – especially since your ingredients were measured using a scale for accuracy! It’s hard to say exactly what’s going wrong without baking alongside you, but here are a few things that may be going wrong:
– Are you using American-style (80% butterfat) butter? Or possibly using a European-style butter? European-style butters contain a higher butterfat content, so recipes may require a little tinkering with in order to use that type of butter with perfect results.
– What type of baking pan are you baking on? Not all baking pans were created equal! Check out Tessa’s article on this.
– Is your oven perhaps running a little hot? Most ovens are lying to us about the temperature they say they’re at – my personal oven runs about 10°F too hot. Tessa recommends using an oven thermometer to verify that your oven is actually at the correct temperature. Read more about that here.
– Are you chilling your cookie doughs before baking? This is a crucial step in these cookies in particular, but we find it helps immensely with flavor and texture in most cookie recipes! Learn more in Tessa’s post here!
I hope something here helps, Arielle. Feel free to reach back out to us with any further questions – we’re always happy to help 🙂
this recipe is a crowd pleasure. love it! I have a question can I use regular expresso powder or do have to use instant expresso powder?
Hi Daisy! Any espresso powder is fine 🙂 Let us know what you think of these cookies once you’ve given them a try!
I have know idea what I did wrong but they came out like “cake” every ingredient was measured on scale.I will definitely try doing them again .
Hi Stella! I’m sorry to hear that these cookies didn’t turn out as they should! Using a scale, as you mentioned, should easily prevent any ingredients from being over-measured, so this shouldn’t be the reason your cookies were cakey. Were any ingredients accidentally missed, or did you make any substitutions? Did you refrigerate the cookies for 24-72 hours? This really helps immensely with the delicious flavor and the consistency of the cookies, too. Also, how old are your leavening agents? If your baking soda and baking powder are not fresh, they won’t do their jobs and your baked goods can not rise properly, fall after baking, and much more – leading to less-than-perfect results and strange textures. Tessa talks about the science behind leavening agents, and how to test for leavener freshness, in this article here! I hope something here helps, Stella, and I hope things go perfectly for you next time you make these! Happy baking 🙂
If I wanted to halve the recipe how many eggs do I use?
Hi there! To make a half batch of these cookies, simply use 1 whole egg, then measure out 1 Tablespoon of the additional egg yolk. Alternatively, you can make the whole batch and freeze what you don’t want to eat now! Check out Tessa’s article here about freezing cookie dough, including info on thawing and baking from frozen! Let us know what you think once you’ve given these a try 🙂
BY FARRR THE BEST COOKIES I HAVE HAD. They are chewy, crunchy, and gooey. definitely making these ones over and over again.
WOW, what an amazing compliment! We are so excited that you loved these cookies so much, Milena! 🙂
Just just confirming that I can substitute AP flour for bread flour so that means I would be using exclusively AP flour. Does that sound OK?
Hi Caryn! Check out Tessa’s tips on this in the pink tip box above the recipe – she explains in there why it’s worth the extra trip to the store 🙂
Hi ! I would like to know if I can bake all the dough in a quarter or half sheet pan , like a bars.
Thanks
Hi Yamelis! We have not tried that, so I can’t say for sure sorry! Let us know how it goes if you give that a try 🙂
OMG! WOW!!! Never have I ever had such a flavourful cookie that also ticks the boxes for having such a satisfying texture. That’s including store bought! The crunchy toffee with the chewy, soft, gooey cookie and crispy edges is ADDICTIVE. First time I’ve made a cookie that’s actually chewy, soft with good thickness (usually they turn out flat and I think it’s the bread flour that makes all the difference so it’s worth a trip to the store). So soft even the next day! I got my partner to take it to the office and everyone RAVED about them saying I should start selling them and it’s the best cookie they’ve ever had haha. One guy even took the remaining 3 cookies and kept it aside for himself on his desk!! They couldn’t believe it was all homemade including the toffee!
Chilling the dough for 72 hrs is soooo worth it and I wouldn’t skip that ever.
Just wondering how do you know your cookie is going to be soft and gooey in the middle without it being underdone? Is the cookie meant to still fall apart after 10 mins of cooking or does it need more baking time? Sometimes I take it out when it’s golden brown but it doesn’t stay together and seems underdone. Other times I bake it longer but would prefer it stay even gooier over time.
Also, is there a trick to keep the edges crispy but middle soft the next day? I find the whole cookie becomes soft but I miss the crispyness!
This will be my go to recipe forever!! It’s also very easy to put together after the toffee making and browning butter which becomes very easy after the first time. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!
Hi there! We are so thrilled to hear that you enjoy these cookies so much, and that they were such a hit at your husband’s workplace!! It definitely takes a little practice to know when your cookies are perfectly done; it’s usually when the middles look just a little underdone, but the edges are set and golden brown. You can always bake off one cookie, let it set up a little on the baking tray, and then test it out – this will give you a good indication to know whether you need to add or subtract a minute or two 🙂 I would also recommend checking out a couple of Tessa’s articles for some more background info on this – this article here on ovens, and this article here on baking sheets.
As for your question on keeping the edges crips and the middles soft, unfortunately, fresh cookies are always going to be the most delish for this reason – and the lovely crispness will always soften as it sits. That’s why Tessa always recommends freezing your dough and baking off as you wish to enjoy them – learn more about that here! The other ‘trick’ is baking the larger, 3-Tablespoon cookies Tessa recommends (and bake those as the recipe recommends, for 12-14 minutes). This larger sized cookie will give you the crisp edges, chewy texture, and soft center we all love from a cookie. Smaller cookies don’t always give you quite that same texture.
I hope this helped! Feel free to reach back out to us with any further questions – we are always happy to help! Happy baking! 🙂
Thanks so much for the tips! I actually made smaller cookies so I’ll definitely try the 3 tbsp size! It’s very weird though because I made 1.5tbsp sizes and baked for 12 mins (still gooey in the middle) and made 25 cookies which was spot on with the recipe but half the size of cookies! Wonder why I got such different results. I didn’t use as much chocolate maybe that’s why? So each ball ended up with more dough hence the same cooking time for a smaller size??
Is there a difference to results when you bake in the shape of the cookie scoop (flat bottom) vs rounding the dough?
Yes, the lowered quantity of chocolate would give you a smaller yield, since normally there would be more to expand the dough 🙂
Rounding the cookie dough into perfect balls with your hands before baking can give you a slightly more perfectly-round cookie shape, and it will also smooth the surface more, so your cookies don’t have so many crinkly-crackly wrinkles on top. It’s totally personal preference as to which way you prefer it. Check out Tessa’s article here for more tips on picture perfect cookies 🙂
I’ve made this recipe twice. Once as is and once with white chocolate and toffee both were so good.
When I made this for some reason all of my cookies turned out flat. Nevertheless they tasted great!
Hi Artur! I’m sorry to hear that your cookies turned out flatter than they should! There are a number of reasons why this could happen, but most importantly, how do you measure your ingredients? By volume (using cups), or by weight (using a digital kitchen scale)? When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure ingredients (particularly flour) and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Check out Tessa’s article here, where she talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time.
If you’re sure your ingredients were accurately measured, another thing could be your leaveners. How old are your leavening agents? If your baking soda/powder are not fresh, they won’t do their jobs and your baked goods can not rise properly, spread too much, and much more. Tessa talks about the science behind leavening agents, and how to test for leavener freshness, in this article here!
Did you chill your cookie dough for at least 24 hours (and please note that this process cannot be rushed by placing the dough in the freezer). This is an important step for a lot of cookie doughs, but especially for browned butter or melted butter doughs. The chilling process is sort of like marinating meats, in that it allows the flavor to fully develop – but it also allows the butter to firm back up, and the moisture from the eggs to fully hydrate the flour, and yield a nice, thick cookie. Learn more about that here!
I hope something here helped, and I hope that you give these cookies another try sometime – they really are amazing! Happy baking 🙂
The hardest part is the toffee and waiting a day for the cookies.
145 c (I read today it should be the color of an almond) it was hard for my thermometer and I think I messed with the heat at the end when I should have known it was done. Even with slight separation of the toffee, I layer it out flat and used it anyway. It worked!
Anyway, I skip the two different flours. I double the recipe with 5 c regular flour. 4 eggs 2 yolks ext.
People love them.
Can I replace the sugar with raw honey? If so how much?
We haven’t tried that, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Making any changes to the sugar content in a recipe will result in a different texture, flavor, size, and shape outcome. Sugar does so much more than just sweeten cookies! You’re more than welcome to experiment on your own, but know that the outcome will not be the same.
What is Tessa’s preferred butter for baking cookies? 🙂
Hi Russell! Tessa love Challenge unsalted butter for baking! You can locate a store selling Challenge butter near you here. Happy baking 🙂
Would give more stars if I could!
This is my wife’s new favorite cookie. She is gluten free (GF) and – though I am not – I have only ever made GF, as such, to enjoy life’s cookies with me. If there are any others out there who are looking for that sub. and don’t believe GF can be as good as regular, I recommend the following:
Replace the 1-1/2 Cup all purpose flour with 1-3/4 Cup All purpose GF Flour (I use King Arthur – add a little more flour because I’ve found GF flour is less absorbent than regular flour).
Replace 1 cup of bread flour with Almond Flour OR oat flour (not necessary, but I think the almond flour obviously compliments the toffee/nutty flavor).
Since most almond/oat flours’ in store do not include Xanthan Gum, I will include ~1/4 tsp additional OR 1/2 tsp Psyllium husk. This is not needed if using only all-purpose GF flour though.
Lastly, since GF flour suffers in that glutenous bonding you get with regular flour, to make up for that, I do add ~half of a pack of instant, vanilla pudding *powder* (emphasis on powder to not be confused with actual pudding). And sorry if this makes the cookie purists cringe, but I think this really helps boost the chewiness of a GF cookie; plus – I mean common – its pudding?
Otherwise, I wouldn’t change this recipe for anything!
Thanks, Tessa for the recipe and all the joy that it brings thereafter.
Hi, after freezing these should you thaw them completely I. The drudge or what do you recommend?
Hi Carly! You can do it either way – Tessa explains more in this article here 🙂
Can you bake them from the frozen balls or do you need to thaw? If so, what is the time adjustment to bake from frozen? Thanks!
Hi Sarah! You can bake these from frozen or thaw in the fridge – Tessa explains how in this article here! 🙂
these cookies are incredible. dont make them. youll eat them all and want more!
substitute for eggs??
Hi Shital! Unfortunately, we have not found anything that can quite replicate the amazing things an egg can do for baking. Feel free to experiment with the variations that can be found online, but we wholeheartedly recommend real eggs for best results. Good luck 🙂
The best chocolate chip cookie recipe. The only con is the refrigerating time but it’s worth it.
Super rich!Well balanced!I love the combination of espresso,salt,chocolate and toffee bits.I love that it’s gooey but at thesame time its crunchy from the outside.This is my new favorite!My husband and son love these cookies tooThank you for the recipe.
These are seriously the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made. They do take a bit extra work and time to make the toffee, brown the butter, and let them chill, but these are worth every second. I think my husband was ready to marry me all over again when he tried the dough
These are a bit of extra prep but ultimately they’re not that hard to make. Completely worth it. 100/10
Hey these came out SUPER bready for me. I did all the measurements not by weight (grams etc) but by tablespoons/cups etc. as written out in the recipe, and the cookies came out puffy, risen, and far too bread-y. Seeing how there aren’t any other comments like this I’m curious where I messed up, maybe too much bread flour? But I measured exact amounts according to the recipe. Why did my cookies come out like puffed up scones? Some weren’t even baked all the way through, yet the outside was golden brown – any further cooking to finish the inside would’ve burnt the outside. Dear god help me, I’m beyond frustrated after spending so much time and money on a double recipe here haha
Hi Ben! It definitely sounds like you accidentally incorporated too much flour. When measuring by volume, it’s so easy to mis-measure ingredients (particularly flour) and throw off the entire chemistry of a recipe. Tessa talks about how to best measure ingredients to ensure accuracy every time, in this article here! Also, how old are your leavening agents? If your baking soda/powder are not fresh, they won’t do their jobs and your cookies won’t spread as they should, brown strangely, and more. Tessa talks about the science behind leavening agents, and how to test for leavener freshness, in this article here! I hope something here helps, Ben! These cookies really are fantastic, so I hope you give them another try sometime! 🙂
Ugh I forgot to add baking soda – they are in the fridge and I’m about to bake when I realized- what should I do. They are now too hard to mix so idk…help
Also FYI the baking powder and soda should be together in the recipe. Currently they are separated on either side of the espresso powder so easy to miss. Still my bad I even reread the recipe before I mixed the wet and dry together and still missed it ♀️♀️♀️
Hi Michelle! Thanks so much for the feedback on the leavening agent positions in the recipe. I’m sorry you missed the baking soda! It’s unfortunately unlikely that mixing in the missing baking soda now will work, as the dough would likely get overmixed, and it probably would not distribute evenly anyway. Of course you’re welcome to experiment with this, or just bake as it is, but the results won’t be exactly as written unfortunately. You can see in this post how baking soda vs baking powder change the outcome of baked goods. Fingers crossed they’ll still taste good, and if not, you’ll know for next time! I’m sorry, I wish there was more I could do to fix this for you! Good luck!!
I want to make brown butter cookie and you have options lol I’m wondering if I take out the toffee or the butterscotch from you brown butter recipes will they still come out thick and chewy? should I just use the regular brown butter cookie recipe? I don’t know if they all have different texture. I want a thick chewy cookie but just with chocolate chips.
Hi Angel Marie! It’s totally up to you! I would recommend either using our Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe, or instead swapping the toffee for additional chocolate (so add an additional cup of chocolate chips or chopped chocolate). This will help prevent your cookies from spreading more, too. Don’t skip the refrigeration time, either – this is crucial for these cookies! Let us know what you think once you’ve given them a try 🙂
So I just made these. Yummy flavor but were a bit greasy…. Also I did not have bread flour so used the 2.5 AP flour like you suggested and followed the recipe exactly! I will consult my (your) book on why they are greasy. Love all of your recipes so thank you!
Outstanding! It is definitely worth the extra time/steps to make the browned butter and homemade toffee. These will be an extra special treat anytime I make them!
So glad to hear that, April!
I love the flavor combo of toffee and chocolate