These chocolate chip cookies are soft, cake-like, and have a completely different texture than a normal chocolate chip cookie! These are definitely for the people who love soft cookies rather than a chewy chocolate chip cookie or (my personal favorite!) a classic crispy chocolate chip cookie.
Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
These soft cookies were the result of testing chocolate chip cookies many, many years ago when I first started this website, and it’s defintely time for updated photos! This recipe is always a hit with people who are looking for soft chocolate chip cookies.
Even though I love crispy chocolate chip cookies, I, of course, ate a couple of these cakey bites, who can complain about a soft cookie with chocolate chips?
The Secret to Soft, Cakey Cookies
The secret to making soft chocolate chip cookies is using only brown sugar ( no granulated sugar) and an extra egg as adding eggs to a cookie dough makes a baked good more cake-like. The third egg in this recipe is what helps achieve this. Most chocolate chip cookie recipes only have 2 eggs.
How to Make Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
This is just a quick recap of the method to make these cookies, please see the recipe card below to get the complete instructions and the list of ingredients.
- Cream your butter and sugar together until they are light and fluffy. Add in the eggs. Add the vanilla as well.
- Whisk together your dry ingredients and add to the butter/sugar mixture. Combine well then add the chocolate chips, mixing until they are spread through the dough evenly.
- Drop by well-rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased or parchment-lined sheet.
- Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes until golden brown.
Baking Tips
Make sure to underbake these cookies slightly as you don’t want to dry these cookies out. They will dry out easier as there is more egg in the cookie dough.
Don’t flatten the cookies before baking, leave them in a rounded shape on the cookie sheet and they will bake up better.
How to Store These Cookies
Keep these cookies stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temperature or freeze them in a freezer-safe container or bag for up to 6 months.
If you want to soften these cookies place a piece of bread in the container with the cookies. They will absorb the extra moisture from the bread and soften right up!
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
So for all you cakey cookie lovers out there, this is the soft chocolate chip cookie recipe for you! So tell me, are you team soft cookie or team crispy cookie?
Happy baking!
Love,
Karlynn
Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup butter
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- With a hand mixer or in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating in completely after each addition. Add in the vanilla.
- Slowly add the flour mixture, beating on low speed until just combined.
- Add in the chocolate chips, stirring in until they are spread through the dough evenly.
- Drop by well-rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets. Do not press them down if you want a lovely rounded cakey cookie.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until golden brown around the edges and the middles are set. They will spread out slightly but still stay wonderfully puffy and cakey.
- Cool on baking sheets completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 6 months.
Notes
- Slightly underbaking these cookies will yield better results, do not overbake as they will dry out.
Nutrition
Julie says
I’ve been looking for a cookie like this for my husband. He doesn’t like thin crispy chocolate chip cookie like I do, so this recipe was a great find. He LOVES them. I did add an add’l 3/4 C chocolate chips because I knew he’d say there weren’t enough chips. I used two different size chips for fun. This recipe is going in the recipe book. Thank You!!
Judy says
anxiously awaiting for my 2nd batch to cook! I made 12 very large cookies and added a bag of Skor bits, no chocolate at all and let me tell you! These turned out beautiful, and the house smells delish. They can’t cool quick enough! I’ll wait though…it’ll be worth it!
ApolloMemphis says
6 STARS!
I made a single alteration to this recipe by adding in the whole 11.5 oz bag of chips vs 1 cup.
I tested a single cookie for bake time as I do not have an interior thermometer. 10 minutes was perfect. Letting them cool on the sheet for 2 minutes before finishing on wire rack.
I’m 62, and still up to learning! Never made a soft cake like cookie. Always did big n crispy or chewy.
This is a perfect cookie! Crispy bottom tall yet soft cookie. I’m not on IG or FB however they are a beautiful looking and tasting treat!
This is a winner!
Thank You!
Carol says
Can I use block margarine as well for these cookies?
Thanks!
Luvin’ your site!!
Carol
Susan Trager says
I made these today. I added one quarter cup more of brown sugar, one half cup more of chocolate chips, another teaspoon of vanilla, and a cup of chopped walnuts. I kept a bowl of the cookie dough in the refrigerator at all times and I put the balls of cookie dough on parchment paper with the pan in the freezer for 15 minutes before baking them. They came out perfect and very tasty. I made around 60 small cookies.
Susan Trager says
I plan to make these. Judging from the ingredients I’ll give five stars How many y tablespoons per cookie?
Heather C says
Great cakey soft cookie recipe. I love how they puff up into satisfying round bites. I add about 1/8C more brown sugar and reduce the chocolate chips for a mildly sweet experience.
Heather says
These are the all time favorite around my house now! We tried many recipes, but this one definitely takes the cake.
Shannon says
These were more like cookie-ey cakes than cakey cookies 🙂 not very sweet but very soft and fluffy. More like a muffin consistency and flavor i thought. They were delicious though, if I make them again ill use double the chocolate chips and maybe a little more sugar
Lorraine says
These cookies were cakey like I wanted but they weren’t sweet enough for my tastes. I guess they will be good with tea or coffee.
Emerlyn says
they are super good but a bit dry i dont know if it is me though 🙂
Victoria Dunham says
The perfect chocolate chip cookie if your looking for a more candy cookie!
Carly says
Flavor is okay. Mine turned into choco chip oven pancakes. Maybe it’s me ?
Rosie Barr says
This is the only chocolate chip cookie recipe I use. I know it by heart. I sold cookies, cupcakes etc at two of our local Farmer’s Markets. These cookies sold out even when I tripled my inventory. A Pastry Chef from one of our Beachside restaurants told me they were the best chocolate chip cookies he has ever had.
nichole says
Taste how grandma used to make hers. My Great Grandma is 90 now, and sometimes doesnt remember making cookies, other days she remembers. She used to keep them in a tin canister. We tried all her varying recipes from adding extra flour, less sugar, whatever it may of been. They just were never it. Behold this recipe. We may never know her actual recipe, but this brings back those childhood memories. These are not overly sweet (I prefer these, cookies now a days are sickly sweet) and are soft and pillowy. Grandma used less chocolate chips then I did, so gotta scale them back. Thanks for these, I will hopefully get the recipe *just* right.
Karlynn Johnston says
That’s great to hear, I hope you can tweak it to taste exactly like hers!
Davina Roan says
I followed the instructions precisely and I used unsalted butter. I love that its not overpowering sweet, its perfect! They came out fluffy and soft. My family devoured them. I will definitely use this recipe from now on. Thank you for sharing!
Toni says
This is my go to chocolate chip cookie recipe. My great grandmother made cakey soft cookies from a recipe that was in her head and this is the closest I have come to recreating it. My Dad and my children love these cookies. My husband thinks chocolate chip cookies should be crisp, but he is wrong. lol
Randi says
These weren’t terrible but we didn’t like the texture and it didn’t have much flavor in our opinion. My husband likes soft cookies but not these -would not make again.
Elizabeth says
honesty they had no flavor at all and the only thing that kept me coming back was the milk chocolate chips
Jamie says
Thank you for this recipe. I love cakey chocolate chip cookies. I cut the recipe down to 12 servings and substituted almond extract for the vanilla. They turned out amazing.
On a side note, I used unbleached all purpose flour and homemade butter. These may have affected the recipe some.
Emily says
I’ve made this recipe several times! It is my go to and so many have wanted me to share this recipe with them.
Today I put in 3 LARGE eggs, not realizing until after adding them in. Any suggestions on what to add to help with the extra amount of egg?
Judy says
anxiously awaiting for my 2nd batch to cook! I made 12 very large cookies and added a bag of Skor bits, no chocolate at all and let me tell you! These turned out beautiful, and the house smells delish. They can’t cool quick enough! I’ll wait though…it’ll be worth it!
Karlynn Johnston says
Glad you liked them!
Brooke says
SO good!!!! This is the cakey recipe I’ve been searching for!! The recipe didn’t specify, but my butter and eggs were at room temperature when I made the dough. I creamed the butter and sugar for a full 5 minutes. I refrigerated the dough for 30 minutes before baking and I baked it on silicon mats. I added 1/2 cup more semi-sweet chocolate chips than the recipe calls for. Thanks so much for this recipe!!
Liv says
These cookies are my jam! I use twice as much chocolate chips and dark brown sugar for a rich flavor. Every time I make them everyone loves them and begs for more. The bake time is perfect and if I’m going for more goey I do 8 minutes and if I want them to travel a bit better I do it for 10. No matter what they come out great and are always a hit. Thank you for this awesome recipe. Tomorrow I’m going to try making them with almond flour and I’m real nervous ?
Sharon says
I don’t know what I am doing wrong but these came out nothing like Cakey they are as flat as a pan cake ?.
Haileeharris@yahoo.com says
Mine too 🙁
Sandy says
Absolutely love this way to bake cookies.these are the best I have ever made.I love the cakey cookies the y are nice and fluffy like the old archway drop cookies.I’m so glad I found the recipe again..these are amazing..
Judy Davidson says
Loved these fluffy cakes cookies. But mine are a bit dry and I personally find them not sweet enough. I baked for 10min at 375 which produced a light golden brown bottom and pale top. Will definitely try again, tweeting it a bit. I used margerine instead of butter-could that be why they’re a bit dry? Will try adding a 1/4 cup of granulated sugar next time. Will also add a bit more vanilla. Any suggestions for tweaking would be appreciated.
Beyza says
Cakey cookies are my favourite and this will be the next recipe that I’ll try. But, please please please can you write the ingredients with gram measurements? I have tried lots of recipes in past and I am tired of failing. Gram measurements give me reliance. Thanks a lot from now.
Liv says
I add twice as much chocolate chips as the recipe says and I use dark brown sugar. Also, I do think butter is better with these cookies. ?
Misty rice says
These are amazing cookies so easy to make I just followed the directions and baked them they turned out amazing thank you for a great recipe my kids loved them and me lol
Dianne says
This is a delicious, cakey, chocolate chip cookie. It is just what I was looking for. I think the sweetness level is perfect the way the recipe is written. For me, 8 minutes at 350 degrees is best (375 was too hot, my tester cookie burned). Also, the dough is very sticky and makes it difficult to slide off the spoon. To remedy that, I wet my finger in in water, the dough slides right off. Then I tapped down the cookie dough with wet fingers. The cookie still puffs up nicely. Hope this helps someone out there to bake an excellent treat! ??
ellie h. says
batter was runny and gross when adding the eggs. stirred for 10 mins, nothing happened. tried the recipe over again and the same happened.
Kelly says
These are my go to cookies to make! Love them, perfect cakey cookies!! I do use a little less butter because I’m not a big fan of it and they are still great.
Ava says
AMAZING!!!!!!! If you’re looking for Cakey, fluffy, scone like chocolate chip cookies look no further!!!! I personally don’t like overly sweet cookies so the brown sugar paired with the chocolate chips was just the right amount of sweetness for me. Saving this recipe and using every time !
Amy says
I love this recipe! I used it once but I worried that I didn’t give it enough time in the oven and time outside of it too.
how long should I have left them outside the oven to cool off?
Kristi says
LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe; I use it all the time, I tweet it by adding coconut as well. Sometimes even dried cranberries my family adores them
Catherine says
My favorite cookie recipe. Not overly sweet, making it perfect for children and adults alike. I recommend using Ghirardelli chocolate chips for the perfect gooey chocolate chip texture to compliment the soft-cakey cookie.
Jeff says
I’m not a fan of fluffy cookies, I like them soft and chewy. But if you are, these are pretty perfect. The brown sugar only is a little strange, I don’t know if it adds to the fluffiness or not, but I may try 1/2 cup white, 1/2 cup brown if you are dead set of making these, as they tend to not be very sweet. I added a bit more vanilla to compensate, and they turned out okay. I don’t think I’ll be making these again though, just really not a fan of the cakey cookies. Thanks for the recipe still!!
Jada says
My go-to cookie recipe! It’s like a chocolate chip CAKE in cookie form!!! I’m definitely in the minority here, but I hate when choco chip cookies are thin, undercooked, and buttery in the center. These cookies are FLUFFY, cakey, and fully-cooked through so they don’t leave an oily residue on your fingers after eating. I absolutely love these cookies and will be using this recipe for the rest of my life. Thank you so much!!!