I have been searching for my trademark chocolate chip cookie recipe for years.
My dad had his favorite recipe, which he made dozens upon dozens of times for our family when we were growing up. His mom, my grandma, had her favorite recipe, which she actually called “chip chocolates” and always served to her grandkids frozen and hard as rocks (so good!). But I always thought it would be fun to have a recipe that was all my own.
So this past week when my sister was in town and we were cooking up a storm, I decided to experiment with a new recipe to serve as a little “treat” after our hours of cooking. Sarah was a little skeptical as she mixed up the dough. But once we pulled these babies out of the oven and took those first warm, soft, chewy, and chocolate-y bites, she said — and I quote — “these might just be the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had”.
Agreed.
And it’s all thanks to that magical ingredient that we now know and love: coconut oil.
I have actually had coconut oil chocolate chip cookies on my “must-try” list since holiday baking season. But somehow I didn’t get around to it until this past week. Once we made that first chewy, delicious batch, though, you’d better believe I made a second batch two days later. I mean, a food blogger’s gotta test those recipes, right?
Sure enough, these were just as amazing on Round #2. As I’m pretty sure they will be when I make them again on round #22. And #222.
To be sure, this is in part thanks to a few cookie tips I have learned over the years, like adding cornstarch for extra chewy-ness, and using a good brown/white sugar ratio, and chilling the dough balls in the fridge before baking. (That last step is a definite “must” when using coconut oil, since it is not as solid as butter or shortening at room temp. And it takes at least an hour, so plan in advance!)
But I have to say that the extra flavor note of the sweet coconut was my favorite part! To be sure, the coconut flavor in these is super subtle. I had a few friends try these, and they couldn’t even taste it. But what everyone agreed was that the coconut oil brought out a little extra sweetness in these cookies. And also made them wonderfully chewy and thick. And well, just crazy good.
The ingredients for them were standard, with the exception of coconut oil in place of any other fats.
Just whip up the dough…
…then create your big dough balls. (I used a large 3-tablespoon cookie scoop, and shaped them slightly tall so that they wouldn’t spread as much when cooking.) Then cover the sheet with plastic wrap and chill them in the fridge for an hour or two until firm.
Then pop them in the oven….
…and this will be the result.
They’re big. They’re perfectly flavorful. They are overflowing with chocolate chips. And good grief, are they GOOD.
I’m pretty sure you should make a batch right now just to see for yourself. ;)
Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, softened but not melted
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment to cream together the softened coconut oil, sugars, egg, and vanilla extract on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt, and beat on medium-low speed until combined. Fold in (stir in) the chocolate chips by hand until just combined.
- Use a large cookie scoop (equivalent to 3 tablespoons) or a spoon to shape the dough into balls, and place them on a large plate. Cover with plastic wrap and chill the dough balls for at least 2 hours.
- When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place chilled dough balls at least 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. (Or a baking sheet that has been covered with a Silpat, or greased with cooking spray.)
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are just set. The centers may look slightly undercooked. Cool cookies on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. Serve immediately or store in a sealed container for up to 1 week. You can also freeze the cookies for up to 3-4 months.
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
I so wanted to like these cookies, but they were pretty boring taste wise (just sugar and chocolate) and there was zero mouth feel. Perhaps I over baked them as they were a little crispy (I took them out of my oven at 9 minutes). I couldn’t taste the coconut oil (Nutiva Coconut Oil with Buttery Flavor) nor could I taste a buttery flavor. This oil has a nice taste off the spoon, but it did nothing for the cookies. Maybe I need to try a different brand. Anyway, I was disappointed after reading so many positive reviews. I’m glad others found success. For now, I’ll stick with my tried and true chocolate chip cookie recipe – which uses butter. :(
Hi Bettie! We appreciate your feedback and we’re sorry to hear you didn’t care for these. We aren’t familiar with the type of coconut oil you used, but we swear by the Trader Joe’s brand! We wonder if that was the difference. The coconut oil is also supposed to be a pretty subtle taste in these.
Can you freeze the cookies before baking?
Yes, definitely! :)
Just made these today and they taste amazing. I’m not a coconut fan but these were great. Thank you for yet another fanatstic recipe!
We’re so happy you enjoyed them, Ani! :)
I made these with GFJules flour , arrowroot instead of cornstarch and Truvia Baking Blend instead of sugar and GZf chocolate chips an walnuts. They were amazingingly super good. Totally Gluten free and ver low sugar content but very sweet.
That’s awesome, Toni — thanks for sharing with us! :)
Thanks for The recipe it was very easy to make with simple ingredients.
I made mine using 1/4 measuring cup so the weren’t round, I chilled them for about an hour but when i baked them i was waiting for them to get flat they did a little bit but not like in the picture.
Also am i the only one who found them super sweet, so sweet like eating sugar, maybe i should try them tomorrow out from the fridge.
Next time I won’t add this mush sugar and maybe just chill them for half an hour.
You’re so welcome, Raina! We’re sorry you found them too sweet though. Definitely feel free to cut back on the sugar next time, if you’d like.
Just wanted to say that this is my favorite cookie recipe. I’ve made it at least a dozen times. It’s my go-to when I have people over or when I want to bring treats to a friend. Love these!
Thank you for your sweet words Caitlin — we’re so glad you enjoy these! :)
Yesterday I baked these cookies, they should come with a warning, they’re that good. Unfortunately, I live with the original cookie monster, he really loved your cookies. I have two batches of dough in the fridge, this way when the cookie monster strikes he can make his own & maybe he’ll share. Great recipe
Haha! We’re so happy you loved them Carolyn! :D
These taste so good. But for some reason mine kept burning on the bottom and I don’t know why. The tops were amazing it’s just the bottom. They kept burning no matter how much I turned the temperature down and they weren’t right on the bottom of the oven either. Do you have any ideas why this was happening?
Oh no, we’re so sorry about that Kayla! Was your pan placed too high up in the oven? Also, we love using parchment paper, so if you sprayed the baking sheet instead, we’d recommend giving parchment a try next time. The only other thing we can think of, is the type of baking sheet you used. Was it a cookie sheet? We have read that stainless steel half baking sheets (they are sturdier and can stand up to the heat better than thin cookie sheets). We hope this is helpful!
I finally made this recipe last week and the cookies were AMAZING!!! I usually stray from using butter in cookies and use canola oil instead which yields delicious cookies but they’re never as smooth/chewy as ones made with butter. But the coconut oil yielded cookies that taste as if they were made in butter so it’s a total win in my book! And my boyfriend said they didn’t taste like coconut…(not that I expected them to ;-)). Recipe was super easy, cookies came out perfectly chewy and the best part is they are still chewy after a few days. So good. I have raved them about them and can’t wait to make them again. Thanks for a wonderful recipe!
I just took these out of the oven, and I’m waiting for them to cool so I haven’t even tasted them yet, but just by the smell of my house right now and how unbelievably soft they are, I think they’re going to be a hit.
And I was so right. Currently inhaling one and it’s literally the best cookie I have ever made in my entire existence, thank you so much for your recipe! You saved this struggling student from exam-induced cookie-withdrawal!
You are too kind! We’re so happy you loved these! :) Good luck with your exams!