Outrageous chocolate cookies - these cookies are packed with chocolate and have amazing texture!
Called outrageous chocolate cookies, these cookies definitely deserve their name for being outrageously attractive. The pictures don't even do them justice: these cookies look really pretty in real life, like small pieces of cake covered in a very thin layer of chocolate. If you want an easy to make cookie that's all chocolate and yet looks attractive and tastes like a soft and chewy piece of a very good chocolate cake - try these, I beg you!
Even though these cookies are very easy to make, you're dealing with melting the chocolate here, and that could affect your success with these outrageous chocolate cookies. This cookie got multiple raving reviews on Martha Stewart site, but a lot of commentators had issues like having a cookie dough that's too thin, and, as a result, cookies spreading too flat during baking resulting in not so attractive look (while still tasting good).
The original recipe calls for semisweet chocolate chunks, but any type of chocolate chips, chunk, or morsels will work.
Common baking problems and how to avoid them
When making these chocolate outrageous cookies, the common problems and questions are:
How to avoid runny cookies?
How to make sure the cookies don't spread too much?
What makes cookies flat and how to avoid it?
To avoid all of the above, the important thing is not to over melt the chocolate.
- Melt the chocolate in microwave in 20 seconds increments to keep checking so that you melt it just enough to mix with other ingredients - don't let the chocolate get too runny. DO NOT OVER MELT THE CHOCOLATE.
- Melted chocolate should have the consistency of a thick frosting (not a liquid) before you add it to the flour mixture.
- If it's too runny, let it cool a little before adding it in.
- The cookie dough in the end should not be thin. If it is thin, let the cookie dough stand for a while to harden - by letting the melted chocolate harden in the cookie dough. The resulting cookie dough should look like a cookie dough (hardened) and not like a cake batter (runny).
Baking Tips
While these outrageous chocolate cookies are easy to make, here is what I learned from the process, and skipping any of those steps can result in outrageously flat cookies (though still tasty) or dry cookies. Remember, these are supposed to be soft and chewy, with only the top of the cookie that's crunchy. So to have the success with these cookies, make sure to:
- Melt the chocolate in step 1 just enough to mix - melted chocolate should not be runny. When you mix the melted chocolate in and the cookie dough seems runny due to hot chocolate, allow the cookie dough to cool down for some time to harden up. By allowing the cookie dough sit for a while, the hot melted chocolate will cool down and harden the cookie dough.
- Beat your eggs and sugar in step 3 really well, until light and fluffy - otherwise the dough will be too thin.
- Do not over bake the cookie. The cookie should not be dry, it should still be soft and brownie-like after 12-15 minutes of baking (no more, maybe less - depends on your oven).
- To avoid cookies spreading too thin during baking, make sure to follow all of the steps above, and also use cold baking sheets - not hot or warm baking sheets that have been sitting for an hour underneath your pre-heated oven.
Storage tip: These cookies keep well for a week in an air-tight container.
Outrageous chocolate cookies
Ingredients
- 8 ounces semisweet chocolate , chopped
- 4 tablespoons butter , unsalted
- ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 12 oz semisweet chocolate chunks , or equal amount of semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Heat 8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips and butter in a microwave-safe bowl in 20-second increments, stirring between each, until almost melted. Make sure not to over melt the chocolate, melt it just enough to mix – as I emphasized above in the post.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a mixing bowl, beat eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla on high speed really well, until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low; beat in melted chocolate (remember, the melted chocolate should not be too runny).
- Mix in flour mixture until just combined. Stir in chocolate chunks (or chocolate chips). If your batter is too runny (due to over melting the chocolate in step 1), let the batter stand for some time to get hard.
- Spray baking sheets with cooking spray – it’s important: I found that these cookies really stick to the baking sheet if you skip this step.
- Drop tablespoons (or less) of dough onto cold baking sheets 2 inches apart. Let me emphasize – use cold baking sheets (not hot or warm baking sheets that have been sitting underneath your pre-heated oven).
- Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until cookies are shiny and crackly yet soft in centers, 12 to 15 minutes. Do not over bake the cookies, the texture should still be soft, that of a brownie, when you take them out of the oven. If you over bake them, they will be too hard. Do not bake them to a crisp, they are supposed to be soft.
- Cool on baking sheets 10 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
These turned out great! I used chocolate chips for the melted chocolate as well, and they stayed stiff when melted. I have had similar cookies before, but never had a recipe to make my own. The kids and I are delighted! Also, I considered doubling the recipe, because really? One dozen? But I thought I'd test it first, and I made them small, and got over 3 dozen cookies. (Even with two of us doing some enthusiastic taste testing along the way.) We had enough to share with the neighbors. Thank you!
hey.. these cookies didnt turn out the way they are in these pictures 🙁
had great expectations.. stuck to the recipe like never before..
i have weird thin cookies.. flat with flat edges.. and nothing seems to ooze out of them :/
Please help me with what went wrong.. coz i did not even melt the chocolate wayy too much and for the second batch .. the batter was sitting in an air conditioned room for 20mins.. which means if the batter was too thin.. it should have dried up by then..
Kindly help me out..
Thanks 🙂
These look great! Do they taste like store bought fudge rounds?? The pre packaged cake cookies that my now gluten free husband misses?? 🙂
Has anyone tried making this cookie? How Are u suposse to use only 2/3 flour?
Made these tonight. Substituted butterscotch chips for the chunks and almond for the vanilla. Divine. Will make these next week for a party I am hosting. Thank you!!
My kids and I just made these and they're SO good! I'm typing this one handed because I'm eating one with my other hand, haha! They're like a brownie and cookie all in one
OMG!!! I tried these today! There are devastating!!!! Thanks for the recipe. There are going to be refilled on the shelf all the time in my house now!
Vallari, thank you so much for your comment! I am glad you loved the cookies - I thought they were pretty amazing (and pretty!) too! 🙂
uhh, can I use dark brown sugar instead of light-brown sugar?
I think you can. It shouldn't make much difference. The key in this recipe is melting the chocolate right and mixing it in properly - I describe that all in the post above the instructions.
hi! would love to try this out today... i'm new at baking. i was just wondering.. what did you mean by "rotating sheets"?
Rotating sheets means rotating them 180 degrees halfway through the baking so that one side of the cookie sheet that was initially facing the front of the oven would now be facing the back of the oven. That ensures that all cookies are baked through evenly because the heat distribution sometimes varies within the oven.
Heading in to the kitchen to make these now for my 5 year old as a treat after his first day of Sr. Kindergarten! These look like the type of cookie he, his sister (and his Daddy) will love. Ok, and maybe me too 😉 So glad to have found your blog via pinterest, love finding fellow bloggers!
Katrina, thank you for such a sweet comment! Kids and adults alike love these cookies - who doesn't like chocolate? I also love meeting new food bloggers!
I'm just finishing a post of my own own them (threw in some toffee, I love how versatile this recipe is! I saw yours with which chocolate as well, I'll try that with dried cherries next time). I'm linking back to this post in it, hope you don't mind, you're chocolate melting instructions were on point, I didn't want to even attempt to explain as well as you did, lol.
I am looking forward to checking out your post - love when other people (especially food bloggers) try the same recipes I made! 🙂
These cookies looks so amazing.. I want to try it.. but tell me can I use simple white sugar instead of using brown sugar?
Komal, I have not tried this recipe with regular sugar so I don't know if regular sugar will work. The texture might suffer.
THANK YOU SO MUCH !! These are the best cookies I ever made 🙂 On pinterest I saw your beautiful pictures (what kind of camera do you use?) and I tried them immediately.
Greetings from the Netherlands
Thank you, Kim! Greetings from the US to Netherlands! 🙂
I have a very old Nikon D80 DSLR camera (camera body) that is not produced any more, but you can buy used ones for about $300! It's a very basic DSLR camera. But the most important part is actually the lense – the lense that I use is a very basic 50mm Nikon lense – Nikon Normal AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D Autofocus Lens. It costs around $100 – I bought it several years ago at B&H (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/). This $100 lense is truly a classic – it will fit just about any Nikon camera body and it’s excellent for food photos or portraits!