Sometimes as food bloggers, we try so hard to do something original or out of the ordinary with our recipes that the plain recipes… the classic recipes… get overlooked. As much as I love a touch of special, I also have to admit that some of the most basic and simple recipes are my favorite.
These chocolate cookies, for example, won’t stand out to anyone as being unique. It is a chewy, chocolate cookie. Delicious and extraordinary in flavor, but there is nothing special about this recipe. This cookie won’t make it on a list of most interesting cookies. It won’t win awards for the most unique blend of flavors, but I can guarantee you that it will win smiles from each and every chocolate lover who tastes them.
Sure, I could have added a sprinkle of sea salt on the top to make them stand out. I could have sandwiched a layer of french vanilla caramel in between them for that extra ounce of ooomph. Even better… I could have drizzled salted french vanilla caramel on top of them for the biggest punch of wow, but I didn’t. You see, these cookies… these tender, soft, chewy, chocolaty cookies, don’t need help from a fancier supporting cast. They, my friends, can handle the spotlight quite well on their very own. Take a taste and see… sometimes plain can be the most extraordinary flavor of all.
The recipe is after this short, fun video with Linda Stahl, baking authority for Hershey’s test kitchens. Linda personally answered some of my most pressing questions about the ins and outs of Cookie Exchanges. This chocolate cookie is one of my contributions to an upcoming cookie exchange with friends…listen to Linda’s advice on how else to make a cookie exchange successful!
Extra Special Chewy Chocolate Cookies
Plain & Extraordinary Chewy Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups butter softened
- 2 cups white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup unsweetened Hershey cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs then add the vanilla
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; gradually mix into the creamed mixture.
- Drop dough by teaspoonfuls onto parchment lined cookie sheets
- Bake 9 minutes in the preheated oven. Cookies will be soft and still look slightly doughy
- Let set and cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes then remove from sheet onto wire rack to cool completely
Those look like the perfect sandwich cookies. Now, what can I put inside of them? Peppermint cream, perhaps. 😉 ‘Tis the season.
yummmmmmmmm
I am marking this on my google reader, i need to make these!!
Yum! I totally agree. I love simple cookies and these look sensational. You have on lucky little girl!!
Those look scrumptious!!!!! Simple + scrumptious= PERFECT!
Yum! But what? No fancy salt? No crystalized something or another? You know I jest. Less is best in my book, and it looks like you agree.
wow, these are super simple too! i’m all for delicious, easy recipes 🙂
Adding these to my list! Yum!
Chewy is GOOD! These would be the only cookies my boys would go for on a sweet table. Bookmarked!
I often think the simplest recipes are the best! They look delicious 🙂
I have a recipe very similar to these and I LOVE them!! You’re absolutely right…they don’t need anything else!!
Great questions in your interview, too!!
you’re right… sometimes the most basic recipe is the most satisfying 🙂
Lovely! Some of the Hersheys Test Kitchen recipes are my favorites (which is appropriate since I live in Hershey, PA!)… Loved the video. And, the cookies look fabulous!
Love the recipe, and I must say I adore your blog! I am a “newish” reader, but I am just so addicting to this site 🙂 Thanks for all the great recipe ideas!
Happy Baking!
You are SO right, Kristen!
I enjoyed the video very much! It also put me in the mood to bake cookies. Your recipe looks delicious, and the smiling little face getting ready to taste test them is precious.
Gorgeous pics and beautiful recipe!
Perfection! I love the comfort of this cookie. And, I’m so guilty of wanting to make something special more often than not. But I’m finally getting passed that and back into the joy of baking.
I love the simplicity of this recipe. The photo of your daughter is adorable!
I trust that these cookies are simply perfect & do not need to be all fancied up. They do look divine 🙂 XO
I know exactly what you mean, and actually wrote something similar a few weeks ago. Sometimes I work too hard at getting something unique, but the recipes I love best can be incredibly simple. No need to jazz them up. I can just tell that these cookies speak for themselves.
Simple cookies are the best!
Yes, these are wonderful. This is the exact original WATERGATE HOTEL CHOCOLATE COOKIE recipe. I’ve been making them for years! Everyone loves them.
i would like an entire plate of these . . . please and thank you!
I’m a big fan of the opposite of fancy in all parts of life!
Best to you and yours this holiday. Cheers!
I totally agree. No matter how experimental we get with the food we eat, there will always be one that we want to eat as it is. As for my case, it’s the old school chocolate chip cookies. It’s my comfort food and only a glass of warm milk can ever partner with it.. 🙂
I love chewy chocolate cookies. Thanks for the great recipe!
Your thoughts about common recipes are spot-on. I’ve been pretty lax in trying new things this year since I’ve been so busy, but it’s just as fun and rewarding to practice old classics til they shine!
I have to give these babies a try. I need to learn how to master the art of chewy!
Classic simple recipes are always a hit. That’s why I love them!
I love plain ordinary cookies! These looks awesome! I’ll make them soon I’m quite sure! Thanks!
Those look and sound delicious Kristen! I agree with you about the simple recipes being overlooked, we are always experimenting with new and different things we sometimes forget the tried and true! I have a thumbprint recipe that has FIVE ingredients. I’ve been making them for over 20 years and they deliver every single time!
Chocolate chocolate chocolate. These look luscious. Again, you’re not helping my diet!
I loved your intro! It totally grabbed me since I know what you mean about classic recipes. I’m so happy you posted this! Going to make them next week – thanks!
These look amazing. You’re definitely right. Sometimes, the thing you need most is so simple, you overlook it. This hasn’t been overlooked. 🙂
Simple recipe with a standing ovation from you? I’m flagging this for my cookie baking list for my softball team! 🙂
I love simple and yet luxurious recipes, minimalist in ingredients maximizing in flavor!
These cookies were fantastic, fast to whip up, and perfectly chewy! I added 1/2 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips, because you can never have too much chocolate! I sent them to the office with my roommate and she said they disappeared in an hour. Highly recommend this recipe!
Great recipe!! I like soft fluffy cookies, so I whipped the sugar and butter really well. The cookie is rich with coa coa flavor. simple ingredients, and not so simple mess to clean up. Worth it! would recommend with ice cream!
How many cookies does this recipie make? I am trying to make a batch of 60 to 70 cookies, and I don’t know how many cookies the recipie makes!
Can I make these with a different brand of cocoa powder?
Definitely – as long as it’s unsweetened cocoa powder, you should be fine!
I made these cookies the other day for a cookie swap & Oh MY GOODNESS! These cookies are so good, I almost ate the entire batch.
I’m thrilled you liked them! They are one of my favorites, for sure!
after cooling, mine turned hard and crispy. the butter was room temp during the mixing process.
I am not a baker, but was in the mood for chocolate cookies and wow these turned out amazing!
Can I use margarine instead of butter?
I just found this recipe through Pinterest. The flavor is awesome, but how do you eat them? They did not crinkle like the picture and flattened paper thing when cooled, with a batter like center! I questioned the cup and 1/4 of butter, thinking maybe it should have a STICK and 1/4??? But used the cup and 1/4 as listed. The dough was like a whipped frosting. I am using homemade butter that is a bit dluffier than purchased, would that make a difference? After increasing the cooking time time 2 minutes, they at least didn’t run through the cooling racks! And yes, I let them cool the 2 minutes….I actually went much longer than that because I couldn’t move them! I’d like to perfec these to use for ice cream sandwiches! 😉
Uggh! I doubled the butter! I.use homemade in 4ounce containers and totally miscalculated the amount! I will try this again with the right amount of butter and expect they will come out perfectly! I hate it when I do things like that! 😂
Oh no – I’m so sorry that happened but it absolutely sounds like something I would do. Now I’d be crying over a waste of delicious butter 😉 Thanks for the update, Lisa!
These look delicious. I’m looking for a chocolate cookie recipe that I could use to make homemade ice cream sandwiches. This seems like it would be perfect. Do you agree? Also, can anyone tell me how many cookies this recipe makes?
A simple chewy chocolate cookie. Just what I have been looking for. So yummy.
Mine turned out great!
Wonderful – thanks for letting me know!