Chocolate Crinkle Cookies — These chocolate crinkle cookies are slightly chewy around the edges with a very fudgy interior and perfectly crinkly seams!
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Classic Chocolate Crinkle Cookie Recipe
Chocolate crinkle cookies are usually associated with Christmas and Christmas cookies. But my chocolate cravings don’t pay attention to seasons.
These chocolate crinkles are perfect any time of year and they’re so easy to make. It’s a one-bowl, no-mixer recipe, and you don’t even need a stick of butter. That’s right, cookies without butter!
One-quarter cup of oil for the entire batch keeps the cookies super soft and moist. They’re slightly chewy around the edges with a very fudgy interior and you just want to break them apart at the crinkly seams and start nibbling.
I find that chocolate cookies dry out easily and often that’s because of the drying effects of cocoa powder, but these cookies rely solely on melted chocolate.
Plan ahead, chill your dough, and you’ll be so glad you made ‘Christmas cookies’ this time of year. My family went nuts over these.
Ingredients in Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
To make these Christmas chocolate crinkles, you’ll need:
- Unsweetened chocolate
- Granulated sugar
- Vegetable oil
- Vanilla extract
- Eggs
- Instant espresso granules
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Confectioners’ sugar
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
This is a quick and easy recipe for cocoa crinkle cookies that anyone can follow. Just be sure to allow time for the dough to chill (you can NOT skip this step!).
- Stir together melted chocolate, granulated sugar, oil, and vanilla.
- Then, whisk in the eggs and espresso granules.
- Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 4 hours.
- Once the dough has chilled, roll into balls. Dredge the cookie dough balls in confectioners’ sugar, then place on baking tray.
- Bake the chocolate crinkles until the edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked and soft-looking in the center.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, but I recommend adding them in if you have some on hand. The instant espresso just enhances the chocolate flavor, it doesn’t make these chocolate crinkles taste at all like coffee.
Between the softening effects of the oil and the melted chocolate, this is a seriously moist dough. You must, no exceptions, chill the dough for at least 4 hours before baking but overnight is better. The dough is more like brownie batter than cookie dough and baking with unchilled dough absolutely will not work.
Note that these chocolate crinkles will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
No. For many of my cookie recipes, you can add extra mix-ins like chocolate chips or chopped nuts. However, I don’t recommend adding anything to these chocolate crinkle cookies as I can’t guarantee you’ll get the same crinkle effect if you add mix-ins.
I find that many chocolate crinkle recipes turn out too dry for my liking because they use cocoa powder to achieve the rich chocolate flavor. My recipe uses melted unsweetened chocolate to infuse the cookie dough with chocolate flavor without drying it out.
If your cookies are dry, you likely measured out too much flour or baked them for too long. (And if you’re sure it was neither of those things, but a thermometer for your oven to make sure it’s running at the correct temperature!)
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Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup vegetable or canola oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon instant espresso granules, optional
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- about 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, for dredging
Instructions
- To a large microwave-safe bowl, add the chocolate and heat on high power to melt, about 1 minute. Stop to check and stir. Heat in 10-second increments until chocolate can be stirred smooth. Set aside to cool, about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add the granulated sugar, oil, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
- Add the eggs, optional espresso granules (enhances the chocolate flavor), and whisk to combine.
- Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and stir until just combined; don’t overmix.
- Cover bowl with plasticwrap and place in the fridge to chill for at least 4 hours, overnight is better. The dough is more like brownie batter than cookie dough and baking with unchilled dough absolutely will not work.
- After dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray.
- Using a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop or your hands, form approximately 15 equal-sized mounds of dough; don’t flatten.
- Add confectioners’ sugar to a small bowl and dredge mounds very well thorough sugar before placing on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 8 cookies per sheet).
- Bake for about 10 minutes (for very soft cookies, longer for more well-done cookies), or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked and soft-looking in the center; don’t overbake. Cookies firm up as they cool.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and don’t use a rack.
Notes
- Cookies will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
- Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
- Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Wow I will take a dozen of these stat! They look perfect Averie!
I, for one, do not believe cookies should have seasons. Especially with chocolate! These look absolutely perfect!
Seasonless cookies, amen to that!
Who says crinkle cookie only need to be for Christmas? I love the idea of making them year round! These look delicious!
From the person who bakes with molasses and pumpkin year-round–who cares about seasons? Bake and eat what sounds good (and these sound delicious!)!
Amen to not caring about the seasons!
I love how cute they look, I was always hesitant on trying o make my own Crinkle cookies, but seems that they are not that complicated. I am always attracted by their rustic look.
Super easy cookies to make, don’t be hesitant with this recipe! Easy!
The description of that batter…cookie dough that is like brownie batter? I’ll just have a spoon and the dough please! YUM!
I wanted to just dig in with a spoon, too :)
You had me at the word Christmas!! These look so gorgeous, I love those crinkly tops and those chewy edges and the fudgy centres – okay, I just love the look of these full stop!!
Espresso powder is just such a magical ingredient, I find myself adding it to practically everything chocolate based!
I add it to almost everything chocolate-based, too! Gives so much extra depth of flavor!
Another delicious cookie recipe! Can never say no to a chocolate crinkle cookie :D
Who could not just absolutely LOVE the gorgeously-crinkly tops on these cookies?! Cookie baking knows no particular season if you ask me—totally a 24/7 kinda deal. ;) I’m swooning over how rich and fudgy these look and I’m loving the fact that they’re butterless! Pinned.
Cookie baking knows no particular season to me either! Thanks for pinning!
Love how these cookies are so easy and have no butter and espresso in them! Love that! Definitely giving these a try. Pinned :)
Thanks for pinning!
So, weirdly enough as summer is is finally starting to come around here I’ve really been starting to crave more christmas-y holiday season desserts (no lie, I had the strongest desire to make gingerbread yesterday but refrained), so these “Christmastime” cookies are right up my alley today! I can’t believe there’s no butter in them! They look amazing, pinning for sure!
I had a strong desire to bake pumpkin…anything the other day, but refrained b/c staring in about August I will be doing it nonstop for blog recipes for the fall, but I can relate to your cravings!
Hahaa @My chocolate cravingdon’t pay attention to seasons. Preach it sistah!
I love these classic cookies, and I am so glad to see someone posting them NOT at christmas! That powdered sugar toppins is gorg! Pinned!
Thanks for pinning and appreciating that these are just classic, good cookies. Not only ‘just for Christmas’ type of cookies!
I never choose the chocolate crinkle from the cookie trays at Christmas time because they always look dry….yours on the other hand look moist and chewy. I’ll have to try making these. I hate when food has to follow a season…I eat pumpkin all year round.
I eat pumpkin year-round too and had to resist a huge craving to bake something with it the other day since I know by August I’ll be baking with it nearly daily for fall blog recipes :)
And these are the opposite of those cookie tray crinkle cookies you speak of. I know those dry things all too well. These are super moist and fudgy!
The powdered sugar on top really makes the crinkles pop. These would be fun for some kind of Christmas-in- July event but chocolate is always in season for me!
Christmas-in-July sounds perfect to me!
I love that these use melted chocolate! Because nothing is sadder than a dry cookie. Really. It’s tragic.
No tears here! And it’s so much fun to see crinkle cookies in May!
These are so moist and the melted chocolate is key! They are so soft and fudgy and anything but dry! (dry cookies aren’t worth their calories!!)
I associate these with Christmas as well- but I’m also the person who is still singing Christmas songs in May. Whoops. My mom loves chocolate crinkles (and she also doesn’t care about seasons), so she might get a batch soon (:
Love that you’re singing Christmas songs in May! :)