Soft and Chewy Brownie Cookies

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Soft and Chewy Brownie Cookies — 🍫🍪❤️ These cookies have the taste and texture of perfect brownies! Soft and tender in the interior with chewy edges. They’re fudgy, dense, and not at all cakey!

Soft and Chewy Brownie Cookies.

Easy Fudge Brownie Cookies Recipe

These cookies have been on my bucket list for years. I only wish I had checked them off my list sooner, because I loved every fudgy center and chewy-edged bite.

They’re one hundred percent from scratch, no cake mix, no brownie mix, no shortcuts. The recipe is adapted from Donna Hay, who’s been called the Australian Martha Stewart. After converting grams of butter to tablespoons, and using regular granulated sugar in place of superfine caster sugar, I thought I was in for smooth sailing. Wrong.

I tried again with a 54% Dark Chocolate Pound Plus bar from Trader Joe’s, not to be confused with their 72% bar. Because there’s only 2/3 cup of sugar in the entire batch of cookies, I didn’t want to use chocolate that was too dark for fear the cookies would be bitter.

The chocolate intensity and sweetness level of the cookies from the Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate bar (54% chocolate) turned out to be spot-on perfect. Sweet enough, but not too sweet; nor bitter.

The 5 ounces of chopped chocolate that’s added to the batter are unexpected nuggets of bliss. It adds so much intensity and also texture. The cookies are so dark and you can’t see the chocolate, so the chunks really are heavenly surprise bites. The chocolate chunks make the cookies so rich. Like having a mini chocolate candy bar baked into every cookie.

What’s in Brownie Cookies? 

To make these chewy chocolate brownie cookies, you’ll need: 

  • Dark chocolate – Make sure to use a dark chocolate bar, not semi-sweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate chips! Otherwise, you won’t achieve the bold, bittersweet chocolate flavor we want with this recipe
  • Unsalted Butter
  • Eggs
  • Granulated sugar
  • Vanilla extract
  • All-purpose flour
  • Baking powder 

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 Brownie Cookies 

For this recipe, you’ll mix the batter similar to how you would prepare brownie batter, and portion it like chocolate chip cookies before baking. Here’s an overview of the process:

  1. Combine 7 ounces of the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl with the butter, and melt the chocolate mixture, stirring frequently.
  2. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or an electric hand mixer), and beat until pale and creamy.
  3. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture, and continue to beat on medium-low speed.
  4. Let the batter stand at room temperature for about an hour. This eliminates the need to chill in the fridge! Then, portion it into 8 cookie dough balls, and arrange them on prepared baking sheets, leaving space between each cookie. Silpat mats are crucial to prevent spreading and overbaking!
  5. Bake at 350F until the cookies are puffed up and have a crackly top. The exact baking time will vary depending on your oven. Cool completely on the pan, and enjoy!
Soft and Chewy Brownie Cookies on a  wooden surface.

Recipe FAQs

Can I add mix-ins?

Possibly, although the cookie “dough” is so finnicky that you may not want to add any mix-ins. If you’re looking for a fudgy chocolate cookie packed with mix-ins, check out the “Related Recipes” section below the recipe card. 

How long do these cookies last?

These fudge brownie cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Can I freeze this brownie cookies recipe?

Yes! Once the baked cookies are completely cool, you can freeze them for up to 3 months. I recommend placing a sheet of parchment paper between each cookie to prevent them from clumping together. Thaw in the fridge or at room temperature when you’re ready to serve.

Can I substitute chocolate chips?

No, chocolate chips will be too sweet.  I used a Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Pound Plus Bar 54%.

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5 from 9 votes

Soft and Chewy Brownie Cookies

By Averie Sunshine
🍫🍪❤️ These cookies have the taste and texture of perfect brownies! Soft and tender in the interior with chewy edges. They’re fudgy, dense, and not at all cakey!
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Rest Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 17 cookies
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Equipment

  • 1 Stand Mixer Fitted with a Paddle Attachment
  • 1 Medium (2-inch) Cookie Scoop
  • 2 Silpat Mats
  • 2 Baking Trays

Ingredients  

  • 12 ounces dark chocolate from a bar, chopped and divided into 7 ounces and 5 ounces*
  • 3 tablespoons butter, I used unsalted
  • 2 large eggs
  • cup granulated sugar, or superfine sugar if available
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour, sifted
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder, sifted

Instructions 

  • In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine 7 ounces of chocolate, butter, and heat to melt, about 1 minute on high power. Stop to stir. Heat in 10-second bursts until mixture can be stirred smooth; set aside to cool briefly.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or use an electric mixer), add the eggs, sugar, vanilla and beat for 5 to 8 minutes on medium speed, or until pale and creamy. (Original recipe recommends beating for 15 minutes, but I saw no changes in the mixture after about 5 minutes and believe 8 minutes is ample).
  • Add the flour, baking powder, melted chocolate-butter mixture, and remaining 5 ounces chopped chocolate and mix to combine, about 1 minute on medium-low speed (the machine will make lots of noise and shake from the chopped chocolate).
  • Remove the paddle, cover bowl with plasticwrap, and allow to stand at room temperature for about 1 hour in order for batter to firm up (Original recipe suggests 10 minutes but my batter was like chocolate sauce and it needed 1 hour).
  • Using a medium 2-inch cookie scoop or small ice cream scoop, scoop out mounds of dough onto Silpat-lined baking trays, placing 8 mounds per tray. Do not crowd them in case your cookies spread a fair amount (mine didn’t but I can foresee it). Allow mounds to remain on trays, uncovered, for about 1 hour before baking to help batter set up more.
  • Preheat oven to 350F. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until puffed and cracked (I baked for 9 minutes).
  • Allow cookies to cool completely on trays.

Notes

*Chocolate: I used a Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Pound Plus Bar 54%; do not use chocolate chips.
Storage: Cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Recipe adapted from Donna Hay.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 110kcal, Carbohydrates: 14g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 28mg, Sodium: 34mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 12g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

ALL OF MY CHOCOLATE COOKIES! 

Nutella White Chocolate Chip Cookies — Thick, rich, chocolaty cookies that are so soft you won’t be able to resist them!

Two halves of Nutella white chocolate chip cookies stacked on top of each other.

Dark Chocolate Chunk and Peanut Butter Chip Cookies — Soft and chewy chocolate cookies packed with peanut butter and oozing with dark chocolate chips AND peanut butter chips! 

Dark chocolate chunk and peanut butter chip cookies stacked on top of each other.

Quadruple Chocolate Pudding Cookies — These pudding cookies are packed with cocoa powder, chocolate chips and chunks, and chocolate pudding mix to deliver seriously chocolatey flavor!

Quardruple chocolate pudding cookies stacked on top of each other.

M&M’s Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies — Foolproof cookies made with just 5 ingredients! If you’re craving chocolate and want to make super EASY cookies that are soft, FUDGY, and delicious, this is the recipe to make!

M&M's chocolate cake mix cookies.

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies— These chocolate crinkle cookies are slightly chewy around the edges with a very fudgy interior and perfectly crinkly seams! 

Chocolate crinkle cookies dusted with powdered sugar.

Softbatch Cream Cheese Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies — Cream cheese keeps these double chocolate cookies super soft! Say hello to your new favorite chocolate cookie!

Softbatch cream cheese chocolate-chocolate chip cookies.

Chocolate Chip Andes Mint Cookies— These quadruple chocolate Andes mint cookies are big, bakery-style cookies that are rich, not overly sweet, and loaded with chocolate and mint chips.

A stack of three chocolate chip Andes mint cookies.
5 from 9 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

  1. I made these using the semi-sweet Ghirardelli chocolate bars, as suggested by someone else. I didn’t find it to be too watery, but still let it sit longer (maybe 40 mins. after mixing) just to be sure. The only issue I had involved the cookies sticking to the silpat baking mats after they baked. But maybe I let them cool too long on there. I only have one mat, so it was a slow process making them all afternoon. I didn’t let them sit up for 1 hr. on the mats as suggested in the recipe. Mainly b/c I didn’t have the time, but also I figured it’d be okay since my dough wasn’t watery. Overall, they were very chocolatey and yummy. But it didn’t make very many and were hard to preserve the shape of the cookie since they stuck to the mats.

    1. Hmmm something sticking to a Silpat doesn’t sound right. Silpats DO wear out over time and become less resistant to sticking and I’m thinking that may be the case with yours, especially if you only have one and it sounds like it’s gotten a workout :) Anything is possible but I’ve never had cookies stick to one unless it’s getting older and even then, it’s not really ‘sticking’ but just not as easy-release as it once was. Treat yourself to a new mat and I bet you’ll be all set :)

  2. I’ve had my eye on this recipe for a while and finally got around to buying the chocolate. Oh my word! Total decadence and total bliss. Exactly what you imagine when you say brownie cookie.

    I used Endangered Species Dark Chocolate with Espresso Beans (72% cocoa) for the melted chocolate component and then just added Nestles dark chocolate chips for the 5 ounces added to the batter since they didn’t need to melt. Didn’t have any problems with the batter needing to set.

    Thanks so much for sharing this recipe and all your tips! It’s a keeper :)

    1. Thanks for trying this recipe and for coming back and LMK how it went! I’ve had that Endg Species bar before! Long time ago and didn’t bake with it, just ate it – but I bet it would be wonderful in here. Glad to know the batter set up perfectly for you and that the cookies lived up to your expectations!

  3. I mixed the eggs, sugar, and vanilla for 15 minutes and then proceeded with the recipe. The batter wasn’t like sauce, it was thicker. I let it stand for 10 minutes, and after that the batter was definitely thick enough to make cookies. I did use different chocolate than you (Cadbury dark chocolate bar) I don’t know if that possibly had something to do with the difference. I think the real key thing is probably mixing it the full 15 minutes (eggs, sugar, vanilla) and then you really only need to let the batter stand 10 minutes.

  4. These look amazing. And I liked that you tried it with and without the silpat. So many times I skip my silpat and blame my flat cookies on the butter or baking soda. But maybe it is the pan.

    1. It’s the pan, for sure! Not using a Silpat is the kiss of death for my cookies in all recipes, not just this one!