Chewy Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies

These chewy Ghirardelli chocolate chip cookies bake up thick, with soft middles and puddles of melted chocolate in every bite. They are the kind of cookie that feels like a small win on a Tuesday night, and the recipe is simple enough to pull off after a long day.

What Makes These Ghirardelli Cookies So Good

I use a mix of Ghirardelli semi-sweet chips and hand-chopped bittersweet chocolate. The chips hold their shape while the chopped chocolate melts into flat, glossy pockets that stay gooey for days.

Melted butter gives these cookies a dense, chewy center that stays soft even after they cool. I keep the dough cold before baking so the cookies puff up instead of spreading flat.

Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter, melted: use salted butter if that is what you have, just skip the added salt below
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar: balances the deeper notes of the brown sugar
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar: keeps the centers soft and adds a faint caramel note
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature: cold eggs can make the melted butter seize up
• 2 tsp vanilla extract: the real stuff makes a difference in a simple dough
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour: spoon and level, do not scoop straight from the bag
• 1 tsp baking soda: for just enough lift
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt: brings the chocolate forward without tasting salty
• 1 cup Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips: the classic first choice
• 1 cup chopped Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate: from two 4 oz bars, roughly chopped

Variations / Substitutions

• Swap the chocolate: use all milk chocolate chips for a sweeter cookie, or all bittersweet for a darker, grown-up flavor
• Add nuts: fold in 3/4 cup toasted walnuts or pecans right after the chocolate for crunch
• Make them gluten-free: swap an equal amount of a cup-for-cup gluten-free flour blend, no other adjustments needed
• Brown the butter: cook the melted butter a few minutes longer until golden and nutty, then cool slightly before mixing

For an extra layer of chocolate, try my Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies once you master this one.

How to Make Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies

Step 1: Whisk the Wet Ingredients

In a large bowl, pour in the 1 cup melted butter and whisk in the 3/4 cup granulated sugar and 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar until the mixture looks smooth and a shade lighter, about 1 minute. Crack in the 2 eggs, one at a time, whisking well after each, then stir in the 2 tsp vanilla.

The mix should feel thick and glossy, with no streaks of egg white left. If your butter was too hot, you will see the sugar start to melt and the whole thing get a little runny, which is fine, just let it cool a few minutes before the next step.

Step 2: Stir in the Dry Ingredients

Switch to a wooden spoon or a stiff spatula. Sprinkle in the 2 1/4 cups flour, 1 tsp baking soda, and 1/2 tsp salt all at once, then stir until the flour just disappears. Stop as soon as you no longer see dry pockets. Overworking the dough here makes the cookies tough, so a few faint streaks of flour are okay.

The dough will be soft and a little sticky, and it should smell like brown sugar and vanilla. That means the butter and sugars have come together evenly.

Step 3: Fold in the Chocolate

Dump in the 1 cup semi-sweet chips and the 1 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate. Fold with the spatula until the pieces are spread throughout. You will hear the chopped chocolate snap and click against the bowl, and that is exactly what creates those wide, melty patches in the baked cookies.

Resist the urge to push a stray chocolate piece down into the dough now, you will handle that when you portion. Cover the bowl and chill the dough for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight. Cold dough gives you thicker cookies.

Step 4: Scoop and Bake the Cookies

Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to portion the chilled dough, placing the balls about 3 inches apart. If any dough balls are missing a big chunk of chocolate, poke a piece into the top now. Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are set and golden and the centers look pale and slightly underdone.

At 10 minutes, peek at the first tray. The cookies will look puffed and the chocolate will be shiny and soft. Pull them when the tops no longer look wet, but before they brown in the center. They will continue to set as they sit on the hot sheet.

Step 5: Cool and Serve

Slide the parchment with the cookies right onto a wire rack. Let them cool on the parchment for 5 minutes, then lift them off with a spatula and let them finish cooling on the rack. The chocolate will still be soft and the middles will be tender. Serve them warm or at room temperature, ideally with something cold to drink alongside.

A Few Tips for Foolproof Cookies

• Chill the dough before every batch.: If the dough warms up between trays, pop the bowl back in the fridge for 10 minutes so the cookies do not spread too much.
• Use a cookie scoop.: I portion the whole batch right after chilling, while the dough is firm. Even size means even baking, and you get 36 cookies from this recipe.
• Underbake just slightly.: Pull the tray when the centers look pale and soft. Carryover heat from the hot pan finishes the bake so the centers stay chewy.
• Do not skip the hand-chopped chocolate.: The uneven shards melt into thin pools that the chips alone cannot give you.

Bake times vary a little by cookie size:

Storing Leftover Cookies

Keep baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. To keep them soft, tuck a small piece of bread inside the container, it gives off just enough moisture. You can also freeze the baked cookies in a zip-top bag for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature or warm briefly in a low oven.

For fresh cookies on demand, freeze the dough balls on a sheet pan until solid, then transfer to a bag. Bake straight from frozen, adding 1 to 2 minutes to the time.

What to Serve with These Cookies

A cold glass of whole milk is the obvious partner, the fat softens the edge of the bittersweet chocolate. For something a little sharper, try a strong black coffee or an espresso shot. The bitterness cuts through the sweetness without fighting it. I also like to sandwich a scoop of vanilla ice cream between two cookies, the salt in the dough makes the ice cream taste even creamier.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use only Ghirardelli chocolate chips and skip the chopped chocolate?

Yes, you can use 2 full cups of chips instead. The cookies will still be excellent, just with fewer of those wide melted pockets. I keep the mix because it gives you both textures.

Why did my cookies spread into flat discs?

The dough was probably too warm when it went into the oven. Chill it for a full 30 minutes, and if your kitchen is very warm, scoop and freeze the balls for 10 minutes before baking.

How do I make them gluten-free?

Swap the all-purpose flour with a cup-for-cup gluten-free flour blend that contains xanthan gum. Everything else stays the same. The cookies will be just as chewy.

Can I freeze the dough instead of baking it all at once?

Absolutely. Scoop the chilled dough onto a parchment-lined sheet, freeze until rock hard, then transfer to a bag. Bake from frozen, adding about 2 extra minutes to the bake time.

Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 24 minutes mins

Total Time 39 minutes mins

Servings: 36 servings

Calories: 160

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 cup Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate (from two 4 oz bars)

Method

 

1. Whisk melted butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. Whisk in eggs one at a time, then vanilla.
2. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt with a spatula just until flour disappears.
3. Fold in both chocolates, cover, and chill dough at least 30 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Scoop dough with a 1.5 tbsp scoop onto parchment-lined sheets. Bake one sheet at a time for 10 to 12 minutes until edges are golden and centers look pale.
5. Slide parchment onto a rack, cool 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to the rack to finish cooling. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

Chill the dough for the full 30 minutes, a warm dough will spread too fast and give you thin cookies. If you bake in two batches, keep the remaining dough in the fridge between rounds. The chopped chocolate bars create thin, melty pools that the chips alone cannot replicate. For an evenly chewy result, underbake slightly and let the carryover heat finish the centers.