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The perfect Chocolate Sugar Cookies for rolling, cutting, and decorating. Soft, thick, and full of chocolate flavor. 🍪❤️
Chocolate Cookies
If you love chocolate cookies that bake up soft, rich, and perfect for cut-outs, these are for you. This recipe gives you homemade chocolate cookies that hold their shape, taste incredible, and work with any cookie cutter you choose.
They are some of the best chocolate cookies because the dough is smooth, easy to roll, and ideal for topping with your favorite frosting. You can enjoy them plain or turn them into chocolate cookies with frosting for a fun holiday baking project.
This is an easy chocolate cookies recipe that is great for gifting and great for decorating. If you want chocolate cookies that look good and stay soft for days, this homemade chocolate cookies recipe fits the job.
⭐ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- You get a dough that rolls cleanly and keeps its sharp edges.
- The cookies stay soft after baking.
- The flavor is rich without being too sweet.
- This easy chocolate cookies recipe is great for decorating.
- You can turn them into chocolate cookies with frosting with minimal effort.
🛒 Ingredients & Substitutions
- all-purpose flour
- corn starch
- baking powder
- salt
- unsalted butter – substitute with margarine if needed
- granulated sugar
- egg
- vanilla extract
- semi-sweet Bakers chocolate – do not substitute with chocolate chips because they do not melt as smoothly
✨ Variations
- Add mini chocolate chips for extra texture.
- Use peppermint extract for a holiday version.
- Dip half the cookie in melted chocolate for a bakery-style finish.
- Add colored frosting to create themed chocolate cookies with frosting.
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🔥 Tips
- Use only enough flour on your work surface to prevent sticking.
- Freeze cut cookies before baking to help them keep their shape.
- Melt the chocolate fully, but let it cool slightly before mixing it in.
- For the best chocolate cookies results, bake one sheet at a time.
❓ FAQs
Yes, the dough can be made a day ahead and kept chilled. This helps the dough firm up and roll easily.
No, the melted chocolate gives these a soft texture that makes them some of the best chocolate cookies. Cocoa powder alone will make the dough dry.
Yes, these are great chocolate cookies with frosting. Buttercream or cream cheese frosting both work well. I also have a chocolate frosting that works well if that’s more your jam.
Not much. The quick-freeze step helps them hold their shape, making this an easy recipe for cut-out cookies.
Yes, you can roll the dough into balls and flatten them slightly. They look more like drop cookies.
This usually means too much flour was added. Add a little melted butter and mix gently until the dough comes together.
Your butter was likely too soft. Chill the dough for about an hour and try rolling it again.
Yes, but it takes more effort. Make sure the butter is soft so you can cream it well by hand.
About 3/8-inch works well for soft cookies that stay thick after baking.
Yes, it helps the bottoms bake evenly and makes it easier to move the cookies.
This keeps the shapes sharp and reduces spreading in the oven.
Yes, the surface is smooth and firm enough for clean royal icing designs.
Yes, and the dough freezes very well if you want to bake part now and part later.
🍽️ Other Recipes You May Enjoy
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Chocolate Sugar Cookies
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Equipment
- mixing bowl (large and small)
- hand mixer or stand mixer
- rubber spatula
- rolling pin with thickness rings
- cookie cutters
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 ounces semi sweet Bakers chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt.2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons cornstarch, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar on high speed for about 2 minutes until smooth.1 cup unsalted butter, 1 cup granulated sugar
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat for another 2 minutes until light and fluffy.1 large egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Beat in the melted chocolate on low speed just until combined.4 ounces semi sweet Bakers chocolate
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low until the flour is no longer visible. Do not overmix.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Lightly flour your work surface. Roll out the dough, adding only enough flour to prevent sticking.
- Roll to ⅜ inch thickness for soft, thick cookies.
- Cut dough with a 2.5 inch cookie cutter.
- Place cookies close together on the prepared baking sheet and freeze for 15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Transfer some cookies to a second parchment lined baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
- Bake one sheet at a time for 13 to 14 minutes, or until the tops look set but still soft. Leave unbaked cookies in the freezer until ready to bake.
- Let the baked cookies cool on the baking sheet for 2 to 3 minutes, then transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- If desired, frost or decorate once the cookies are completely cooled.
Notes
🥡 STORAGE
- Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
- Keep refrigerated for up to 1 week.
- Serve at room temperature for the softest texture.
♨️ REHEATING
- Warm individual cookies in the microwave for a few seconds if you prefer them soft and slightly warm.
- Heat in a low oven for a few minutes if serving a batch.
❄️ FREEZING
- Freeze baked cookies in a sealed container for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
- Freeze cut-out cookie dough shapes by placing them in a single layer on a baking sheet for 30 minutes, then stacking them in a freezer-safe container with parchment between layers.
- Freeze uncut dough by shaping it into a flat disc, wrapping it well, and storing it in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator until firm but workable, then roll and cut.
💡 TIPS FOR BEST RESULTS
- Measure flour carefully to avoid dry or crumbly dough.
- Freeze cut-out cookies before baking to help them keep their shape.
- Add only a light dusting of flour when rolling to avoid white patches on baked cookies.
🍳 ALTERNATE COOKING METHODS
- Bake in a convection oven at 325°F, checking a few minutes early.
- Air fry at 320°F for 4 to 6 minutes, depending on the thickness of the cookie.
♻️ LEFTOVERS
- Crumble leftover cookies over ice cream or yogurt.
- Use leftover cookies as a base for ice cream sandwiches.
📝 NOTES
- Add a layer of buttercream frosting for a sweeter finish.
- If the dough is crumbly, beat in ¼ cup melted butter to bring it together.
- If the dough is sticky, refrigerate it for 60 minutes before rolling.
- Use a rolling pin with thickness rings to keep cookies even.
- Add only a light dusting of flour when rolling to avoid white spots on baked cookies.
- Let the cookies cool thoroughly before storing or frosting.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
