Soft and Chewy Chocolate Cookies

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Before I left home for college almost 15 years ago my mom gave me a plastic recipe box and a stack of index cards. I sat myself down in front of her overflowing recipe box and made copies of my most favorite family recipes. Among them, these soft and chewy chocolate cookies.

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These cookies have been a family staple for as long as I can remember. We use them to make ice cream sandwiches, ^[4] sometimes they’re topped with marshmallows and melted chocolate ^[5], but most often they’re enjoyed just as you see here— with a simple sprinkling of sugar.

Not only are they soft and chewy, but they’re also dense and intensely chocolaty.

My mom believes that the recipe originally came from the back of a Hershey’s Cocoa can, but since it was so long ago she can’t say for sure. With only a few very minor changes (butter instead of margarine and a little less sugar), it’s essentially the same recipe we’ve been enjoying for decades.

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Cookies really are a timeless treat. You can make them as flashy as you want, but classics like these will never go out of style. Why mess with a good thing?

From what I’ve discovered on my chocolate journey with Hershey, the cocoa I bake with hasn’t changed much either. Hershey still uses many of the same practices and quality ingredients today as they did in the beginning over 100 years ago. The cocoa powder I put into these cookies is essentially the same my mom put in hers, and her mother before her.

Watch this video to learn more about the timelessness of Hershey ^[8].

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I still have my little plastic recipe box, which thanks to the internet is pretty unnecessary at this point. But I like that I can pull out stain-covered, well-used recipe cards of some of my favorite treats and hold them in my hand.

I’m not sure if the recipe box will last as a hand-me-down to my kids, but you can bet this chocolate cookie recipe will live on!

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get the recipe

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Cookies

Yield: 2 dozen cookies

Soft and chewy chocolate cookies are dense and intensely chocolaty.

Print Recipe ^[11]

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup (170 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cup (300 grams) granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup (60 grams) _Hershey's_ cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (170 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
• Granulated sugar, for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium high speed until light and creamy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Add the vanilla. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the mixer and mix until just combined. Add the chocolate chips, if using.
3. Scoop by the rounded tablespoon onto the prepared sheet pan and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake until edges are crisp, about 9 minutes. Let cool on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The Hershey Company as part of a long-term food ambassadorship program. Thank you for supporting partnerships with brands I love and believe in, which make Completely Delicious possible. All opinions are always 100% my own.