These fudgy chocolate cookies with cocoa powder are soft and chewy, with a rich brownie-like center that's packed with dense chocolate taste. They're simple to make and don't require any chilling. If you like the flavor and texture of fudgy, dense brownies, you'll love these easy chocolate cookies!
I'm always on the lookout for decadent chocolate recipes.
I've made moist and rich chocolate ganache cake, crunchy chocolate wafer cookies, gooey brownies with cherries and velvety chocolate pots de creme.
When I realized I didn't have a recipe for double chocolate chip cookies, I started testing with the goal of creating fudgy, moist cookies with cocoa powder and an easy dough that wouldn't require any chill time.
Isn't that always the most frustrating part of cookie baking!? When a chocolate craving hits, you want to satisfy it ASAP.
These cookies are made with cocoa powder, melted butter, and an extra egg yolk. This provides a richly dense, flavorful dough which transforms into a soft and gooey dark chocolate cookie filled with semisweet and dark chocolate.
Melting the butter reduces volume (which means more density) and creates a simple dough that you can easily mix up by hand.
The texture of these cocoa cookies is dense and moist. A crispy outer layer offers a satisfying contrast to the tender, chewy center with pools of melted, gooey chocolate chips.
With every mouthful, the deep chocolate flavor lingers, a simple indulgence that’s perfect for those moments when you want something both easy and decadent.
For a nutty version, try my chocolate peanut butter cup cookie recipe - it's a modified version of this cookie with peanut butter in the dough, and peanut butter cups on top!
You can view the entire collection of cookie recipes here, including rich brownie blondies and dark chocolate tiramisu sandwich cookies.
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Ingredients
* See recipe card for full list of ingredients and quantities.
Cocoa powder - Use Dutch process cocoa powder in this recipe. It provides a darker, richer flavor than natural cocoa.
Brown sugar - A heavier percentage of brown sugar adds rich caramel flavor and extra moisture, which makes these cookies nice and chewy in the center.
Unsalted butter - Using unsalted butter allows you to control the total quantity of salt in the recipe. Melted butter creates a chewy, dense cookie. It also makes it easy to mix these up by hand without an electric mixer!
Granulated sugar - Adding a bit of granulated sugar helps ensure the cookies develop a nice crisp exterior.
Egg yolk - Adding an additional egg yolk adds additional flavor and richness without as much moisture, creating a fudgier texture. I know it's a bit of a pain to separate an egg, but the effort is worth the outcome.
Chocolate chunks and chips - I chose to use a mix of dark chocolate chunks (a cut up bar of chocolate) and semisweet chocolate chips. This provides a nice mix of texture and flavor.
The chunks create melted pools of chocolate and spread more. The chips lend lend more structure as they don't lose much shape when melted. You can use chunks, chips or both!
Instructions
These photos provide visual cues. Find the detailed instructions in the recipe card.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder through a fine mesh sieve into a medium bowl.
Stir or whisk together until fully incorporated. Set aside.
To a large mixing bowl, add melted butter and sugars.
Stir until well blended.
Add vanilla, whole egg, egg yolk, and salt.
Mix until fully incorporated. Scrape down sides of bowl.
Add dry ingredients. Stir until just a few flour streaks remain.
Stir in the chocolate chips and chunks.
Shape dough into approximately 2½ Tablespoon balls (48 grams in weight). I scooped the dough using my medium 1½ Tablespoon scoop. I cut some scoops in half and combined each half with a whole to make uniformly larger dough balls.
Portion 8 scoops of dough out onto a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet. Top each dough ball with a few extra pieces of chopped chocolate if desired.
Bake one sheet of cookies at a time for 8 minutes.
Hint: Don't overbake these cookies! Since they are made with a dark dough, you won't be able to use color cues to tell when they are done. They should look much less oily and shiny and have an almost matte finish. They'll still be soft when you take them out, but will set as they cool.
Immediately after removing cookies from oven, place a round cookie cutter or the rim of a wide drinking glass around each baked cookie and gently swirl. This will push the cookie into a uniformly round shape.
Cool on pan for 10 minutes before moving to cooling rack.
Variations
If you'd like to try a different twist, here are some variations to explore:
- Espresso powder - Adding 1 teaspoon of espresso powder to the melted butter will enhance the chocolate flavor and add extra depth to these cookies without creating a noticeable coffee taste.
- Almond extract- Add ½ teaspoon of almond extract to the dough when adding the vanilla extract. This adds an intriguing sweet, marzipan note to the chocolate flavor of the cookies. It's quite subtle and doesn't overpower the chocolate at all.
- Nuts - Add ¼ toasted, chopped nuts to the dough when adding the chocolate chips. You might try walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, almonds or peanuts.
- Chocolate chips and chunks - Feel free to vary the percentage of chocolate that you add to the cookies. Here I've used a combination of dark chocolate chunks and semisweet chocolate chips. You could use all dark chocolate, all semisweet, all milk chocolate, or a combination of the above.
Equipment
Cookie scoop - To bake these cocoa cookies, I use this medium cookie scoop which measures out 1½ Tablespoons of dough. It's a size 40.
I love using a cookie scoop for drop cookies. It keeps them uniform in size, which also helps them to bake evenly.
Baking pans - I bake my cookies on rimmed half sheet baking pans (18 x 13 inches).
Parchment paper is great for lining the baking pan. The cookies won't stick if you use parchment paper underneath. Bonus: you don't have to grease the pans. You can usually wipe down the pan rather than needing to wash it after baking.
Round cookie cutters - Use a round cookie cutter or the rim of an upside down glass to swirl these cookies back into a round shape after baking. Do this as soon as you remove them from the oven while they are still hot and pliable. I have this exact set and use it all the time.
Storage
Store: Store these chocolate chocolate chip cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Freeze: Store baked cookies in a large zippered freezer bag or airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months
Make ahead: Although these are super easy to whip up, it's always great to have extra cookie dough on hand.
To freeze unbaked cookie dough, place scooped dough on a parchment lined baking sheet and freeze for an hour or two. Once frozen, transfer dough balls to a zippered freezer bag. Store dough for up to 3 months frozen, unbaked.
Frequently asked questions
I usually opt for Dutch process cocoa powder (also called Dutched or Alkalized cocoa powder) in my cookie recipes. The process of alkalizing, which reduces the acidity, creates a darker colored cocoa and a deeper chocolate flavor.
I have not tested this recipe with natural cocoa. I expect that it would produce a lighter, slightly cakier cookie due to the acidic reaction with the baking soda.
For best results, stick with Dutch process cocoa powder for these cocoa cookies.
Make sure not to overbake these cookies! Since they are made with a dark dough, you won't be able to use color cues to tell when they are done.
They should look much less oily and shiny and have an almost matte finish. They will become more dense as they set, so don't move them from the cookie sheet until they are cooler.
Also, don't try to make these smaller than the recommended size! (Approximately 2½ -3 Tablespoons - 48 to 58 grams.) I tested the recipe with both 1½ Tablespoon and 2½ Tablespoon cookie dough balls, and the larger size is what helps create the soft, fudgy center.
I recommend baking a mini batch of 2 cookies on the first baking sheet so that you can confirm if the baking time works for your taste (and oven.)
Love this recipe? Please leave a comment and star rating. ★★★★★ Your feedback, suggestions, and adaptations are very helpful to other bakers!
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Cookies With Cocoa Powder
INGREDIENTS
- 160 grams (1⅓ cups) all purpose flour
- 30 grams (¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons) cocoa powder, Dutch process (alkalized)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 113 grams (8 Tablespoons; 4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
- 150 grams (¾ cup) brown sugar
- 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 85 grams (3 ounces) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped into chunks
- 85 grams (3 ounces) chocolate chips, semisweet or dark chocolate
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place rack in center of oven and preheat to 350° Fahrenheit (177° Celsius, Gas mark 4).
- Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder through a fine mesh sieve into a medium bowl. Whisk together until fully incorporated. Set aside.160 grams (1⅓ cups) all purpose flour, 30 grams (¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons) cocoa powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder
- To a large mixing bowl, add melted butter and sugars and stir until well blended.113 grams (8 Tablespoons; 4 ounces) unsalted butter, 150 grams (¾ cup) brown sugar, 50 grams (¼ cup) granulated sugar
- Add vanilla, whole egg, egg yolk, and salt and mix until fully incorporated. Scrape down sides of bowl.2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 1 large egg, 1 large egg yolk, ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- Add dry ingredients. Stir until just a few flour streaks remain. Stir in the chocolate chips and chunks.85 grams (3 ounces) dark chocolate, 85 grams (3 ounces) chocolate chips
- Measure cookie scoops into 2½ Tablespoon balls (48 grams*) Portion 6 scoops of dough out onto a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet. Top each dough ball with a few extra pieces of chopped chocolate if desired.*If you have a #40 medium cookie scoop like I do, use 1½ scoops per cookie. (For each cookie, scoop one full scoop, then combine with a half scoop (a full scoop cut in half)).
- Bake one sheet of cookies at a time for 8 minutes.
- Immediately after removing cookies from oven, place a round cookie cutter or the rim of a wide drinking glass around each baked cookie and gently swirl the edges of the cookie. This will push the cookie into a uniformly round shape.
- Cool cookies on pan for 10 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack to fully cool.
EQUIPMENT
- medium cookie scoop #40, 1.5 Tablespoons
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