These cookies need no mixer: the butter is melted instead of creamed, and everything else is stirred by hand in a large bowl with a wooden spoon, in about five minutes. After half an hour in the fridge and 11 minutes in the oven, you get about 20 chocolate chip cookies with golden edges and soft, chewy centers.

Why melted butter makes a chewy cookie

Most recipes cream soft butter with sugar in a mixer. Creaming beats air bubbles into the dough, so the cookie rises in the oven and comes out light, a little like cake. Melted butter holds no air, so the dough is denser and the cookie bakes flatter and chewier.

Sugar matters too. Brown sugar contains molasses, which holds moisture, so this recipe uses twice as much brown sugar as white. The extra yolk adds fat and keeps the center soft a day after baking.

Baking with kids

Without a mixer there is no noise and no blades, and kids can do nearly everything themselves: crack the eggs, stir, and pour in the chocolate chips. Melt the butter ahead and let it cool for a few minutes, so the eggs do not cook when they hit the bowl. Adults handle the oven.

Do not skip the half hour in the fridge. Melted-butter dough is very soft, and without chilling the cookies spread across the tray and bake thin and brittle. If you want to bake the next day, the dough keeps in the fridge for up to two days.

For a class party or a birthday, there is also a chocolate sheet cake for 30 kids.

Chocolate Chip Cookies Without a Mixer

Chewy chocolate chip cookies made with melted butter and stirred by hand with a wooden spoon, no mixer needed.

Chocolate Chip Cookies Without a Mixer
Servings: 20 cookiesPrep time: 15 minCook time: 11 minTotal time: 56 min

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup / 170 g butter (melted and slightly cooled)
  • 1 cup / 200 g brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup / 100 g white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 cups / 280 g all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 7 oz / 200 g chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Melt the butter in the microwave in a large bowl and let it cool for 5 minutes.

  2. Add the brown and white sugar and stir with a wooden spoon until evenly combined.

  3. Add the egg, the yolk and the vanilla and stir for one minute, until the mixture turns glossy.

  4. Add the flour, baking soda and salt and stir only until no dry flour is visible. Stir in the chocolate chips.

  5. Cover the bowl and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

  6. Heat the oven to 350°F / 180°C and line two trays with parchment paper.

  7. Scoop heaped tablespoons of dough onto the trays, 2 inches / 5 cm apart.

  8. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes, until the edges are golden and the centers are still soft. Cool on the tray for 10 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use a hand whisk?
Yes. A whisk helps combine the butter, sugar and eggs, and then you fold in the flour with a spoon or spatula.

Why are my chocolate chip cookies too flat?
Usually the butter was too hot or the dough was not chilled. Cool the butter before adding the eggs, and chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.

How do I know the cookies are done?
The edges are golden and the center still looks soft. The cookies set as they cool on the tray.

How long do the cookies keep?
Up to five days in a closed container at room temperature.