Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
My Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft, chewy and packed with bold coffee flavor and melty chocolate chunks in every bite. The combination of espresso powder and chocolate creates the perfect balance between rich, deep flavor with just the right amount of sweetness.
They're the kind of classic chocolate chip cookie that feels just a little more grown-up-perfect for coffee lovers, afternoon pick-me-ups, or whenever you want something a little bit next level.
Jump to:
- Why You Will Love These Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies
- Ingredients
- Substitutions and Variations
- How to Make Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
- More Recipes You Will Love
- How to Store Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies
- What to Serve with Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Top Tips
- Frequently Asked Questions About Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies
- More Recipes You Will Love
- Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
I am somewhat of a Cookie Monster around here. They might be one of my most favorite desserts! Here are some of my favorite cookie recipes you must try: Cake Mix Christmas Cookies, Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies, Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies, Frosted Halloween Sugar Cookies, Lemon Blueberry Cookies and Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies.
Why You Will Love These Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies
- Bold Espresso Flavor: Espresso powder gives these cookies a rich, fragrant depth that pairs beautifully with the chocolate.
- Crisp Edges, Soft Centers: Each cookie is baked to perfection with a lightly crisp edge and chewy, gooey middles.
- Melty Chocolate Throughout: Whether you use dark chocolate chips, chopped bars or espresso chips, the flavor of chocolate really shines.
- Made with Pantry Staples: You likely have everything you need- all-purpose flour, pure vanilla extract and a good stick of unsalted butter.
- Perfect for Small Batches: This recipe makes about a dozen cookies, just right for sharing (or not).
Ingredients
With just a quick trip to the grocery store, you will be ready to make this simple recipe.
See the recipe card below for the exact quantities of each ingredient.
- All-Purpose Flour: Forms the base of the dough, giving it structure and chew.
- Espresso Powder: Adds bold espresso flavor that enhances the richness of the chocolate. We have used baking and instant espresso powder, and both work well, but the instant powder loses its flavor much faster.
- Sea Salt: Balances sweetness and deepens the overall flavor.
- Baking Soda and Baking Powder: Help the cookie dough balls spread just the right amount while still staying soft inside.
- Granulated and Light Brown Sugar: Create that ideal mix of sweet and caramelized flavor with a tender texture.
- Unsalted Butter: Adds richness and flavor-softened butter is best for creaming.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: Boosts the flavor of both the coffee and chocolate.
- Egg and Egg Yolk: Help bind the dough and give the cookies an extra tender and chewy texture.
- Chocolate Chips or Chopped Chocolate: Melt into gooey puddles with every bite; I like to use a mix of dark and semi-sweet, but you can use your preference.
For this easy recipe, you'll want to have on hand measuring cups and spoons, stand mixer with paddle attachment, mixing bowl, baking sheet, parchment paper, 3-tablespoon cookie scoop and cooling rack.
Substitutions and Variations
Want to make these your own? Try these tweaks.
- Browned Butter: Use brown butter for a richer, nuttier flavor-just let it cool to room temperature first.
- Espresso Chips: Add espresso chips in place of (or alongside) chocolate for extra coffee intensity.
- Chocolate Swap: Use milk chocolate chunks for a sweeter cookie with less bite.
- Instant Coffee/Espresso: Swap baking espresso powder for instant espresso powder or strong instant coffee in a pinch.
- Mini Version: Use a smaller cookie scoop for small batch cookies with the same bold flavor.
- Flaky Sea Salt: A pinch on the tops of the cookies brings them to the next level.
How to Make Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
This recipe comes together quickly with just one large bowl and a little mixing. Here's how to make these delicious coffee cookies.
Preheat oven to 350F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk all-purpose flour, espresso powder, sea salt, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
Add sugars and butter to your stand mixer, and cream together for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides if necessary. Add egg, yolk and pure vanilla extract and mix until just combined.
Transfer the dry ingredients into the mixer and run for one minute.
Fold in chocolate then scoop dough using a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop.
Place cookie dough balls 1 ½ -2 inches apart and add any extra chocolate to the top if desired.
Bake for 12 minutes or until edges begin to brown.
Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully (or not).
Hint: For the most precise and consistent results, weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale.
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How to Store Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies
Here are some ways to store these cookies, if you have any left!
- Room Temperature: Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days out of direct heat.
- Refrigerator: Store cookies in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
- Freezer: Freeze cookie dough balls or fully baked cookies in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
- Reheating: Warm baked cookies in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to bring back melty chocolate texture.
What to Serve with Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Desserts: Banana chocolate chip cookies, chocolate cake mix cookies, chocolate chip cookie brownie bars, vanilla cake mix cookies, apple dumplings, Rolo brownies, Halloween brownies.
- Coffee-Inspired Drinks: Peppermint mocha, caramel mocha, pumpkin cold foam, Starbucks pumpkin spice latte, eggnog espresso martini, iced pumpkin spice latte, Irish coffee, pumpkin chai latte.
- Beverages & Cocktails: Crockpot hot chocolate, pink hot chocolate, Baileys hot chocolate, spiked eggnog, spiked apple cider, eggnog martini.
Top Tips
Here are some of our best tips to help you make perfect cookies every time.
- Softened Butter: Make sure your butter is at room temperature, not melted, for the best texture.
- Don't Overbake: Pull them when the centers look slightly underdone for the perfect cookie.
- Flaky Salt: A sprinkle of flaky sea salt on the top of the cookies adds a sweet-salty pop.
- Mix-Ins: Add espresso chips or a spoonful of cocoa powder for deeper flavor.
- Freezing: Flash freezing the cookie dough balls or freeze the baked cookies as soon as they're cool to lock in the espresso flavor for longer.
Frequently Asked Questions About Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies
Do you have questions about making our chocolate chip espresso cookies?
Stick with instant espresso powder or baking espresso powder- they dissolve well and give you that concentrated flavor.
For this recipe, softened butter is best. Melted butter would change the texture and may lead to spreading; you could chill them for 60 minutes in the fridge to help with that.
Yes! Chilling helps the flavors meld and can make the cookies a bit thicker with crisp edges.
Absolutely. Use an electric hand mixer and a large mixing bowl. Use medium speed and scrape the sides of the bowl as you go.
Espresso flavor can mellow with time, boost it with extra espresso powder or swap in espresso chips for longer-lasting impact.
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Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Stand Mixer and Paddle Attachment
- Mixing Bowl
- Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper
- 3 Tablespoon Cookie Scoop
- Cooling Rack
Ingredients
- 250 grams all-purpose flour about 2 cups
- 2 tablespoon espresso powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 100 grams granulated sugar about ½ cup
- 100 grams light brown sugar about ½ cup, packed
- 1 stick butter softened, unsalted
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- ½ tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips/dark chocolate bar chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk all-purpose flour, espresso powder, sea salt, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
- Add sugars and butter to your stand mixer, and cream together for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides if necessary. Add egg, yolk and pure vanilla extract and mix until just combined.
- Transfer the dry ingredients into the mixer and run for one minute.
- Fold in chocolate then scoop dough using a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop.
- Place cookie dough balls 1 ½ -2 inches apart and add any extra chocolate to the top if desired.
- Bake for 12 minutes or until edges begin to brown.
- Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully (or not).
Notes
- For the most precise and consistent results, weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale.
- Make sure your butter is at room temperature, not melted, for the best texture.
- Pull them when the centers look slightly underdone for the perfect cookie.
- A sprinkle of flaky sea salt on the top of the cookies adds a sweet-salty pop.
- Add espresso chips or a spoonful of cocoa powder for deeper flavor.
- Flash freezing the cookie dough balls or freeze the baked cookies as soon as they're cool to lock in the espresso flavor for longer.
Nutrition
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Mmmm mmmm mmmmmm! These are so good! Loved them!
So glad to hear it! Thanks for the review.
My new favourite chocolate chip cookie! The hint of espresso was to die for and the cookies stay perfectly chewy. So good!
These are a big hit over here too. So thrilled to hear you enjoyed them. Thanks for the review.
Thank goodness the daughters are older now, or maybe not. Now I have to share these delicious cookies. None of them made it to the next day. SO GOOD!!!
That is amazing to hear. Thanks for sharing. These are really hard to share over here too. My new favorite cookie!
Coffee and Cookies! My two favorite things!! I can't wait to try these.
Hehe, you will LOVE them. We certainly do over here. Enjoy.
Just found my new favorite cookie!! Love the dark chocolate and espresso together.
They are mine too, Courtney. Thanks for sharing your experience with us!
LOVE the addition of the espresso powder! Perfect combo!
Such a game changer! Glad you loved it.
The BEST Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies I came across on the internet! Definitely making them this weekend, my hubby will love having them as a treat after his long day at work!
You will love these, Abi. They are a really big favorite over here.
These are my new favorite cookies. The added espresso powder takes a classic chocolate chip to the next level!