Chocolate Chunk Coffee Cookies

Okay I have made about 12 batches of these cookies to make sure the texture is perfect. If you’ve ever had a Cookie Time cookie put in the microwave for 30 seconds then think of that!!

This tastes like a latte flavored Cookie Time. These are golden and crunchy on the outside with a fudgey inside that is oozing dark chocolate chunks. Incredible.

It’s an incredible coffee-infused twist on a classic cookie, and perfect to enjoy with your morning brew or an afternoon pick-me-up (preferably a cup of Mugsy Coffee).

The Best things in life are free and are also Chocolate Coffee Cookies

• Bold Coffee + Chocolate Flavor: These cookies truly taste like a latte in cookie form. The strong instant coffee gives a robust coffee flavor that pairs perfectly with semi-sweet or dark chocolate.

• Perfect Texture: Crunchy, golden-brown edges with a soft and fudgy middle – the texture is spot on. The centers stay slightly chewy and moist, while the outside has a pleasant light crunch. (If you’ve ever warmed up a Cookie Time cookie, you know the vibe!)

• Simple Ingredients: No special flours or hard-to-find ingredients – just everyday baking staples. Butter, sugar, eggs, flour, etc., plus instant coffee and chocolate. You likely have most of it in your pantry.

• Easy to Make: This recipe doesn’t require a mixer or any complicated steps. It’s a one-bowl mixing situation and no chilling needed (unless you want to). From start to finish, you can have fresh cookies in under an hour.

• Coffee Lover’s Delight: Because they’re made with real coffee, these cookies have a major caffeine kick. They’re amazing as an afternoon treat with a cup of coffee (we love ours with a mug of Mugsy Coffee for an extra dose of java flavor) or as a late-night dessert with decaf.

Ingredients for chocolate coffee cookies

Here’s what you need to make these flavorful chocolate coffee cookies. Most are basic baking ingredients, with a couple of special notes:

• Instant Coffee: This is the star ingredient that gives the cookies their coffee flavor. You’ll dissolve strong instant coffee granules in a small amount of hot water to create a concentrated coffee essence. Espresso powder works great too. Using instant coffee is key because it infuses the dough without making it too wet. (If you prefer, you could use very strong brewed coffee or espresso – like a shot of Mugsy Coffee – but you’ll only need a couple of tablespoons and should reduce other liquid slightly.)

• Boiling Water: Just a small amount of boiling water is used to dissolve the coffee. This ensures there are no gritty bits and the coffee flavor distributes evenly through the dough. We want a strong coffee concentrate so the cookies pack a flavorful punch.

• Butter: Use very soft, room-temperature butter for this recipe. The butter should be extremely soft (almost beginning to melt, but not fully liquid) so it creams easily with the sugar and coffee. This helps create that fudgy, rich texture inside. (Tip: If your butter is cold, you can microwave it in short bursts until just softened – it should feel warm to the touch but not be melted into oil.)

• Brown Sugar: We use packed soft brown sugar which adds moisture, a hint of molasses flavor, and chewiness to the cookies. The brown sugar is crucial for that gooey, fudgy center. If you only have white sugar, the cookies will turn out crisper; the mix of brown and white sugar gives the best texture here.

• Vanilla Essence: A teaspoon of vanilla enhances the flavor, rounding out the sweet notes and complementing the coffee. Pure vanilla extract or essence works. It’s a small addition but makes a difference in flavor depth.

• Eggs: Two eggs provide structure and richness. They also help keep the cookies soft. Make sure your eggs are at room temperature (you can set them in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes if they’re cold) so they incorporate smoothly into the batter, especially since we’re mixing by hand.

• All-Purpose Flour: Regular plain white flour is the base of the dough. You’ll need about 3 cups. Be sure to measure it correctly (spoon and level, or use a scale) to avoid overly flat or dry cookies – too little flour and the cookies may spread too much; too much flour and they’ll be dense.

• Baking Soda: Just 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda is used as the leavening agent. It gives the cookies a bit of lift and helps create that lightly crisp edge. Ensure your baking soda is fresh (not expired) for best results, so your cookies rise properly.

• Salt: A pinch of salt in the dough balances the sweetness and enhances the chocolate and coffee flavors. Don’t skip it – just a little salt makes the cookies taste richer. You can use regular table salt or kosher salt. (Optionally, you can also sprinkle a tiny bit of flaky sea salt on top of the baked cookies for a gourmet touch, but that’s up to you!)

• Dark Chocolate: Chopped dark chocolate chunks are what make these cookies ultra-decadent. Dark chocolate (70% cacao or thereabouts) is ideal because its slight bitterness balances the sweet dough. Chop a block of dark chocolate into chunks so that you get those gooey pools of melted chocolate in the cookies. You’ll need about 1 and 1/2 cups of chopped chocolate. You can substitute with dark chocolate chips or semi-sweet chocolate chips if that’s what you have – but chunks from a quality chocolate bar really take it to the next level. (Feel free to use semi-sweet or even milk chocolate if you prefer a sweeter cookie.)

Note: All ingredient amounts and full instructions are in the recipe card below. Make sure to preheat your oven and prep your baking sheets before you start mixing the dough. Now, let’s walk through the process of making these cookies!

How to Make Chocolate Coffee Cookies

Yes Queen (or King!) it is easy! Making these chocolate coffee cookies is straightforward. You don’t even need an electric mixer – a large bowl and wooden spoon will do the job. Here’s a quick rundown of the steps:

• Preheat and Prep: Preheat your oven to 355°F (180°C) fan bake. If your oven doesn’t have a fan/convection setting, 355°F is still fine. Line two baking trays with baking paper (parchment paper) and set them aside. It’s important to start with a hot, fully preheated oven so the cookies bake evenly.

• Make the Coffee Concentrate: In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix the instant coffee with the boiling hot water. Stir until the coffee granules completely dissolve, creating a very strong coffee liquid. Let this cool for a minute or two while you start the dough (you don’t want it piping hot when adding to the butter). This concentrated coffee mixture is what will flavor the entire batch of cookies with that irresistible latte taste.

• Mix the Wet Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, cream together the softened butter, brown sugar, dissolved coffee liquid, and vanilla essence. You can use a spatula or wooden spoon – it should come together fairly easily if your butter is soft enough. The mixture might look a bit separated or weird (coffee liquid might not fully emulsify with the butter at first); don’t worry, that’s normal. Keep stirring until it’s relatively smooth.

• Add Eggs: Now add the eggs one at a time into the butter-sugar-coffee mixture. Mix well after each addition. The mixture may look a little curdled or split once the eggs are in – this is okay. It will smooth out once we add the dry ingredients. The key is to ensure the eggs are well incorporated; you’ll have a mocha-colored wet batter at this stage that smells like toffee and coffee.

• Add Dry Ingredients: Next, add the flour, baking soda, and salt into the bowl with the wet ingredients. It helps to give the dry ingredients a little pre-mix on top (to distribute the baking soda and salt) before fully stirring into the wet mixture. Using your spatula or spoon, gently combine the dry and wet ingredients. It will form a thick cookie dough. Make sure you scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so no pockets of dry flour remain. Mix just until everything is combined – overmixing can make the cookies tough. You’ll end up with a soft dough that’s slightly sticky and coffee-scented.

• Fold in Chocolate: Add the chopped dark chocolate pieces into the dough and fold them in evenly. Try not to overmix; just distribute the chunks so each cookie will have plenty of chocolate. This is my favorite part – you’ll see big chunks of chocolate studding the dough. (You can sneak a taste of the dough here – it’s delicious!)

• Scoop and Bake: Use a cookie scoop or spoon to portion out the dough onto your prepared baking trays. Aim for about 1½ to 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie (a medium cookie scoop) – you should get roughly 18 cookies total. Place them a couple inches apart as they will spread a bit. If you want those bakery-style pools of chocolate on top, you can press a few extra chocolate chunks into the tops of the dough balls now. Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 10–12 minutes. Tip: Because you have two trays, swap their positions halfway through baking and/or rotate them if your oven has hot spots, to ensure even baking. The cookies are done when the edges are golden brown but the centers still look a touch soft and slightly underbaked – this yields the best soft texture once cooled.

• Cool and Enjoy: Remove the baking trays from the oven and let the cookies cool on the trays for about 10 minutes. They will be very soft coming out of the oven and will firm up as they cool. After 10 minutes, transfer the cookies to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling (this prevents the bottoms from getting too brown or soggy).

Tips for the Best Chocolate Coffee Cookies

Follow these handy tips to ensure your cookies turn out bakery-quality every time:

• Use Quality Instant Coffee: The coffee flavor is front-and-center, so use a good instant coffee or espresso powder that you enjoy the taste of. A strong dark roast instant will give a richer flavor. Make sure it’s fully dissolved in the least amount of water possible so you get max flavor without excess liquid. (If using brewed espresso, use very little as noted, since too much liquid could make the dough too wet.)

• Properly Softened Butter: Plan ahead to have your butter very soft. Or if using a stick of butter, wear jeans and put the stick in your pocket! It will soften super quick!

• Measure Flour Correctly: Too little or too much flour can make or break cookies.

• Don’t Overmix the Dough: Once you add the flour, mix just until everything is incorporated and you don’t see dry streaks. Overmixing develops gluten, which can make the cookies tougher and less tender. Also, too much mixing can break down the coffee granules flavor or melt the chocolate prematurely. Mix until combined and then stop.

• Even-Sized Cookies: Use a cookie scoop to portion the dough evenly. This ensures all cookies bake at the same rate. If you don’t have a scoop, use a heaped tablespoon and try to roll the dough into similar-sized balls. Consistent size = consistent baking.

• Watch the Bake Time: These cookies can go from perfect to overdone quickly. Bake until the edges are just turning golden and the centers still look soft.

• Let Them Cool (sorry): Allowing the cookies to cool on the tray for 10 minutes is important. They finish baking from residual heat and firm up enough to move without breaking. If you try to move them too soon, they might fall apart.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do these chocolate coffee cookies contain caffeine?

Yes, since we add instant coffee (or espresso) to the dough, these cookies do contain a bit of caffeine. It’s roughly equivalent to the amount in a cup of coffee divided across the batch. In practical terms, eating one cookie won’t give you a huge jolt, but you may get a subtle caffeine boost. The stronger the coffee you use, the more caffeine – so using decaf instant coffee is an option if you want to make them caffeine-free.

Can I use brewed coffee or espresso instead of instant coffee?

It’s best to use instant coffee or espresso powder because it provides a concentrated flavor without excess liquid. However, you can use very strong brewed coffee or a shot of espresso in a pinch. If doing so, use only 2–3 tablespoons of brewed coffee (very concentrated) in place of the instant coffee + water mixture. Too much liquid can make the dough too thin, so compensate by maybe adding an extra tablespoon of flour. Another idea is to use finely ground coffee (like espresso grind) – you could mix a teaspoon of it into the flour (the texture will be slightly gritty, though).

How should I store the cookies and how long do they stay fresh?

Store your chocolate coffee cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They will stay soft and fresh for about 3–4 days. After that, they begin to dry out a bit (if they last that long without being eaten!).

Can I freeze these cookies (or the dough)?

Yes! These cookies freeze very well. For baked cookies: once they are completely cooled, place them in a freezer-safe zip-top bag or container (separate layers with parchment to prevent sticking) and freeze for up to 3 months. You can thaw cookies at room temp for 15–20 minutes or give them a quick 15-second microwave zap to warm them. For the dough: you can scoop the dough into balls and freeze the unbaked dough balls on a tray until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag.

Can I use chocolate chips instead of chopping a chocolate bar?

Absolutely. If you don’t have a block of dark chocolate to chop, you can use chocolate chips (semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips would be ideal). Use about 1 ½ cups of chips, same as the chunks. The cookies will still be delicious. The main difference is that chopped chocolate tends to create those melty puddles and layers of chocolate throughout the cookie, whereas chips hold their shape more.

Should I sprinkle salt on top of these cookies?

This is totally optional, but highly recommended if you like a sweet-salty contrast. A light sprinkle of flaky sea salt on top of the cookies right after they come out of the oven can elevate the flavors.

What’s the best way to serve chocolate coffee cookies?

These cookies are fantastic all on their own, but serving them with a beverage or extra treat can make them even more enjoyable. Naturally, a cup of coffee is the perfect pairing – dunking a corner of the cookie into a hot coffee is heavenly (coffee dunked in coffee, why not!).

More Cookie Recipes to Try

If you love these chocolate coffee cookies, you might also want to try some of our other popular cookie recipes:

• Chocolate Chip Cookies – A classic soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe (no chilling required!). This is the ultimate best chocolate chip cookie that’s dense, sweet, and perfect served warm with a scoop of ice cream.

• Chocolate Chip Macadamia Cookies – A fun twist on the classic chocolate chip cookie. Toasted macadamia nuts add a roasty, toasty flavor and satisfying crunch to each bite. This easy recipe is a great weekend baking project when you’re craving something a little different from the norm.

Each of these recipes has its own unique spin, but they all deliver on big flavor and that homemade comfort we love. Happy baking, and enjoy your cookies!

Chocolate Coffee Cookies

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Yield: 18

Author: Paige

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 12 MinInactive time: 10 MinTotal time: 32 Min

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Ingredients

Chocolate Coffee Cookies

• 1/3 cup strong instant coffee
• 2 tablespoons water, boiling hot
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups soft brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 3 cups plain white flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 1 1/2 cups dark chocolate, chopped

Instructions

Chocolate Coffee Cookies

1. Preheat oven to 355 F fan bake. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
2. In a small bowl or measuring cup mix water & coffee. Dissolve all coffee.
3. In a large bowl mix the butter, coffee liquid, sugar, and vanilla essence using a spatula or wooden spoon.
4. Mix eggs into your butter mixture. It should be a smooth texture and don’t worry if the mixture looks split.
5. Add flour, baking soda, and salt to the bowl. Give the dry ingredients a little stir on top first.
6. Using the same spatula or wooden spoon fully mix the dry and wet ingredients until completely combined.
7. Using a cookie scoop, portion your dough onto your baking trays.
8. Place in the oven for approx. 10 - 12 minutes (depends on your oven). Because you are making two trays make sure you take any hot spots in your oven into consideration!
9. Let cool on trays for 10 minutes. Move to cooling rack!
10. Extremely tasty with a cup of coffee….ironic.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

335

Fat

17 g

Sat. Fat

10 g

Carbs

41 g

Fiber

2 g

Net carbs

39 g

Sugar

18 g

Protein

5 g

Sodium

145 mg

Cholesterol

46 mg

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