5 Tips for the Best Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies
5 Tips for the Best Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies (Plus the Recipe!)
From someone who’s baked more batches than she can count...
If there’s one recipe that lives in every baker’s heart, it’s the classic chocolate chip cookie. Soft in the center, lightly golden around the edges, perfectly chewy, and studded with melty chocolate — it’s nostalgia, comfort, and joy wrapped into one bite.
But getting that perfect cookie? That takes a little technique… and a few game-changing secrets learned over many, many delicious experiments.
Here are 5 simple tips that turn a good cookie into an unforgettable one:
1. Cream your butter + sugar properly
Don’t rush this part.
Creaming until the butter is pale and fluffy whips air into your dough — giving your cookies that bakery-style lift and soft center. Five minutes may feel long, but trust me, it’s worth every second.
2. Use high-quality ingredients
In cookies this simple, every ingredient matters.
Real butter, pure vanilla extract, and high-quality chocolate chips (or better still, chopped bars) turn the flavor from everyday “good cookie” to an exceptional "soul-level", bakery-perfect cookie. Good chocolate = maximum melty magic.
3. Don’t over mix once the flour goes in
Flour is where things get delicate.
This is the moment to show restraint. Mix too much and you’ll develop gluten — which leads to tougher, denser cookies. Fold until you don’t see dry streaks, then stop. Your texture will thank you.
4. Chill the dough
30 minutes minimum, overnight if you can manage it.
Chilling hydrates the flour and solidifies the butter but it also deepens the flavor. This is where the cookie magic (aka science) does its thing — the flour absorbs moisture for a tender, chewy texture, the sugars settle for richer caramel-y flavor, and the vanilla blooms. Your dough goes from “mixed” to bakery-level delicious.
5. Don’t bake them all the way
This is the #1 cookie mistake I see!
Pull them when the edges are set but the centers still look ever-so-slightly underdone. They’ll finish baking on the sheet. That’s how you lock in a soft, chewy center every single time.
And Now… The Recipe
As always, at Feed Your Soul we take pride in our process, our facility, our team, our products, and our mission to give back. We bake integrity into everything we do.
Here’s what you’ll need:
Ingredients
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¾ cup unsalted butter, room temp
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1 cup packed light brown sugar
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¼ cup granulated sugar
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1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, room temp
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1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
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1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
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¾ tsp baking soda
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¾ tsp kosher salt + extra for sprinkling
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1 ¼ cups semi-sweet chocolate (chips or chopped)
The Steps
1. Cream butter and both sugars for 5 minutes until pale, fluffy, and dreamy.
2. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla; mix well.
3. Fold in the flour, baking soda, and salt until just combined.
No overmixing — promise?
4. Add the chocolate and fold gently.
Cover and chill for at least 1 hour (overnight is even better).
5. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Scoop dough (about 1½ oz each) onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced 2 inches apart.
6. Bake 11–13 minutes until the edges are lightly golden and the centers still look soft.
Finish with a sprinkle of flaky salt.
7. Cool on the sheet for a few minutes… then enjoy that warm, gooey perfection.
Whether you're baking for someone you love, sharing with coworkers, or sneaking a fresh cookie for yourself (zero judgment), these classic chocolate chip cookies never disappoint.