Chocolate and coffee lovers alike will adore this Chocolate Espresso Cookie Recipe!
If there’s one thing the culinary world should agree on, it’s that chocolate and coffee are a match made in heaven. And these espresso chocolate cookies marry those two flavors in a delightful way. They’re kind of like a mocha latte in cookie form.
They only require 11 ingredients, and are a cinch to pull off.
So grab your apron, and let’s make some chewy chocolate espresso cookies!
Video Tutorial
Here’s a video overview of the recipe in case you’re a visual learner. The full written tutorial and printable recipe are below!
Ingredient Notes
Before we begin, let’s go over the simple ingredients you’ll need:
- All Purpose Flour: I use organic unbleached all-purpose flour, but I’m sure whatever all-purpose flour you have on hand will work here!
- Baking soda: This helps to give the cookies a little more “fluff.”
- Salt: I use unrefined sea salt, so if you use regular table salt you may want to reduce the amount slightly.
- Cocoa Powder: My favorite cocoa powder is by Equal Exchange. Saco Conscious Kitchen is also nice.
- Instant Espresso Powder: I’ll discuss this in more detail below. You could also use regular instant coffee if that’s all you can find. The coffee flavor will just be slightly different. DO NOT use espresso grounds since instant espresso is made entirely differently. These cookies have quite a strong espresso flavor, so if you prefer a milder coffee flavor you may want to reduce the amount a bit.
- Butter: I used unsalted butter to test this recipe, so you’ll want to reduce the salt by 1/2 teaspoon if you use salted butter.
- Brown Sugar: This helps to keep the cookies soft. I used light brown sugar to test this recipe, but I’m sure you could use dark brown sugar in a pinch.
- Granulated Sugar: This will help the cookies to spread properly. I use organic granulated cane sugar, but I’m sure white sugar will work as well.
- Eggs: You’ll be using one whole egg plus one yolk in this recipe.
- Vanilla Extract: Please use pure vanilla extract, not imitation vanilla flavoring!
- Chocolate Chips: Since you’re using chocolate in two places, these are technically double chocolate espresso cookies! You’ll be using a scant 10 ounce bag, or 1 1/2 cups. I like dark chocolate chips or at the very least bittersweet chocolate, but use whatever is your favorite cookie chip!
Now, I could not find any organic, fair trade instant espresso powder, only instant espresso granules. So I ground the granules into a powder using a mortar and pestle. I’m sure you could also use a blender or blade grinder to accomplish this.
Civilized Coffee makes a direct trade, non certified organic espresso powder. I have not personally tried it, but that’s an option that you wouldn’t have to grind!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Of course you’re going to start by preheating your oven to 350° F (177° C). Then line a heavy duty baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Whisk the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, cocoa powder, and espresso powder) in a medium bowl until very well combined.
I like to use a kitchen scale to measure out the flour, but I included cup measurements in the recipe as well.
Next, in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy. This should take around 3 minutes.
You could also do this step in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer.
Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract.
Beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl if it seems like parts of the batter are sticking to the sides and not getting mixed in properly.
Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture.
With the mixer on low speed, beat just until combined.
Finally, add the chocolate chips and beat again just until combined. You could also do this step with a spatula or wooden spoon.
Baking the Cookies
Using a cookie scoop (or spring loaded ice-cream scoop) or two spoons, portion out 1 1/2 to 2-inch balls of cookie dough onto the prepared cookie sheet. Make sure to leave at least 2 inches between the cookies to allow room to spread.
Cooling
Bake until the cookies are dry and set around the edges, but still soft in the center.
Allow to cool on the baking sheet on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
If you like an extra salty cookie, you could sprinkle some flaky sea salt on top while they’re still warm.
Transfer the cookies directly to the wire rack to finish cooling.
Serving
My forever bias will be to serve fresh-from-the-oven cookies with a glass of cold milk.
But of course these pair really well with a classic latte or even a matcha latte.
And I know this sounds a bit strange, but I like to spread these with peanut butter. So good.
Storing
According to the USDA, it’s safe to store homemade cookies at room temperature for 2-3 weeks. However, for the best flavor I personally try to store them for on about 3-5 days at room temperature.
Another option is to portion out scoops of cookie dough into an airtight container, and store in the refrigerator. Then you can easily pop the cookie dough balls into the oven to bake off fresh cookies every day!
The USDA recommends that you store homemade cookie dough in the refrigerator for up to 2-4 days.
Freezing
You can store the baked cookies in a freezer safe zipper top bag (or another freezer safe airtight container) for about 6-8 weeks. Obviously you’ll want to thaw them before serving.
Another option is to freeze uncooked balls of dough. Then you can bake from frozen, and just add a few extra minutes of baking time. You could also thaw the dough first, though it isn’t necessary.
Does espresso powder make chocolate taste better?
Okay, we’re getting into some serious opinion territory here! Espresso powder can deepen and enhance the flavor of chocolate in baking. However, if you really dislike the flavor of coffee, you’re probably not going to appreciate an overly coffee forward chocolate cookie.
For me personally, I really like the added depth of flavor that coffee adds. But sometimes I want a more clean, pure chocolate flavor if that makes sense. So it depends on how I’m feeling!
More Chocolate Desserts:
Recipe Card
Chocolate Espresso Cookie Recipe
These decadent espresso chocolate cookies are the perfect treat for coffee and chocolate lovers!
Ingredients
- 2 cups (280 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 7 teaspoons instant espresso powder (see note)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons unrefined sea salt (see note)
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup (2 sticks, 227 grams) unsalted butter (see note)
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 whole egg + 1 yolk
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups (a scant 10 ounce bag) chocolate chips (see note)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 C). Line a heavy duty baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the 2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, 7 tsp espresso powder, 1 1/2 tsp salt, and 3/4 tsp baking soda.
- Place the 2 sticks of butter, 3/4 cup brown sugar, and 3/4 cup granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until well combined and light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the egg and yolk and 1 tablespoon of vanilla. Beat again until well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl if needed.
- Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed just until combined. Add the chocolate chips and beat again on low speed just until combined.
- Portion out 1 1/2 to 2-inch balls of dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Space them at least 2 inches apart.
- Bake in preheated oven for 10-13 minutes, or until the edges are set, but the center still looks a bit unset.
- Cool on the pan (placed on a wire rack) for 10 minutes before transferring directly to the rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- Espresso Powder: This amount makes for quite a coffee forward flavor. If you prefer it to be more subtle, you could reduce the amount.
- Salt: If you use table salt instead, reduce the amount slightly.
- Butter: If you want to use salted butter instead, reduce the amount of salt by 1/2 teaspoon.
- Chocolate Chips: I like to use dark chocolate chips, but you can use whichever are your favorite for cookies!
- Freezing: You can freeze balls of dough, and then bake them off whenever you like! Simply add a few more minutes to the baking time.