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This easy recipe for Chocolate Crinkle Cookies is the perfect chocolate treat. These delicious cookies, which include real chocolate and simple baking ingredients and taste just like a cookie in brownie form. They will impress for holiday parties, cookie exchanges, or as a chocolatey dessert!
Crinkle cookies are one of my favorite cookies to prepare. The ingredients in this crinkle cookie recipe are simple using flour, butter, and sugar along with real chocolate.
Roll the cookies in powdered sugar before baking to give them a “cracked” or “crinkled” look straight out of the oven. The cookies look like they are dusted with snow!
Make these cookies any time of the year, but especially for Christmas cookies. They are also great for Valentine’s Day. They only require 20 minutes of prep time and are perfect for parties, cookie exchanges, or to package up as a homemade holiday gift that everyone will enjoy.
The cookies are sometimes called brownie crinkle cookies or chocolate crinkles.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Because they are chocolate cookies with powdered sugar, it creates a snow-dusted look from the powdered sugar “cracking” on top as the cookies bake giving a beautiful presentation.
- The texture is crispy on the outside and fudgy on the inside making them taste just like a brownie in cookie form.
- These chocolate crinkle cookies use simple ingredients. You may already have all of the ingredients in your pantry!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Unsalted Butter – Helps to temper the chocolate as it’s melting to create a smooth buttery texture inside the cookie.
- Chocolate – You can use semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks to melt down. This will create the overall chocolate flavor of the cookie.
- Sugar – Sweetens up the fudgy inside of the crinkle cookie.
- Eggs – Helps to bind all of the ingredients together. They also help create a chewy center and crispy outside when cooling and setting.
- Vanilla Extract – Infuses the cookies with a light vanilla flavor that pairs well with melted chocolate.
- All-Purpose Flour – Makes up the main dry base of the cookies. Binds with the melted chocolate to create a classic cookie texture.
- Salt – Helps balance the sweet flavor in the cookies and activates the baking powder.
- Baking Powder – Gives the cookies a slight rise making them dense yet fluffy.
- Powdered Sugar (Confectioners Sugar) – A must to create the powdery crackle coating.
How To Make Homemade Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Melt the chocolate: Place a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Add the chocolate and butter and mix with a rubber spatula until all of the chocolate is evenly melted and combined with the butter. Set the bowl aside and let it cool to room temperature while preparing the remaining ingredients.
Combine the wet ingredients: Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the eggs and sugar and mix with the paddle attachment until the mixture is fluffy, thick, and pale. This should take about 5-6 minutes. Add the vanilla extract, then the cooled chocolate until everything is fully combined.
Add the dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, add the flour, salt, and baking powder together. Whisk until the mixture is fully combined, then add it to the wet ingredients and mix just until incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and add it to the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Prepare for baking: Once you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 325F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Remove the chocolate crinkle cookie dough from the fridge.
Roll in powdered sugar: Add confectioners sugar into a shallow bowl, then form the dough into 1-inch cookie dough balls. Add each cookie dough ball to the powdered sugar and fully coat. Place each sugar-coated cookie onto the prepared baking sheet 2 inches apart.
Bake and cool: Once all of the cookies are coated in powdered sugar, bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes or until the edges begin to brown. The centers of the brownie crinkle cookies should still be slightly soft. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool completely before serving.
Expert Tips
- When melting the chocolate, be sure to take it slow as melting chocolate too quickly could cause it to burn.
- Alternatively, you can also melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave in 15-30 second intervals stirring frequently until melted through.
- Cool the chocolate mixture before adding it to the butter and sugar so that it doesn’t start to cook the eggs.
- Make sure the eggs and butter start out at room temperature in order for everything to blend together smoothly.
- The center should still be soft and will set completely once fully cooled. This helps create that brownie like texture. Overbaking dries out the chocolate crinkle cookies.
Variations
- Add a Hershey kiss on top immediately after removing them from the oven for extra chocolate flavor and a different look.
- Add a pinch of cayenne and cinnamon for a hint of Mexican chocolate flavor that gives these cookies a light kick of spice.
- Colored sprinkles make a great addition to the dough allowing you to customize for any holiday or celebration.
- Add some chopped walnuts, pecans, or almonds to the cookie dough for a crunchy texture and nutty flavor.
- To change up the flavor of the chocolate crinkle cookies, try swapping out the vanilla extract for almond, maple, or butter extract.
FAQs
The best way to keep the sugar from melting is to make sure the cookies are well chilled. You can also roll them in a layer of granulated sugar before the powdered sugar to help create a barrier.
As the cookies bake, they spread out on the baking sheet. The powdered sugar doesn’t stay on the entire surface of the cookie as it spreads which creates a “cracked” effect.
Chilling the dough helps as the center will stay cool while baking until the last minute. This will cause the cookie to slightly underbake and not dry out. You also want to make sure the cookies bake at a temperature that’s no higher than 325F.
Other Chocolate Cookie Recipes
- Double Chocolate Chip Peppermint Cookies
- Stuffed Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies
- No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
- Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Did you try these Chocolate Crinkle Cookies? Leave a recipe rating and review below!
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup confectioners sugar, sifted
Instructions
- In a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, melt the chocolate and butter until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar until thick, pale and fluffy (about 5 to 6 minutes). Add the vanilla and mix to blend. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat until incorporated.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm enough to shape into balls (several hours or even overnight).
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the confectioners sugar in a shallow bowl. Form the chilled dough into 1 inch balls, then roll each ball in the sugar to coat. Coat balls completely, so that no chocolate is showing through. Place the sugar-covered balls on the prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or just until the edges are slightly firm but the centers are still soft. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe was originally published in 2015. It was updated with new tips in December 2021.
Superb! The recipe is almost too good to be true. I can totally see these crinkle cookies being a huge hit at holiday parties. My family and friends would love these. I believe every bite tastes like heaven. Plus, your directions and pictures make the recipe so easy to follow. Putting it on my list.
Ashley, thank you so much for sharing such a fab idea and all of your precious tips. I’m so glad that I came across your wonderful blog a few days ago. Got so much inspiration. I’m looking forward to your new awesome recipes. Keep up the good work!
It wouldn’t be Christmas at our house without these cookies!
Chocolate Crinkles are my favorite! And my little girls too! They’re so beautiful and always a hit! Thank you so much for the recipe.