Cinnamon-Nutmeg Spiced Chocolate Chunk Cookies
The addition of Mexican-inspired spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and cayenne (yes, cayenne!) add a tiny bit of savory warmth to these homemade chocolate chunk cookies! For best results, cover and chill the prepared cookie dough balls for at least 2 hours or overnight before baking. You’ll be rewarded with chewy cookies with crispy edges, dotted with chunks of chocolate. Recipes yields 36 cookies.
Ingredients
- 226 grams unsalted butter, room temperature (1 cup)
- 200 grams dark brown sugar
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs (large)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla (the good stuff)
- 240 grams all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon diamond crystal kosher salt (use half of another brand)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- ⅛ teaspoon whole nutmeg (freshly grated, always)
- 8 oz semi sweet or dark chocolate bar (hand chopped)
- 3 tablespoons flaky salt (for finishing)
Instructions
- Mix the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, cayenne, and nutmeg together in a bowl and set aside.
- Chop the chocolate into roughly ¼" pieces. Reserve ⅓ cup in a separate bowl for topping cookies. Set aside.
- Cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy in the bowl of an electric mixer, approximately 3-5 minutes, scraping down the bowl at least twice in the middle and again at the end.
- Add the eggs one at a time, allowing the first one to incorporate (60 seconds at medium-high speed) and scraping down the bowl before adding the second along with the vanilla. Beat well for 60 seconds, then scrape down the bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients in two batches, stirring on low speed between additions. When just a few streaks of flour remain, stir in the chocolate chunks. Stop mixing as soon as the flour is incorporated and the chunks are evenly distributed. DO NOT OVER MIX.
- Use a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop to drop rounds of cookie dough on to a lined quarter sheet pan in tight rows. Scrape the scoop flat against the rim of the bowl to get dough balls with domed tops and flat bottoms. For chocolate puddles, press reserved chocolate chunks into the tops of the soft cookie dough balls. Then cover and chill at least 2 hours or overnight before baking.
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Arrange 6 cookie dough balls on a sheet pan with plenty of room to spread out. (To test how much the cookie dough will spread in the oven, you can bake just one or two cookies on a sheet before doing the rest of the batch.)
- Bake for 9-10 minutes, until lightly browned around the edges. The centers of the cookies may seem bubbly or not fully set. That’s okay! They’ll set up when they cool. Sprinkle immediately with flaky salt and (optional) use a large circle cutter to scoot the cookies into perfectly round shapes. Let cool 5 minutes on the sheet pan before transferring to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.
Adding the dry ingredients in two stages prevents you from getting a cloud of flour to the face when you start the mixer again and prevents over mixing. You're welcome.
The shape and temperature of your dough balls changes the way the cookies will bake. You want nice domed cookie balls with flat bottoms and round tops. Don't roll the dough into round balls or flatten them into discs before baking. Leave the dough balls in the fridge until ready to bake.
RECIPE NOTES
- There's a reason I took the time to write "scrape down the bowl" as often as I did — this isn't a suggestion! It can really change the way your ingredients incorporate. I know it can be tedious, but it's worth taking the time.
- If you have arthritis or stirring by hand is difficult, you can use your mixer to stir in the chocolate chunks; just keep it on low speed and don't over mix.
- Depending on the placement of your oven racks and the accuracy of your oven temperature, you may need 9 minutes or you may need up to 10 minutes. The nice thing about this recipe is you can only bake about 6 cookies at a time, so you can use the first batch to figure out just how long they need. The last batch I made was perfect at 9 and a half minutes.
- Loosely adapted from Mark Bittman's How to Bake Everything.
- Storage: Store in an airtight container (I usually use a large gallon bag) for up to 3 weeks. You can also store baked cookies in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
- To freeze: Scoop chocolate chunk cookie dough balls onto a lined sheet pan, place in the freezer for 30-60 minutes. Once frozen, transfer frozen cookie dough balls to a large freezer bag. Remove as much air from the bag as possible. Use frozen cookie dough balls within 3 months for best results, but they will stay good for 6 months or even longer. To bake from frozen: Add 2-3 minutes to the bake time to account for the colder starting temperature.