If the combination of various versions of chocolate, espresso and sea salt sound intoxicating to you, proceed with caution. These cookies are quite possibly the best cookies… period.
A chewy mocha chocolate cookie flavored with espresso and filled with semi-sweet and dark chocolate chunks and then sprinkled with flaky sea salt is as close to cookie heaven as I have ever traveled and I am absolutely loving every single bite.
Let’s get these cookies started…
Begin by gathering 1 cup of butter, 1 1/4 cups of brown sugar, 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, 1 large egg, 2 large egg yolks, 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour, 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/4 cup of espresso powder, 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda, 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chunks and some flaky sea salt.
Start by melting 1 cup (2 sticks) of butter in a medium bowl. Add 1 1/4 cups of tightly pack brown sugar, 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract into the melted butter and whisk until the mixture is smooth and becomes pale in color.
Add 1 large egg and 2 egg yolks into the butter and sugar and whisk to combine.
In a large bowl, combine 2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour with 1/4 cup of espresso powder, 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda.
Now, add the butter and sugar mixture into the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
Gently fold in 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips, cover the bowl and chill the dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Once the dough has chilled, scoop golfball sized portions of dough onto parchment lined baking sheets, keeping each portion about 2 inches apart.
Bake the cookies on the center rack of a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. The cookies are done when their edges are just starting to brown, but the middle is still puffy and soft.
Transfer the baking sheets onto a cooling rack and immediately press dark chocolate chunks into the hot cookie dough and sprinkle their tops with flaky sea salt.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes. Once the cookies are set enough to pick up, transfer them directly onto a cooling rack to finish setting up.
*Note: It is perfectly acceptable to taste one (or three) prior to them cooling.
The texture of these cookies are fantastic. Chewy and thick, like the best parts of a big chocolate chip cookie and a brownie. The chocolate chips that were folded into the cookie dough are super soft and integrated into the cookies, but the dark chocolate chunks are only partially melted creating a a beautiful textural element to these fabulous cookies.
The chocolate flavors are bold, the espresso is perfect, but the sea salt that you get in each bite is my favorite part of these cookies. If you have never had sea salt on a cookie like this before, you are probably wondering just how this could be the best part of the cookie, but somehow it is. The sea salt just brings everything together in a way that cannot be copied without those flaky little crystals being sprinkled over top.
Toss a few on a plate, grab a glass of cold milk or a big mug of coffee (or both) and enjoy!!
Chocolate, Espresso & Sea Salt Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter, melted
- 1 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup espresso powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks
- flaky sea salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 cup of melted butter with 1 1/4 cups of brown sugar, 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
- Add 1 large egg and 2 large egg yolks and whisk until combined
- In a large bowl, combine 2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour with 1/4 cup of espresso powder, 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda
- Add the butter and sugar mixture into the flour mixture and mix until just combined
- Gently fold in 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
- Scoop golfball sized balls of chilled dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet keeping them 2 inches apart
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are just beginning to brown and the centers still a little soft
- Transfer the baking sheet onto a cooling rack and immediately press a few chunks of dark chocolate over each hot cookie and sprinkle with sea salt
- Serve with cold milk and enjoy!
