Combining two of everyone’s favourite treats, these Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies will soon become your favourite go-to dessert bar. Rich, chocolatey brownie batter gets baked with dollops of chocolate chip cookie dough, resulting in a fudge brownie with a twist of chewy cookie on top. What could be more perfect?!
When you think of two childhood favourite bakes, nostalgia-filled memories of delicious desserts, or your current favourite comfort foods, then brownies and cookies will more often than not hit those lists. They certainly do mine! I adore most brownies, but Lotus Biscoff Blondies, S'mores Brownies, Salted Caramel Brownies, or even Dark Chocolate Blondies are right up there on the enjoyment scale of desserts to devour!
Today, I bring you the best of both worlds in a bar that combines both fudgy brownies AND chewy chocolate chip cookies. This magical creation comes from the brownie master himself, Mike, of Mike Bakes NYC.
I've followed Mike since the very start of this new career path, and it soon became apparent to me that this guy knows exactly what's what when it comes to accessible, comforting, approachable sweet treats and desserts for the home baker.
When it comes to Brownies, Mike knows a thing or two. I mean, he’s even written (developed, styled, AND photographed, I might add) a cookbook dedicated to brownies, Even Better Brownies. And it's from this book that this Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies recipe comes.
His book is filled with not just brownie recipes, though, but any slice, bar, and traybake that you can imagine resulting in a collection of drool-worthy recipes. I urge you to buy yourself a copy pronto!
I’ve also reviewed two other recipes from cookbooks created by my talented baking friends. There is the Apple Cider Chocolate Pecan Toffee recipe by Sabine of Also The Crumbs and Gluten-free Pear Hazelnut and Olive Oil Cake recipe by Kelsey for The Farmer's Daughter. Both cookbooks are fabulous and worth purchasing.
Jump to:
Why you'll love this recipe
- Combines two of your favourite desserts. What can be better than brownies and cookies in one dessert? Um.none!
- Uses basic ingredients. It may look like there are a lot of ingredients, but many cross over, and you'll most likely have all of them in your fridge or pantry.
- No stand mixer is required. Got to love a dessert where you don't need to pull out the weighty stand mixer.
- Simple to put together. Once the two components are made, the brownie batter and cookie dough, it takes a sec to combine the two before baking
Ingredients needed
For the chocolate chip cookie batter
- Butter - unsalted, always and at room temperature so that it can be beaten and volume created.
- Granulated sugar and brown sugar - both types of sugar for sweetness and depth of flavour. The molasses in the brown sugar gives the cookies that chewy factor.
- Egg - Just the one to bind the ingredients together.
- Vanilla extract - extract or paste can be used to provide extra sweetness and flavour.
- Plain flour, baking soda, and salt - All-purpose flour and baking soda are used in combination to provide a soft cookie that has the ability to spread on top of the brownie. Salt is always necessary to season.
- Chocolate chips - I used milk, but dark chocolate chips work just as well.
For the brownie batter
- Butter - Again, unsalted is used so that the amount of salt in the recipe can be controlled. It can be cold butter as it gets melted.
- Dark Chocolate - 60% dark chocolate is what Mike suggests, but anything between 60% to 90% will work beautifully. It depends on your personal preference. I went for 70% as it imparts richness, but it's not overly bitter.
- Light brown sugar - This is used instead of granulated sugar as the slight molasses imparts moisture and helps with the fudginess but the crystals are still fine enough for the sugar to dissolve into the batter.
- Eggs - The eggs add the perfect amount of moisture but also act as a leavening agent.
- Vanilla extract - Layering flavour within the brownie is always important.
- Plain flour and cocoa powder - Just the right amount of all-purpose flour. Too much and the brownie becomes cakey. The cocoa powder accentuates the depths of the chocolate throughout.
- Baking powder - The baking powder helps the batter rise, but with all the butter, chocolate, sugar, and eggs, it still remains truly fudgy and luxurious!
Step-by-step instructions
*Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full ingredients list & instructions!*
You may be sitting there thinking, is going to take ages to make as I have to make both brownies and cookies. The answer is no. Each component of these Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies is quick and easy to make. Firstly the cookie batter gets made, and whilst that chills, you can pull together the brownie batter. The most time spent is watching the oven, willing these Chocolate Chip Brownie Cookies to bake faster!
Chocolate Chip Cookie dough
- Prepare pan and beat sugar and butter together. First up is to grease and line with parchment paper a rectangular 23 x 33cm (9 x 13-inch) baking pan (and Mike recommends greasing the paper). (Image 1) From there, in a medium mixing bowl, add the butter and sugars and beat with hand-held electric beaters until light and fluffy and pale in colour. This takes about five minutes, ok? Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl halfway through. You’ll really see the colour change the longer you beat. (Image 2 & 3)
- Add the egg and vanilla. Add the egg and vanilla and beat again until it's all mixed in. (Image 4)
3. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips. You can put away the beaters now as the dry ingredients get added and mixed in with a rubber spatular (or wooden spoon). I saved a tablespoon of chocolate chips to the side to sprinkle on top later. But this is my variation on the method. (Image 5 & 6) Once all mixed in, refrigerate the cookie dough while making the brownie batter.
Chocolate Brownie batter
1. Melt butter and chocolate together. You can use a microwave or bain marie here. If using a microwave, then add ingredients to a medium microwave-safe bowl and melt, stirring at 30-second intervals until fully melted. If using a bain marie, place heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, ensuring the bowl does not come into contact with the water. Stir chocolate and butter until fully melted. (Image 7 & 8)
2. Add in sugar and vanilla extract and mix. Whilst the chocolate is warm, add in the light brown sugar and vanilla extract and mix until incorporated. Add it in when the chocolate is warm will help start the sugar to dissolve. (Image 9)
3. Whisk eggs and add. We need to break down the eggs and get some air into them. So in a small bowl, add the eggs and whisk until foamy. You can use the hand-held electric beaters or do it by hand. With is fine. Then add the eggs to the chocolate mixture and stir until combined. (Image 10)
4. Add dry ingredients. Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder and give it a mix together until just combined. Don’t over-mix! (Image 11 & 12)
Assemble and bake
Now the fun part!
1. Pour brownie batter into pan. Pour all that gooey brownie batter into your pan and level it off with the rubber spatula. It smells so good at this point. Try not to lick the bowl!! (Image 13)
2. Add cookie dough and bake. Take the cookie dough out of the fridge and dollop spoonfuls randomly over the top of the brownie batter. (Image 14) You'll have some cookie dough leftover. Cookies ... bonus! Scatter the chocolate chips all over (if you set any aside as I did), and then bake.
TIP: Cover with foil midway.
Mike suggests covering the brownies if they're browning too quickly. I checked them at the 25-minute mark, but I think I should have covered them around the 15-minute mark as they still browned a little too much.) My oven runs hot, so my mistake. It didn't affect the taste, though- it was more for the photographs!!
TIP: Watch the bake time
Every oven temperature runs slightly differently. You don't want to overbake these, so check them at 35 mins into baking, then check every couple of minutes after that. You want the sides to be set, but there should be a slight jiggle in the middle. Remember, the brownie cookie bar will continue to bake and set when out of the oven until it cools down.
3. Slice and eat! When you pull the Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies from the oven, you have two choices. Enjoy warm when it's all gooey, or show restraint, let them cool completely, slice into neat squares and then eat.
(Needing to photograph these made me go for option two, but I tell you, it took all the willpower in the world not to dig right in.) Note: I sprinkled some flaked sea salt on the top as I always do this with cookies. Mike doesn’t do this, so you do you!
TIP: Cutting neat slices.
To get those beautiful, clean, neat edges, there are a couple of tips to achieve this. Cool the brownie right down in the pan and then refrigerate. Use a long, sharp knife dipped in hot water, dried, and sliced into the brownies. Wipe the blade clean, then repeat the process of dipping in hot water, drying and cutting for every slice.
Pro tips
- Don't over-brown the cookie. Cover the pan with foil about 15 minutes into the baking time so as not to brown the cookies too much.
- Watch the bake time. Err on the side of caution when you bake these. Check on them at the 35-minute mark and continue baking from there. You don't want to overbake these otherwise, they'll go from fudgy to cakey brownies.
- Cut neat slices. To get those photogenic, neat slices, cool the brownie completely, refrigerate and cut with a clean, hot knife.
Variations
To be fair, there really isn’t anything that I would change about this Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies recipe as it's delicious just the way it is. Mike uses dark chocolate chips, I didn’t have any in the pantry, and it was just as delicious with milk chocolate. Here are some suggestions for what you could add to the recipe if you wanted that extra extra extra cookie/brownie!!
- Pretzels: Sprinkle some chopped salted pretzels on top before baking for that extra crunch.
- Nuts: Nuts, chocolate, cookies and brownies go hand-in-hand together. Add pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, or whatever takes your fancy into the brownie batter for a nutty bite.
- Marshmallows: Mini marshmallows mixed into the cookie dough. Ok, I'm sold; I'm doing it next time!!
Frequently asked questions
These brookies, if you want to combine the two names together, aren’t actually ‘Slutty’ brownies. Slutty brownies consist of a layer of cookie dough, then a layer of oreo biscuits, and then a brownie layer on top. They were called Slutty brownies by The Londoner, and the name soon went viral, but the recipe originated from Kevin&Amanda some ten years ago.
I personally like to, as, in my view, nothing beats homemade brownies. But, that being said, if you are time-poor and have to choose which component you would make from a box mix, then go for the Brownie box mix.
After the Chocolate Chip Cookies Brownies have finished baking, then place rolled balls of cookie dough onto a baking tray, with 2 inches of space around them, and bake for 8 minutes or so, until golden around the edges and just set in the centre.
How to store and freeze
To store: Store Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 to 4 days.
To freeze: Either wrap the brownie slab as a whole or wrap individual brownie cookie bars in parchment paper. Place in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and warm in the microwave if required.
Tools you’ll need
- Medium mixing bowl: Used for mixing the cookie dough and brownie batter in.
- Hand-held Electric Mixer: Needed with the beater attachments to cream the butter and sugar together in the cookie dough recipe.
- Rectangular baking pan 23x33cm (9x13-inch) Pan: This recipe calls for quite a bit of batter and dough, so this larger baking pan size is a must.
More Chocolate recipes, that you may like
If you tried this Chocolate Chip Brownie Cookie Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please let me know how you go in the comments below. I love hearing from you. Also, please leave a star rating whilst you're there!
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📖 Recipe
Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies Recipe
Ingredients
Chocolate chip cookie dough
- 115 g unsalted butter, softened
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 55 g dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 135 g plain flour (all-purpose flour)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chocolate chips, milk or dark
Chocolate brownies
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 340 g dark chocolate 70%, chopped
- 330 g light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs
- 60 g plain flour (all-purpose)
- 40 g cocoa powder, natural or Dutch-processed
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon flaked sea salt
Instructions
For the chocolate chip cookie dough
- Prepare pan and beat sugar and butter together. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease and line a 23x33cm (9x13-inch) rectangular baking pan with parchment paper ensuring the sides over hang to create a sling to lift the brownies out with. Grease this paper too. In a medium bowl, add the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Using hand-held electric beaters, cream the butter and sugars together on high speed for up to 5 minutes, until pale and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla. Add the egg and vanilla extract into the mixing bowl and beat until combined.
- Add flour, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips. Sift in the flour and baking soda and add the salt and chocolate chips into the mixing bowl. An option is to set aside a tablespoon chocolate chips to be used to sprinkle over the top of the batter when assembling. With a rubber spatula, mix all together until just combined. Cover and refrigerate cookie dough whilst you make the brownie batter.
For the chocolate brownie batter
- Melt butter and chocolate together. In a medium mixing bowl, add the chocolate and butter and melt in the microwave, stirring at 30 second intervals.
- Add in sugar and vanilla extract and mix. Add light brown sugar and vanilla extract into the melted chocolate and mix until combined.
- Whisk eggs and add. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs until foamy. Add eggs to the chocolate mixture and stir until mixed through.
- Add dry ingredients. Sift in flour, cocoa powder and baking powder and mix until just combined and a few flour streaks remain.
To assemble
- Pour brownie batter in pan. Pour brownie batter into the prepared baking pan and level off.
- Add cookie dough and bake. Remove the cookie dough from the fridge and spoon tablespoon-sized dollops of cookie dough over the top of the brownie layer. You'll have cookie dough leftover (see Note). Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips over the top (if you set some aside earlier).Bake for 40-45 minutes. After 15 minutes of baking, cover the baking pan with foil to prevent the cookies from browning too quickly. Continue baking at the recommended time. The brownies should be set around the edges, with a slight jiggle in the middle. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan.
- Slice and eat! Allow the brownie to cool completely. Sprinkle with flaked see salt (optional). Slice, serve and enjoy.
All recipes are developed and tested in Metric grams. I strongly recommend that you bake using digital scales for a more accurate result. I have provided a conversion to US customary in the recipe but please note that I haven’t tested using this method.
Emilia
Oh wow, I cannot wait to make these Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies. They look incredible! Awesome instructions too. And thanks for sharing Mike's amazing book. Its on my list to buy!
Emma
Thanks so much Emilia. I truly hope that you make them soon xx