Milk Chocolate Chip Cookies (2024)

Soft, chewy, tender and filled with creamy chocolate – these milk chocolate chip cookies are perfection. The cookie dough has been designed so that the flavor doesn’t overpower the milkiness of the chocolate chips and so that the cookies turn out perfectly chewy every time. Grab your milk!

I wanted to make a cookie recipe reminiscent of the cookies I gravitated towards as a child. The type of cookie that’s soft and chewy, thick enough to hold lots of chocolate chips – but thin enough that I can eat multiple cookies stacked on top of each other, buttery and sweet without being too rich, and filled with milk chocolate chips.

I know most professional bakers and chefs wouldn’t dream of baking cookies with milk chocolate chips because they feel the mellowness of the milk chocolate doesn’t offer enough contrast to buttery cookie dough. But as a child, I definitely wasn’t reaching for Ghirardelli or Lindt 70% dark chocolate and topping my cookies with sea salt flakes.

I wanted soft, buttery, tender milk chocolate chip cookies. And that is exactly what this recipe is.

Making Milk Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ok cookie lovers – let’s go through the basics.

Note that this recipe doesn’t require you to chill the cookie dough first, but I find about 30 minutes in the fridge gives slightly thicker cookies, which I enjoy.

1. If you don’t plan on chilling the dough, start by preheating the oven to 350F (180C) and lining your cookie sheets with parchment or baking mats. I didn’t want the cookie edges to be too crispy for this recipe, which is why I chose to bake these cookies at 350F instead of 375F.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Adding a touch of cornstarch helps to keep these cookies soft. Note that it’s very important to measure the flour correctly – otherwise the cookies will be too thick and can end up dry. Always whisk first, then spoon into dry measuring cups and level off the top. Or for the most accurate results, weigh using a scale.
3. Then in a large bowl, beat together the slightly softened butter, light brown sugar and granulated sugar until creamed. I prefer light brown sugar in this recipe (as opposed to dark brown sugar) because I found the dark brown sugar almost overpowered the milk chocolate. Yes – your cookies will still “work” if you use dark, I just definitely preferred light.
4. From there, beat the egg and vanilla extract into the butter mixture. The egg should be room temperature for better mixing.
5. Then mix the dry ingredients into the butter mixture. I like to always either do a few stirs by hand first, or be sure to start with the mixer on a low speed and beat about ½ of the dry ingredients in at a time. This is to prevent the flour from flying everywhere when you turn on the mixer.
6. Fold in the glorious milk chocolate chips. I like to do this by hand as I find using an electric mixer (depending on your beaters) can end up breaking up some of the chocolate chips.
7. Form the dough into balls with about 1.5 to 2 tablespoons of dough each. I used a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop and slightly overfilled it each time. Place the cookie dough balls about 1.5-2 inches apart on your lined cookie sheets. I always like to give my cookies lots of space so that the dough end up touching each other.
8. Then bake 1 sheet at a time in the middle of your oven. They’ll bake for about 9-11 minutes, or until the tops look just set. When the cookies are fresh out of the oven, I always place a few extra chips on the tops of each cookie to give the perfect cookie appearance.

Chilling and Freezing the Cookie Dough

The bowl of dough can be chilled in the fridge for up to 48 hours. Simply cover the bowl with plastic, and refrigerate. Then when ready to bake, preheat your oven and follow the baking directions. Note that if the dough is too firm to form into balls after being in the fridge, let it sit on the counter for 10 minutes first.

Cookie dough freezes beautifully – which means you can freeze the dough balls and have freshly baked cookies in no time, whenever you need your cookie fix. Simply make the dough as directed, then form the dough into balls. Place the balls in a freezer bag making sure to remove all the air and zip close. Freeze for up to 2 months. When you’re ready form warm, out of the oven cookies, preheat the oven and bake the cookie dough balls (from frozen) as directed. They’ll just need 1-2 extra minutes.

Soft, chewy and the perfect cookies for snacking – these milk chocolate chip cookies are made for milk! And if you’re looking for more chocolate chip cookie recipes, then be sure to try:

• Bakery-Style Chocolate Chip Cookies – these are big, buttery, with crispy edges, gooey centers and a hint of salt
• Double Chocolate Cookies
• Oatmeal Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars