Buttery crisp and super chocolatey, this one Chocolate Chip Cookie Bark Chocolate chip cookies are your new favorite way to eat. It’s quick and easy to make, and you don’t even need a mixer. It’s a fun salty and sweet addition to a holiday cookie tray, and makes a thoughtful homemade gift for any cookie lover. (If you want to share it too!)
Guided inspiration
My kitchen assistant, Beth, came up with the idea for today’s recipe. She was impressed by one of the packages. Tate’s Holiday Cookie Barkand brought me the idea of chocolate chip cookie bark. We experimented with a couple versions, tweaking the dough from our own Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies Hidayat Today’s recipe is the best. We then taste-tested the rest of the crew, and ended up giving it to our families at Thanksgiving. Everyone cheered (how could you not), and we knew we had to share the recipe with you ASAP!
This toffee-flavored chocolate chip cookie bark is perfect to add to a holiday cookie variety tray: it’s a cookie-candy hybrid and you won’t be able to stop eating it…!!
Cookie Bark Recipe Snapshot
- texture: With a crispy, crunchy, soft-set chocolate topping, it’s like biting into a crispy chocolate chip cookie… if that crispy cookie is dipped in melted chocolate!
- Taste: Brown sugar and melted butter give this cookie crust a toffee-like flavor. And, of course, there’s plenty of chocolate in every delicious bite.
- Convenience: This is a very easy recipe and you don’t even need a mixer. The hardest part is waiting for the chocolate to set before you can dive in!
- time: No need to chill the dough! The dough comes together quickly and cooks in about 20 minutes. Then it’s time to chill/chill a bit. From start to split meal, you’re looking at about 1 hour, 20 minutes.
Key ingredients you need and why:
- Flour: Cookie layer base.
- Baking Soda: To help spread the dough during baking, and turn that beautiful deep golden brown color.
- Salt: To balance out the sweetness.
- Melted Butter: Mixing the butter and sugar together at room temperature aerates the cookie dough, creating a softer, fluffier cookie. Since we want a flat, crispy cookie texture here, we’re using melted butter… and quite a bit of it!
- Sugar: You need both white and brown sugar for this recipe. brown sugar to taste, and white sugar to make the cookie crispy and caramelize in the oven.
- Egg Yolk: Just here for the yolk, richness and texture. Egg whites foam when beaten or beaten. We want to avoid fluff in this crispy cookie crust.
- Vanilla Extract: For taste.
- Mini Chocolate Chips: Because the dough is pressed so thin, it’s best to use mini chocolate chips. If you only have regular-sized chocolate chips, chop them roughly so that the pieces are small. Or feel free to leave them out and make a cookie layer without the chocolate chips. You will still have chocolate in each bite from the top layer.
- Semi-Sweet Chocolate: For the topping, you need 2 standard (4-ounce/113g) bars of semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, such as Ghirardelli or Baker’s brand.
In Photos: How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookie Bark
To mix the cookie dough, you need 1 bowl for the wet ingredients and 1 bowl for the dry ingredients. Mix the two separately, and then combine. Here’s a little dough:
Line a large baking sheet (12×17/13×18 inches, aka half-sheet pan) with parchment paper. Press the cookie dough into an even layer, pressing it to cover a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. This may take you a few minutes, but I promise eventually you will press it thin enough to cover the entire pan!
I like to use my hands to press it down first, and then I switch to one. Offset spatula Really getting the batter to all the edges of the pan.
Bake at 375ºF for 20 minutes. Note that we are baking at a higher temperature than most of ours. Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes While it bakes, chop your chocolate for the topping. Since we want the chocolate to melt in a smooth layer, avoid using chocolate chips, which contain stabilizers that prevent them from melting completely.
Sprinkle the chopped chocolate over the warm cookie crust, and return to the oven for 1-2 minutes to melt the chocolate.
Remove the cookie crust from the oven, and use the back of a spoon or offset spatula to cover the chocolate almost to the edges. If you want to add a little extra to the top, sprinkle it before the chocolate has a chance to set. Flaky sea salt or your favorite sprinkles. (This would also be fantastic with chopped toffee bits, like we use to top them. Peanut butter shells.)
Let the cookie crust cool on the baking sheet, then transfer the whole thing to the refrigerator to set the chocolate (takes about 30 minutes are).
Once the chocolate has set, remove it from the fridge and cut or break it into pieces. Just wait until you hear that CRISP!
Does this cookie crust stay crispy?
For a few days, yes! A cookie crust tastes best the day it’s made, but stays good for a few days afterward. We noticed that on the fourth or fifth day it started to taste a bit stale. But really, is it possible for any of this chocolate chip cookie crust to last that long? I doubt it!
Sally’s Cookie Palooza
Cookie Bark Recipe
Preparation Time: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes (including cooling)
Production: Serves 20.
Category: Cookies
Method: Baking
food: American
Description
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (191°C). Line a 12×17 inch Baking sheet With parchment paper (half sheet pan). Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Whisk together the melted butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla extract. Pour into the dry ingredients and, using a silicone spatula, mix everything until completely combined. Fold in mini chocolate chips. The dough will look very soft and greasy.
- Press the dough into the prepared pan, to an even thickness – cover the entire parchment paper-lined baking sheet. I like to use my hands to press it down first, and then I switch to one. Offset spatula Really getting the batter to all the edges of the pan. It will take a few minutes, but I promise you will eventually press it thin enough to cover the entire pan.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the top is a deep golden brown. Keep an eye on it after 15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle the chopped chocolate over the entire surface of the cookie. Return to the oven and bake for another 1-2 minutes to melt the chocolate.
- Place the pan on a cooling rack, and with an offset spatula (or the back of a spoon), spread the chocolate in an even layer over the cookie layer. Top with flaky sea salt or sprinkles, if using. Let cool for 20 minutes, then transfer the pan, still on the cooling rack, to the refrigerator, and let cool for at least 30 minutes until the chocolate is set.
- Break or cut the cookie crust into bite-sized pieces and enjoy!
- Store leftover cookie crust in an airtight container (with parchment paper between layers) at room temperature for up to 5 days. We noticed that on the fourth or fifth day it started to taste a bit stale. But really, is it possible for any of this chocolate chip cookie crust to last that long? I doubt it!
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Bark can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or in the refrigerator. After freezing and thawing, the texture will not be as crisp.
- Special tools (Affiliate Links): Baking sheets | Parchment paper | Glass mixing bowls | to explode | Silicone spatula | Offset spatula | Cooling rack
- Baking pan: It is best to use a 12×17-inch or 13×18-inch baking pan. Instead, you can try using 2 9×13-inch pans and stretching the dough between them as thinly as possible. I’m not sure about the best cooking time, but it would be short. Same oven temperature.
- Use Mini Chocolate Chips: Because the dough is pressed so thin, it’s best to use mini chocolate chips. If you only have regular-sized chocolate chips, roughly chop them into smaller pieces and add 1/2 cup chopped chocolate chips. use Or feel free to omit the chocolate chips and make a cookie layer without them. You will still have chocolate in each bite from the top layer.
- Chocolate: You need 2 standard bars (4 oz/113 g each) of semi-sweet or bittersweet baking chocolate. (Or feel free to use half chocolate and half white chocolate and swirl them together!) I like Ghirardelli, Bakers, and Guttard brands, which I find in the baking aisle of my grocery store, near the chocolate chips. Since we are melting chocolate, avoid using chocolate chips, which contain stabilizers that prevent them from melting completely.