14 Unexpected Ingredients To Switch Up Your Chocolate Chip Cookies

Raid the fridge or raid the pantry — there's ingredient inspiration right at home to update your basic chocolate chip cookie recipe. When you get an appetite for a sweet treat that's as unique as it is irresistible, there are several distinctive ingredients you can include to make cookies you want to eat down to the very last crumb. Accessible finds like crunchy snacks, spices, tea, and even cheese can seamlessly make their way into your cookie dough recipe. Here is your chance to experiment and play using common food items that are likely just steps away in your kitchen.

With my experience as a pastry cook, cheesemonger, baker, and recipe developer, I have often acted on my relentless curiosity to play with unexpected ingredients in tried-and-true recipes like cookies. Over the years, I have crafted both delicious hits and severe misses, and have learned enough to offer my suggestions that have been the most successful according to my friends, family members, coworkers, and customers, all of whom have eaten one too many of my experiments — both good and bad. Let this be motivation to find the hidden gems you'll be excited to use to update your own cookie recipes. Let's dive in!

The next time you're making spaghetti and meatballs, save a little extra Parmigiano Reggiano for the dessert course. As a certified cheese professional, I can say with curdy confidence that cheese makes an excellent addition to a chocolate chip cookie. All you need is the right kind to enhance its flavor and texture rather than muddy it all with a less-than-ideal choice.

There are a few styles I recommend for this purpose. The high salt content and brittle texture of harder Italian cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano, Piave, and Grana Padano are salty selections that can be finely grated and mixed into the dough. If I add one of these cheeses, I will halve the measurement of salt in my original recipe. You can also choose cheeses that mimic the sweeter, caramelized flavors of the sugars and butter in your cookie. Options like Mimolette, Brunost, and harder goudas aged for at least one year will have notes of toffee and butterscotch. However, if you want to throw a huge curveball, bring blue up to bat. After all, blue cheese has many uses other than for topping salads and steaks. A fudgier, nuttier blue cheese like Stilton will pair perfectly with dark chocolate chunks in the cookie dough mix.

Let the oatmeal cookies keep their raisins. For another shelf-stable option and a fun deviation from traditional dried fruit pieces, use a scoopful of freeze-dried fruit instead. Similar in certain ways to dehydrated fruit, the freeze-drying process concentrates the natural sugars present, yielding pieces that have an intensely fruity flavor. However, freeze-drying removes virtually all of the water content, while dehydrated fruit still maintains some moisture. If you aren't a fan of the chewy density of typical dehydrated products, you'll love the airy crispiness of freeze-dried varieties.

Add the fruit at the same time you mix in the chocolate chips in your dough to maintain their shape and texture. If you would prefer your dough to be gently tinted with the color of the fruit — a light pink hue with freeze-dried strawberries or a lovely lilac color with freeze-dried blueberries — there is an extra prep trick. First, pulverize a portion of the dried fruit in a food processor until finely ground and whisk that with the other dry ingredients in your recipe. Again, because there is zero moisture content, the pulverized fruit will not affect the texture of the final dough. Then, add additional whole pieces with the chocolate if you like.

We're already drizzling the condiment over scoops of ice cream, so why not share the fiery fun with other desserts? Spicy, crunchy, and rich in umami, chili crisp is a delightfully daring replacement for some of the fat in your chocolate chip cookie recipes. You can add a tablespoon of chili crisp along with the vanilla extract to your recipe.

There are many varieties of chili crisp available to purchase in the retail realm, with Sichuan-style chili crisp being a popular favorite. For another style — one that has recently become a condiment in constant use in my kitchen — savor a spoonful of salsa macha, a Mexican-style chili crisp. Some salsa macha varieties contain nuts and/or seeds. To capitalize on the texture of your chili crisp, be sure to grab a spoonful with plenty of the chili flakes and other solids that sink to the bottom of the jar; to omit the crunch factor, use only the oil. Even without the flakes, the oil still has an intense level of heat and flavor.

Don't underestimate the paste! In addition to their distinct flavors, creamy condiments like miso, tahini, and assorted nut butters bring additional moisture and tenderness to cookies. White miso has been a particular favorite cookie addition of mine, as its demurely fermented taste is subtle enough to not be an overwhelming presence but noticeable enough to be a balanced counterpart against the super-sweet sugar and slightly bitter chocolate chips. When choosing a nut butter, peanut butter will forever be a go-to selection, but I also like using almond butter and will sometimes splurge on pistachio butter for a well-deserved treat. Kudos to you if you decide to whip up a batch of homemade nut butter!

The best time to add a paste or nut butter is, naturally, along with the butter during the first step in most typical chocolate chip cookie dough recipes. You'll want to paddle the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy, ensuring that everything is whipped and evenly incorporated. Study this trick in this recipe for bakery-style peanut butter cookies.

Substituting some of the all-purpose flour in your dough for an alternative will give the cookies more character in both texture and flavor. I love using ancient grains like spelt, einkorn, sorghum, and rye. Buckwheat flour is also a fun choice with its characteristic nutty flavor. For a little sweetness and ample texture, cornmeal has it all. Even a little whole wheat flour mixed in will be enough to bring more dimension to the dough.

Be cautious regarding how much alternative flour you incorporate into the dough. Different kinds of flour will have varying protein contents and flour absorption levels compared to all-purpose. Because of this, I advise against completely replacing the all-purpose flour with a 1:1 substitution of a different kind in your basic cookie dough recipe. It's one of the most common baking mistakes to use the wrong flour. If you want to play with flour without having to alter the measurements of all the other ingredients in your recipe and risk potential disaster, replace a small amount first. As a solid starting point, substitute only ½-¾ cup of the all-purpose flour with your choice of an alternative.

Many of us have grown up with that big yellow bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips, a reliable and cost-effective option for batches upon batches of chocolate chip cookies that we gobbled up in our sugar-fueled youths when we weren't attentive to understanding nutritional content and sourcing ingredients. However, there are other chocolate brands to explore beyond the cheap chip, ones that have a clear focus on quality, sourcing, sustainability, and fair trade. Premium chocolate brands are top choices in many restaurants, bakeries, and specialty shops for use in recipes. Two such examples that I have used professionally — and can vouch for their quality — are the companies Callebaut and Valrhona. Both have expansive lines of chocolate products in different formats, from whole bars to discs to chips. If you are among those who firmly believe dark chocolate is seriously overrated, know that these brands offer plenty of sweeter, creamier options with a lower cacao percentage.

A disciplined sprinkle of salt on top of each glorious mound of cookie dough before baking does wonders for a special tasting experience. The salt you use on top of the dough should be a different product than what's used to make the dough itself. Typically, a kosher-style salt or salt with a finer crystal size is best for cookie dough as it will evenly distribute and dissolve throughout. However, a finishing salt expertly placed on top of the dough should have larger crystals for an impactful taste experience with loads of flavor and texture with each bite.

One salt variety among the many that I rely on the most and use often for finishing purposes is a flaky sea salt like Maldon. I love how its crystals reject uniformity and are imperfectly sized. Salty snowflakes! Other options you should try the next time you are baking in the kitchen are black, smoked, sel gris, fleur de sel, and Himalayan pink salt.

Where's your secret stash of snacks at home? In the pantry? In a corner cupboard? In a basket on top of the fridge? Don't wait until the late-night munchies kick in to grab them from their hiding spots so you can steal a quick bite. Textural snacks like pretzels, popcorn, and chips add a punch of salty crunch to your cookie dough recipe. For the sweetest success, stick with simply seasoned snacks —ones that only have salt rather than ones that have any kind of additional flavorings.

For a taste of childhood nostalgia, think breakfast! Take a cue from our cinnamon roll update by using a few handfuls of your favorite crisp cereal. Your choice will influence the final taste and appearance of the cookie, from chocolate and peanut butter balls of Reese's Puffs to sweet and colorful rainbows of Fruity Pebbles. In my experience, you tend to get extra pats on the back and ample giggles when using cereal with marshmallows. However, if you're watching your sugar intake, you don't need to double down on sugar. You can still play with your food by choosing a low-sugar cereal option.

Assorted herbs are abundant with fresh, floral notes that ebb and flow with their seasonal availability, a refreshing addition to any chocolate chip cookie recipe. Head to the garden and pick herbs like thyme, rosemary, basil, sage, and lavender. Finely chop them and add them along with the other dry ingredients in the recipe. If it's wintertime, or if you have limited availability of fresh herbs, try their dried counterparts for a different experience with a more concentrated flavor. While I might use a heaping tablespoon or two of fresh herbs, you'll want to minimize the amount for the dried substitution.

Spices are also on the table! The options are as endless as your own creative prowess. Spices like coriander, anise, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, and peppercorns have depth, warmth, and subtle bitterness. With those specific qualities, they are a welcoming contrast to fully embrace in a sweet, buttery cookie. For a bump of heat, use a pinch of cayenne pepper or chile powder. Stick with spices you are familiar with and already in a cozy spot in your spice cabinet, or go a step beyond the ordinary by buying a spice or two that's new and uncommon in your kitchen, like fenugreek, mahlab, or Urfa biber. Don't limit yourself to only a single spice. By playing with a custom blend of different spices, you can create a cookie that's uniquely yours.

A small splash of liqueur is all you need to add extra personality and depth of flavor to not only your cocktails but also your next batch of homemade cookies. Treated like an extract and used in teaspoon or tablespoon increments depending on how strong you wish the flavor to be, liqueurs will infuse the dough with an aromatic touch of their concentrated character.

Take your pick from a wide range of bottles. Most recently, I have been using Licor 43, which is a gorgeously golden liqueur produced in Spain with an infusion of 43 assorted Mediterranean citrus fruits and botanicals. Consider other sweet options, like using Baileys Irish Cream or amaretto. For fruitier notes, use St-Germain elderflower liqueur, Frangelico, limoncello, or Cointreau. You also have the option of making your own liqueurs completely from scratch, which is easy to do if you love using coffee liqueur. With a drizzle of this java-fueled concoction in your dough, you'll enjoy a delicious mocha sweet treat.

Use the whole gamut of nuts and seeds as your boundless playground to add heartiness and texture to your cookie dough. Mix in common nutty favorites like chopped pecans, walnuts, cashews, and peanuts for a taste of the classics. For other options, use pine nuts, pistachios, macadamia nuts, pili nuts, or hazelnuts. As for the seeds, enjoy munching on little bits and bites of pumpkin, flax, sesame, poppy, chia, or sunflower.

I prefer to lightly toast the nuts and seeds to coax out additional flavor and heighten the crunch factor. You can do this by roasting them in an even layer on a baking sheet in the oven, but there are faster methods, like browning them in a dry pan on the stovetop or using the microwave to flawlessly roast them. Whatever method you decide, be sure to completely cool them before using them in your cookie recipe, as you don't want to heat or melt the other ingredients.

Malted milk powder — what a blast from the past! This sweet and toasty ingredient made of sprouted barley, wheat flour, and dried milk creates a perfect combo with chocolate chips. When added to the dough, it will taste like a homemade cookie version of a malted milkshake or Whoppers Malted Milk Balls. Sure, this ingredient is not going to be for everyone; not a lot of kiddos I knew growing up were pumped to be handed a box of Whoppers when trick-or-treating during Halloween. Personally, I am not too enthusiastic about the flavor, though I understand how to maneuver it into a delightful dessert. However, there will be a select few individuals who will most definitely appreciate the nostalgic taste of this retro-inspired delight. Whisk a tablespoon or two of the milk powder with the other dry ingredients in your recipe, and surprise your friends and family members who you know will respect this reverent homage.

These coarse little nuggets of joy won't melt within the usual range of baking temperatures for cookies, so they maintain their crunch and have irresistible sweetness with each bite. Made by polishing large sugar crystals until they resemble rough pearls, this type of sugar is popularly sold in two different sizes: Belgian and Swedish. The Belgian variety is larger and coarser than the Swedish.

You'll need to be careful which one you choose, and how you use it, for your chocolate chip cookie dough. Due to its smaller size, the Swedish pearl may melt during baking if it is incorporated into the dough. Instead, it is best used as a garnish, pressed on top of each dough mound before baking. Alternatively, roll each mound of dough in the pearls to completely coat its exterior. The bigger Belgian pearl sugar is the best choice for actually incorporating into the dough since it will maintain shape without melting completely during the baking process.

Not that we really need any additional aromatherapy other than the heavenly scent of baking cookies in the oven at home, but if you want more, I know a way. To the tea cupboard! Incorporate different loose-leaf tea leaves into the dough to experience a subtle touch of heightened flavor and aroma. With so many varieties available, experiment with loose-leaf options you enjoy steeping and sipping. For my most successful bakes, I received the best reviews when I used Earl Grey, masala chai, matcha, and oolong.

A favorite method of mine for incorporating the tea leaves is to first finely grind them into small, digestible pieces. Individual loose-leaf teas range in size, so it's important to break them down before using them in assorted baking recipes. This can be done by hand with a mortar and pestle or get a little mechanical assistance from a food processor. Then, I like to briefly massage the ground leaves by hand into the sugar until evenly incorporated. After that, I use the sugar as directed in the cookie recipe.