Caramel Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

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Cookies are a delectable treat no matter the occasion, so much so that it's likely that you already have a favorite cookie flavor. However, a hot new contender from recipe developer Katie Rosenhouse is in town — her caramel dark chocolate chip cookie. "While nothing beats a good chocolate chip cookie, it's hard to deny that stuffing the classic cookie with soft caramels and topping them with flaky sea salt doesn't just take them up one more notch," she says. 

Though the cookies are infused with soft caramel candies, the sweetness is balanced by the flaky sea salt and the dark chocolate chips' slight bitterness. The contrasting flavors in every bite make these treats stand out from the rest. "These cookies are the perfect combination of salty and sweet, making them all too easy to snack on in spite of their richness," Rosenhouse raves. Enjoy them midday, after meals, or late at night — it doesn't matter when, these cookies always deliver chewy, gooey goodness.

Check your pantry to see if you have the ingredients needed to make these cookies. If not, you can purchase them before beginning your baking session. For this recipe, you'll need unsalted butter, dark brown sugar, granulated sugar, a large egg, vanilla bean paste or extract, all-purpose flour, kosher salt, baking powder, and baking soda. It also requires dark chocolate chips, soft caramel candies, and flaky sea salt.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until combined.

Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth.

Pause the beating and add the flour, kosher salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Beat until just combined.

Fold in ¾ cup chocolate chips.

Scoop 15 2-inch mounds of dough onto one of the baking sheets. (Optional: Chill for 1 hour or overnight for easier stuffing.)

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Flatten each mound of dough and place a whole soft caramel candy in the middle.

Cover the candy with the dough and roll each cookie to seal in the candy.

Divide the stuffed cookies between the two lined baking sheets, spacing the cookies at least 2 inches apart.

Press the chopped caramel candies, remaining ¼ cup chocolate chips, and flaky sea salt onto the tops of the cookies.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until the edges are set but the centers are still slightly underbaked.

Drizzle additional caramel and/or melted chocolate over cookies if desired.

Let the cookies cool slightly, then serve warm.

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When it comes to choosing chocolate chips for baking cookies, the best type varies and is determined by your personal preferences. Rosenhouse says, "Depending on how you'd like your chocolate chip cookies to look, taste, and feel, you can choose your favorite chocolate accordingly." For example, if you want whole chocolate pieces in every bite, chocolate chips are the way to go because they contain stabilizers that keep their shape as they bake. On the other hand, if you want to enhance the ooey gooeyness, get a chocolate bar and chop it up. Bars have higher amounts of cocoa butter and will yield more "melty, puddle-like areas throughout the baked cookies," Rosenhouse explains. You can also opt for a combo of both in your cookies instead.

Don't forget to consider sweetness when choosing the chocolate. They come in a range of chocolate percentages, and the higher the percentage, the more bitter it is. You can select chocolate with a percentage on the label to start, though 60 to 70% will give you balanced sweetness and a deep chocolate flavor. Whatever you get, "always go for chocolate you'd be happy to snack on," Rosenhouse advises.

The idea of storing leftover cookies might be incomprehensible to some people, but if you find yourself with a few too many cookies to finish in one sitting, here's how to keep them fresh. Place them in an airtight container with parchment paper in between the stacked layers to prevent sticking, and keep at room temperature for up to two days or in the freezer for no more than two months. If you choose to freeze them, bring them to room temperature or warm them up slightly before serving to get the cookie's signature gooey caramel center.

If you don't want to bake all the cookies at once or prefer to make the dough in advance, you could store the unbaked dough to have cookies somewhat on demand. Just scoop the dough, wrap it tightly, and leave it in the refrigerator for up to two days before stuffing and baking. Alternatively, you can freeze the stuffed cookie dough until firm, then transfer to a zip-top freezer bag and freeze for up to two months. There's no need to bring the frozen dough back to room temperature before baking. Just bake it frozen, but add a few extra minutes to the bake time as needed until they are golden and set.

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