Mega Vanilla Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies

One bowl, 10 ingredients and ready in under 25 minutes, these mega vanilla, small batch chocolate chip cookies are SO GOOD! You will love the flavor in these easy chocolate chip cookies! Bonus, they need zero rest or chill time prior to baking.
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A bunch of big cookies overlapping on a white surface.

Mega Vanilla Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookie — scream it from the rooftops because you’re about to fall in love with this cookie. This beauty has it all:

I don’t know what more we could possible want in a chocolate chip cookie.

In The Cookie Book, I devoted an entire chapter to chocolate chip cookies (crispy, chewy, brown butter, etc etc etc!) and here on DisplacedHousewife, you can see my blog-specific chocolate chip cookie recipes here!

A bunch of cookies in a white ceramic loaf pan with milk in the background.

Needless to say, I am obsessed with chocolate chip cookies!

While some of the chocolate chip cookies on my site have similar flavor profiles to some of The Cookie Book recipes, they are unique from each other unless specifically stated.

An example is this Brown Butter Muscovado Chocolate Chip Bar Cookie recipe that is in both in my cookbook and on the website — it is SO GOOD, btw!

The Baker’s Guide to Measuring Flour

One of the biggest (and most common) mistakes in baking is how we measure flour. If you find yourself without a scale, see my top tips on how to properly measure flour for the perfect amount every time!

My editor will only let me take three or four recipes from my blog and put them in my books. And 99% of the time, even those recipe have some book-specific tweaks.

All this said, this Mega Vanilla Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe can only be found on the blog!

A bunch of mega vanilla chocolate chip cookies on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper.

Many chocolate chip cookie recipes have the same ingredients but there are small details that make each recipe individual in spite of the similarities:

  • Quantities of ingredients (more butter, different flours, more leavening, vanilla (!!) etc.)
  • Baking Techniques
  • Bake Time
  • Position of the Oven Rack
  • Resting or Not Resting Cookie Dough
  • Cookie Baking Temperatures

I think this is what makes it so that I will never tire of coming up with fun, new chocolate chip cookie recipes!! The possibilities are endless and sometimes seemingly little tweaks yield huge (read: delicious) results!

A bunch of chocolate chip cookies with a small marble bowl of sea salt on a marble serving board on top of a white surface.

Brown Sugar

I love how brown sugar really plays up the caramel notes in a chocolate chip cookie. For this cookie, you can use either dark or light brown sugar and they will turn out beautifully; so use what you have on hand.

I tend to use light brown sugar for this one!

Vanilla Extract or Paste

These Small Batch Mega Vanilla Chocolate Chip Cookies were originally created in collaboration with Rodelle (love them!) using their vanilla paste. However, you can use either vanilla paste or real vanilla extract and these cookies will turn out fab either way. Promise.

All About That Chocolate!

Go with milk, semi-sweet, dark or bittersweet chocolate or a combination of all of them…use what you want or have on hand.

I love these Ghirardelli baking chips (that’s the chocolate I used in these photos) and these are my most favorite Callebaut callets. I love chocolate chips for this recipe because THEY’RE SO EASY. And this cookie is all about mega flavor with minimal effort.

HOT TIP

As soon as you decide to bake these cookies place an egg in a bowl of warm water and cut your butter into 16 equal-size pieces. If you have a microwave, you can place the butter on a microwave-safe dish and blitz it for 5 to 10 seconds on high. You don’t want it greasy or melted, just to take the cold edge off. This will bring your ingredients to room temperature as quickly as possible.

A bunch of ingredients: egg, flour, vanilla, olive oil, butter, chocolate chips, leavening and sea salt.
STEP 1: Gather your ingredients, preheat your 350F (177C) oven and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.

This cookie uses a whopping three tablespoons of dough per cookie, so leave ample room for them to spread while baking. You will end up with a large cookie, roughly between 3- to 4-inches (8- to 10-cm) in diameter. This is not an especially thick cookie (but I also won’t call it super thin?)…I think they’re just right!

I prefer the way they look when using a cookie scoop and *not* rolling the dough balls. The cookies bake up prettier this way. If they’re misshapen post bake, use the edge of your spatula to nudge them back into shape.

Watch the video above to see how I place chocolate over the tops of the dough balls to achieve the prettiest cookie.

The recipe calls for an aggressive amount of vanilla (hence the name). That, combined with the brown sugar create a very warm, caramel-y chocolate chip cookie that you are going to love!

A bunch of chocolate chip cookies overlapping on top of a white surface.

Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookie Variations

Don’t limit yourself to just chocolate chips! You can chop up candy bars (I do this every Halloween), add in some puffed rice cereal, dried tart cherries, chopped and toasted hazelnuts…

When customizing your chocolate chip cookie dough, leave out half of the chocolate chips and add in an equal amount of the new add in.

Example: For Cherry Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies you would add in 55g each of dark chocolate chips and dried cherries.

And this, my friends, is exactly why I love chocolate chip cookies. The end.

Cookies in a ceramic loaf pan with a  white background.

Cookie Equipment List

Either an Electric Stand Mixer or this is my favorite Hand-Held Mixer (it’s in all of my videos!)

Not necessary with this cookie! But here are my two go-to’s when using.

My favorite extra-large Cookie Sheets

These will let you bake more cookies at a time (make sure they’ll fit in your oven). These are restaurant grade and I love them for everything from cookies to roasting veggies and sheet-pan dinners!

This is the  3-tablespoon scoop I used for these cookies

You can also eyeball the size and use a spoon. I really like using a scoop for these cookies!

The Spatula that I use for literally EVERYTHING

The set of heat-safe Glass Bowls that I use to melt chocolate

My favorite Scale because these cookies thrive with precision

Just barely mixed cookie dough with flour still showing in a glass bowl with a wooden spoon sticking out.
STEP 2: Cream butter + sugar, add in oil, egg, vanilla, baking powder + soda and sea salt stirring until thoroughly mixed. Gently fold in the flour until barely combined and streaks of flour are still visible.
Cookie dough in a glass bowl with a white background.
STEP 3: Fold in the chocolate chips and bake for 11 minutes in the center of a 350F (177C) oven.

Storing This Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Storing Your Cookie Dough in the Fridge

The dough can be wrapped tightly, chilled in the fridge and used over several days. 

Storing Your Cookie Dough in the Freezer

If you plan on using the dough over several weeks, freeze proportioned dough balls in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet. Once frozen, stash in an airtight container. They can go straight from the freezer to the oven, adding additional bake time to bake thoroughly.

They will turn out puffier than the photos. *IF* you want them to be less puffy, let the dough balls sit on the baking sheet and come closer to room temperature before putting in the oven.

For longer freezer storage, store the dough in a lump, wrapped tightly and stashed in a freezer-safe bag. Bring close to room temperature before scooping and baking.

Five chocolate chip cookies on a white marble surface.

Can I use my mixer to make this cookie dough?

The instruction don’t use a mixer, but feel free to get in there with your mixer using the paddle attachment just as you would for any other chocolate chip cookie (if you’re feeling it).

I’ve made these many times both with and without mixer and they turn out great either way. If you don’t use a mixer, make sure you really whip up the butter and sugar until light and super fluffy.

Can I chill this cookie dough?

Yep! See note above chilling your dough in the fridge and storing in the freezer.

A close up shot of a bunch of mega vanilla chocolate chip  cookies  on top of a white surface.

GrabΒ My Favorite Cookies Tips for Perfect Cookies, make theseΒ Crinkly, Fudgy Brownie CookiesΒ (they’re so good!) or try my favorite, S’more Cookie Bars!

Don’t forget all of my favorite chocolate chip cookies (in addition to these!): Espresso ☕️ Chocolate Chip Cookies, Salted Olive Oil Chocolate Chip, Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies and DO NOT sleep on these Small Batch Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, Brown Butter Musovado Bar Cookies and get all the cookie recipes right here!

Rebecca Firth

A bunch of big cookies overlapping on a white surface.

Mega Vanilla Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies

One bowl, 10 ingredients and ready in under 25 minutes, these mega vanilla, small batch chocolate chip cookies are SO GOOD! You will love the flavor in these easy chocolate chip cookies! Bonus, they need zero rest or chill time prior to baking.
5 from 21 reviews
Print Save Rate
Prep Time: 8 minutes
Cook Time: 11 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Cookies
Keyword: Chocolate Chip Cookies, Small Batch, One Bowl, Vanilla Extract
Servings: 14 Cookies

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (210 g) light brown sugar, (packed)
  • 8 tablespoons (113 g or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, (room temperature)
  • 1 tablespoon (14 g) extra virgin olive oil ((can also use sunflower or grapeseed oil))
  • 1 large egg, (room temperature)
  • 1 tablespoon (13 g) vanilla paste or real vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon (5 g) baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon (5 g) sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon (3 g) baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cups (204 g) all-purpose flour (how to measure flour)
  • 3/4 cup (110 g) dark, milk or semi-sweet chocolate, (chips, chunks or coarsely chopped bar)

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 350F (177C) and line several baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • In a medium bowl add the brown sugar and butter and beat with a spatula until light and fluffy; the mixture should no longer appear dense and the color should have lightened slightly. Add in the olive oil mixing until the oil is completely emulsified into the mixture. Add in the egg, vanilla paste or extract, baking powder, salt and baking soda and mix until no traces of egg are visible, and it has become one cohesive, delicious smelling mixture.
  • Gently fold in the flour stopping when there are still traces of flour visible. Add in the chocolate and stir until evenly distributed throughout the dough being careful to use as few strokes as possible so as not to overmix the dough.
  • Scoop 3 tablespoons of dough (about 42g) onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 3 inches between cookies to allow for spreading. Bake for 11 minutes in the center of the oven. As soon as they’re out of the oven, use the edge of a spatula to nudge the cookies back into a circle. Let cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes to set and collapse a bit.

Video

Notes

*For the photos the cookies are sprinkled with sea salt flakes. Not necessary, but I love sea salt flakes sprinkled over cookies!Β 
**The amount of oil in this recipe is small, but yields a perfectly soft cookie, so don’t skip it!
***The photo of the cookie dough balls Β in the instruction area has chocolate chunks rather than chips; fyi. And the photo of cookie dough without chocolate chips Β is from a double batch of cookies (that’s why it looks like so much more than the bowl of cookie dough next to it).
As always, drop your questions/thoughts in the comments section! xo
Thanks for baking with me! Please rate + comment this recipe and tag me on social @displacedhousewife #displacedhousewife so I can see your beautiful treats! xo

Comments

Leave a Comment & Rate this Recipe

I love your comments, reviews and questions! If you love this recipe, please rate it when you leave a comment. Star ratings 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 help people discover my recipes. Your support means a lot, I look forward to chatting with you!

Rebecca xox

Recipe Rating




42 Comments

  • Alice Hsiao June 19, 2023 at 6:51 PM

    May I know if I could use vanilla powder instead of vanilla paste/extract?

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth June 20, 2023 at 11:58 AM

      Hi Alice! Yes, you can use vanilla powder in place of the extract/paste. I would use half of what the recipe calls for the first time you make it and see how the flavor is. Let me know how it goes! xo

      Reply
  • Jim March 15, 2023 at 6:08 PM

    I like the idea of adding the flake sea salt to the cookies. When would be the right time to add it?

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth March 15, 2023 at 7:40 PM

      Hi Jim! You can either add them to the tops of the dough balls just prior to baking or as soon as they come out of the oven. I prefer the latter so they don’t sink into the dough and I can see the flakes over the tops of the cookies. Let me know how you like it! xx

      Reply
  • Ellie March 15, 2023 at 6:04 AM

    I’m making these today with my grandson. I try to be careful about amount of sugar he eats. Can I make these cookies smaller?

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth March 15, 2023 at 9:41 AM

      Hi Ellie!
      Yes, of course. If you make them 2 tbsp or even 1 tbsp, I would take some time off of the bake time. For 2 tbsp cookies I would check at 10 minutes for doneness. For 1 tbsp cookies, I would check them between 8 and 9 minutes. Let me know if you have any other questions! xo

      Reply
  • Adrienne February 16, 2023 at 4:25 PM

    5 stars
    I just made a big double batch of these and they came out perfectly! Thank you for all of the tips.

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth February 16, 2023 at 8:50 PM

      I love hearing that!!! Enjoy all of your cookies!!! xoxo

      Reply
  • Cammy Pinoli December 3, 2022 at 3:11 PM

    5 stars
    These are delicious! Can’t get enough of them!

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth December 5, 2022 at 9:29 AM

      Thank you Cammy!! That makes me so happy to hear!!! xoxo

      Reply
  • Natalia November 18, 2022 at 6:52 AM

    5 stars
    These are my go-to! So quick and easy and *so* delicious.

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth November 18, 2022 at 4:13 PM

      Hi Natalia! This makes me so happy, thank you!!! xo

      Reply
  • Molly April 14, 2022 at 12:43 PM

    Like a previous post, mine came out super flat but that didn’t keep them from being delicious!!!! Holy cow they’re good. I added toasted pecans to my dough and it is so good! I’ll be trying again with a little more flour and baking powder. Thanks for a FANTASTIC jumping off point.

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth April 18, 2022 at 3:42 PM

      Hi Molly! I’m so glad you liked them!!! I offer the same tips that I suggested below in regards to spreading. They’re made with 3-tablespoons of cookie dough — that’s a big cookie.There will be spreading and they aren’t especially thick.

      I’m glad you enjoyed them!
      R xox

      Reply
  • Lilian June 21, 2021 at 6:54 PM

    5 stars
    these are my go-tos!! love them so much, super easy to make and always turn out

    Reply
  • Valeria May 16, 2021 at 9:17 PM

    Are these cookies better the same day??

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth May 20, 2021 at 4:43 PM

      Hi Valeria! I think these cookies are great the same day or next!! The only chocolate chip cookie (of mine) that I prefer the same day, is the Toasted Oat one. Let me know if you have any other questions! xo

      Reply
  • Kailee May 16, 2021 at 2:34 PM

    5 stars
    These are a hit! They look just like your beautiful photos and are so delicious. Thanks so much for the recipe!

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth May 20, 2021 at 4:42 PM

      You’re a dreamboat Kailee!! I’m glad you liked them!! xox

      Reply
  • Mariah Cooper March 15, 2021 at 9:14 PM

    5 stars
    I have made this recipe at least half a dozen times and it’s my go to chocolate chip recipe now. It’s amazing! They always turn out perfect in taste and texture. I love how simple the recipe is. Recently I added some peppermint extract to turn them into mint chocolate chip cookies and they were also fantastic! Thanks for such a great recipe for a classic cookie!

    Reply
  • Heather March 5, 2021 at 10:53 AM

    5 stars
    These were amazing

    Reply
  • Mariana FernΓ‘ndez January 8, 2021 at 12:56 PM

    Hi Rebecca, I hope it is not too late. Happy new year! I’m writing from Cancun MΓ©xico. I already have all the ingredients to make this cookies but I couldn’t find sea salt, is there a problem if a I use normal salt? it is the same amount?
    PD: I love your recipes, you inspire me. I am a medical student but I want to sell cookies to earn money for my books. A big hug.

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth January 9, 2021 at 4:21 PM

      Hi Mariana! You can totally use regular table salt! I apologize for not getting back sooner. …I love your cookie selling ideaβ€”good luck with it and congrats on med school!!! xox

      Reply
      • Danielle Gonsalves December 7, 2021 at 6:06 AM

        Hi Rebecca,

        I recently moved to Portugal and am trying to figure out the correct substitution for all purpose flour. In Europe, flour is generally sold as T45, T55, T65, etc. I’ve made these cookies a few times before. This time, the texture was off which I assume was because of the flour I used. I’ve read some conflicting info on which type of flour would be the most similar to all purpose flour. Could you steer me in the right direction? Much appreciated!

        Reply
        • Rebecca Firth June 20, 2022 at 2:37 PM

          Hi Danielle,
          I apologize for the belated reply, this was in my spam folder! I did a quick google search and it recommended the T55. Please let me know how it goes!! xox

          Reply
  • May December 30, 2020 at 11:17 AM

    Would you recommend using a hand mixer for this recipe?

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth December 30, 2020 at 1:04 PM

      Hi May! I don’t use a hand mixer but you certainly could when creaming the butter and sugar and adding in the eggs. Be careful when adding in the flour so you don’t over-mix. Have fun!! xo

      Reply
  • Ericka M December 6, 2020 at 1:57 AM

    5 stars
    Making these for the second time- they’re quick and delish!

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth December 6, 2020 at 2:15 AM

      Hi Ericka!! I’m so happy you like themβ€”they are my FAVORITE chocolate chip cookie this year!! xox

      Reply
  • Lilly November 9, 2020 at 5:20 PM

    5 stars
    I just tried those they’re so simple to make and DELICIOUS!! I used grams to measure the ingredients and I mixed everything with a spatula I didn’t use my kitchen aid. THANK U❀️

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth November 11, 2020 at 6:51 PM

      Hi Lilly!
      I’m so happy that you loved them!!!! We are OBSESSED!!!! xoxo

      Reply
  • Janet October 13, 2020 at 6:51 PM

    I can’t figure out what I did wrong. I followed the recipe exactly and the cookies came out 4-5 inches in diameter and flat as a pancake. After the first batch came out like that, I refrigerated the rest of the dough, but it didn’t help.
    Any ideas? Of course we will eat them anyway, but I wanted them to look like the picture!

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth October 13, 2020 at 7:26 PM

      Hi Janet!
      I’m glad you made these! For your reference, when I make these cookies they are between 3-4 inches in diameter (so a wee smaller than your’s, but still big).

      It’s also not a super thick cookie, fyi…that said, here are some things I would look at:

      1) What country do you live in? Some countries’ standard flour has a lower protein percentage which can yield a thinner cookie. For your info, I used King Arthur Baking All-Purpose Flour when testing the recipe.

      2) Did you use cups + spoons or weigh your ingredients? If you used cups + spoons you might measure out 1 cup lighter than I do; less flour would result in a flatter cookie.

      3) Lastly, did you mix the cookies with a mixer or by hand? During the creaming of the butter + sugar you are building structures in your cookie…if it didn’t hit that soft, creamy, whipped stage, they could be flatter.

      Let me know if any of this helps. I’d love to figure this out with you!!! xoxo

      Reply
      • Janet October 14, 2020 at 12:39 PM

        Thanks! I’m in Massachusetts. I weighed my ingredients and used my stand mixer. I’m wondering now if I made a mistake with the weight of the flour which was probably Gold Medal. Thanks for replying! I will definitely try again.

        Reply
        • Rebecca Firth October 14, 2020 at 10:30 PM

          Hi Janet, there is an almost 1% protein difference between Gold Medal AP and King Arthur AP…I don’t know if that could be the difference…just worth noting.

          I am inclined to think that it could be a weight discrepancy. Let me know how it goes when you try again — I was happy too hear back from you!!! xoxo

          Reply
  • MarΓ­a Dolores Davila September 23, 2020 at 11:59 PM

    5 stars
    They came out wonderful …. Love them they are spectacular thanks for the recipe

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth October 13, 2020 at 7:08 PM

      I love hearing this — thank you!!!! xoxo

      Reply
  • Sally Beth September 19, 2020 at 9:06 PM

    5 stars
    They look and sound wonderful. I think I will go in the kitchen…..

    Reply
  • Lily September 19, 2020 at 9:00 PM

    5 stars
    Love that these make less dough!! Sometimes you just need a little treat without going too overboard. Will for sure be adding this into the mix xox

    Reply
    • Rebecca Firth September 19, 2020 at 9:03 PM

      They are so good! I hope you love them Lily!! xoxo

      Reply