Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies (VIDEO)

These easy chocolate chip walnut cookies are a delicious way to give the nut lovers in your family a sweet treat. Semi-sweet dark chocolate chips, chopped walnuts, and a sprinkle of bright sea salt to balance the flavors make this an indulgent cookie to enjoy during those darker evenings as we move into fall and winter. Everyone will love the chewy texture and the gooey inside that is the hallmark of the best chocolate chip walnut cookies!

Jump to:

• 🌟 Why this is the best chocolate chip and walnut cookie recipe
• 📝  Ingredient notes
• 👩‍🍳 How to make this recipe
• 🎓 Expert tips
• 🥣 Equipment notes
• ❓Recipe FAQs
• 🍪 More Cookie Recipes
• Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies (VIDEO)

🌟 Why this is the best chocolate chip and walnut cookie recipe

1. Thick and Fudgy – This walnut chocolate chip cookie recipe will give you a satisfyingly thick and fudgy cookie to sink your teeth into.
2. Chewy texture – Follow my simple method of chilling the dough, using the right amount of flour, and correct baking time for that chewy walnut chocolate chip cookie you dreamed of.
3. Delicious gooey center – The perfect cookie should melt in your mouth with that delectable soft gooeyness. This is achieved by using the right amount of butter - don't skimp on this. Taking the cookies out of the oven before they are completely done will also help you avoid a dry, crumbly cookie.
4. The perfect balance of nuts and chocolate – I recommend using the best ingredients you can afford if you want to bake the tastiest cookies. A combination of high-quality dark chocolate, toasted walnuts, and a sprinkle of sea salt creates a full-on flavor experience that will blow you away.
5. Quick and easy – Even if you’re a beginner in the kitchen, this walnut chocolate chip cookie recipe is a cinch to make with amazing results to impress your family and friends.
6. Detailed, comprehensive recipe – You'll be a star baker because I’ve written the most detailed and comprehensive chocolate chip walnut cookie recipe you’ll find. No tip or trick has been left out.

📝  Ingredient notes

Gather the finest ingredients to make your walnut chocolate chip cookies the tastiest cookies ever!

1. Butter: These cookies are made with unsalted butter which helps you control the salt content. Take the butter out of the fridge one hour before baking to bring it to room temperature so it’s easier to mix in with the other ingredients. Make sure it’s not too soft though as this will result in an oily batter.
2. White sugar: I like to use a combination of white granulated and brown sugar in cookies. That way the molasses flavor is perfectly balanced and not too overpowering.
3. Brown sugar: The brown sugar gives the cookies a molasses flavor. Choose light brown sugar for a milder flavor or dark brown sugar for a richer molasses taste. Please read my sugar guide for more information about the different types of sugar and how to use them in baking.
4. Egg: As you’ll find in most baking recipes, room-temperature eggs work best.
5. Flour: Make sure to sift the flour before using it to remove any lumps so it combines nicely into a smooth dough. All-purpose flour works perfectly well, but you could use a blend of low-protein flour (pastry flour) and high-protein flour (bread flour). Check out my flour guide for more info.
6. Walnut flour: The walnut flour makes these cookies extra nutty, giving them a depth of flavor. If not available you can roast some walnuts and process them with the flour in a food processor or blender.
7. Salt: Adding salt to your dessert recipes wakes up your tongue and brings to life each individual flavor, creating harmony in the overall taste. Don’t leave it out, especially in recipes that contain chocolate.
8. Baking soda: I use a teaspoon baking soda as the raising agent because it helps the cookies spread and contributes to the crackly surface.
9. Walnuts: An earthy, fruity nut with a hint of tartness that goes great with the sweet chocolate.  If the walnuts you buy are not roasted it’s worth toasting them for a few minutes in a dry skillet or in the oven to bring out the nutty flavor. Feel free to leave them untoasted though as they will anyway bake in the oven! Of course, you can substitute it with other nuts eg. pecans, check my pecans vs walnuts article for more information.
10. Chocolate chips: Use high-quality dark chocolate chips. Look for brands with 70 percent cocoa or higher for a more sophisticated flavor. You can substitute dark chocolate with milk chocolate but the taste will be much sweeter.

🛒 You’ll find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the Recipe Card at the bottom of this post

👩‍🍳 How to make this recipe

1. Step-by-step process of making chocolate chip cookies with walnuts

This walnut chocolate chip cookie recipe is simple, but for perfect cookies, follow my detailed tutorial. For best results use a digital scale, (for accurate measuring) softened butter, and a room-temperature egg. Let’s begin!

1. Cream the room-temperature butter with the brown and white sugar using the electric hand mixer until the sugar is incorporated.
2. Mix the egg into the butter and sugar just until combined.
3. Sift the all-purpose flour and mix it with the walnut flour, salt, and baking soda. Add this dry mixture to the wet ingredients and use a rubber spatula to gently combine.
4. Fold in the chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. Leave a handful aside for placing on top of the cookies before baking.
5. Prepare 2 baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper.
6. Using a cookie scoop, spoon, or your hands divide the cookie dough into 10 equal-sized balls. A digital scale can come in handy if you want to get each cookie the exact same size. Place 5 on each baking tray leaving enough space between them to spread.
7. Press some more chocolate chips and chopped walnuts on the surface of the cookies.
8. Put the chocolate chip walnut cookies into the fridge to rest for an hour before baking

💡 Top Tip: If you’re rolling the balls by hand, wet your hands first to stop the dough from sticking to your fingers, or if the dough is too soft, place it into the fridge for 30 minutes.

2. How to avoid flat walnut and chocolate chip cookies

Did your cookies spread too much? Check out my guide on why cookies came out flat and how to fix them. You won't get deliciously thick chocolate chip walnut cookies if you skip the all-important chilling time. Once the dough is prepared, chill it for at least an hour prior to baking. Otherwise, the dough will be too warm, and the cookies will spread too quickly in the oven resulting in dry flat discs.

Note: You may have seen recipes on the internet for "no chill chocolate chip walnut cookie dough" and think this will save you time, but these recipes will probably result in a much drier cookie because you need to use more flour to compensate.

💡 Top Tip: If you don't have time to wait for the cookies to chill in the fridge, pop them in the freezer for 20 mins.

3. How to bake these cookies

For any baking, always preheat your oven. The cookies need to be baked at 175°C / 347°F (no fan) but as the temperature of the oven will drop when you open the door it’s best to preheat 20°C/68°F higher and then adjust the temperature once the cookies are in the oven.

I recommend using a digital oven thermometer for the most accuracy. This helps avoid over or under-baking your cookies so they come out just right.

1. Preheat the oven to 175°C/347°F (no fan).
2. After 1 hour of chilling time, bake the cookies for 15 minutes as follows: Bake the cookies for 10 minutes. By now they will have already spread but aren't quite baked through. Place even more walnuts and chocolate chips on top.
3. Pop them back in and bake them for another 5 minutes at 175°C / 347°F. As each oven is different you might need to adjust the times slightly.
4. The chocolate chip walnut cookies are ready when the edge looks baked and the middle is slightly gooey but not raw.
5. Leave them in the tray for about five minutes until they are partly set. Remove them from the parchment and place them on a wire cooling rack.
6. The last step is to sprinkle them with sea salt.

Enjoy! Your delicious homemade chocolate chip walnut cookies are best eaten fresh while they are still warm and the chocolate is melted. The cookies will set as they cool, and you can store them at room temperature for a few days in an air-tight container.

If, for some reason, you forgot your cookies in the oven, check my how to fix burnt cookies guide.

💡 Top Tip: Nothing beats warm freshly baked cookies, but if you’ve still got some leftover the next day reheat them in a microwave or preheated oven for that just-baked experience.

4. What makes the walnut cookies thick & fudgy

The secret to the perfect thick and fudgy cookie is getting the right ratio of ingredients, chilling the dough, and baking the cookies at the correct temperature.

If the butter content is not higher than the flour content you won’t get that fudgy, gooey center. Luckily in this recipe, the ratio of flour to butter is ideal.

As mentioned before, if the dough is not chilled before baking, the warm dough will spread more quickly in the oven resulting in flat cookies.

You also want to avoid overbaking the cookies as this could make them go dry. Even if your cookies look slightly underdone (but not runny in the middle) when you take them out, they will set on cooling leaving you with thick, fudgy cookies.

💡 Top Tip: A digital oven thermometer is a game changer in baking even for a super simple recipe like cookies because even a few degrees too hot could sabotage your baking efforts.

🎓 Expert tips

1. Choose to bake with excellent-quality dark chocolate to get the most luxurious cookies. The intensity of the cocoa elevates the flavor to make them extra special.
2. Toasting the walnuts enhances their flavor which makes the cookies even tastier. It’s an extra step you can prepare in advance. Simply lay the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 175°C/ 347°F for 5 – 10 minutes until they smell nutty. Then once they’re cool you can add them to the dough.
3. You don't have to be too fussy about making your cookie dough balls perfectly smooth before baking. You want the dough a bit rough for a nice crackly baked surface.
4. To avoid crumbly dry cookies, only mix the dough until it just comes together.
5. If you want a tighter, round shape you can shape each cookie with a large cookie cutter while they are still warm.
6. Don’t be afraid to slightly underbake the cookies if you prefer chewy chocolate chip walnut cookies.
7. Chilling the dough is an essential step. If you’re really short on time, you can pop the dough in the freezer for 20 mins.
8. Feel free to experiment with spices eg. cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice can be a great addition to your walnut chocolate chip cookies
9. A sprinkle of sea salt is a must because it’s essential for balancing the flavors and bringing out the great chocolatey and nutty taste.
10. You can easily half the recipe and make only 5 cookies if you prefer to make small batch chocolate chip walnut cookies, or feel free to double the recipe
11. Homemade walnut butter would be excellent to drizzle over these cookies

🥣 Equipment notes

Having the right tools for the recipe will make baking these easy chocolate chip cookies with walnuts a breeze.

Often in baking, the difference between success and failure boils down to the accuracy of your measurements. That’s why it’s better to use a digital scale to measure your ingredients. You just can’t get the same precision with measuring cups. If for some reason still using measuring cups, you might want to check out my tablespoons to cup conversion article.

An electric hand mixture will save your arm muscles and incorporate the sugar and butter in no time.

You will also need a rubber spatula to combine the wet and dry mixtures. It’s best to do this step by hand because you could overmix using an electric mixture which would incorporate too much air and activate the gluten making the cookies dry and hard.

The dial on your oven is not always completely accurate. A digital oven thermometer will ensure that you set the oven at exactly the correct temperature it needs to be.

To maintain the crispness and chewiness of your cookies as they cool use a cooling rack so the air can circulate around them.

❓Recipe FAQs

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