Get ready for the softest, chewiest, melt in your mouth cookies ever. If you’ve never made cookies with cream cheese in the batter – then you definitely need to try these cream cheese chocolate chip cookies. 
**This post was originally published July 26, 2015 and updated February 4, 2020**
Cream cheese chocolate chip cookies are an incredible thing. They’re super soft, chewy, oozing with chocolate chips, and have a mild, almost creamy flavor thanks to the cream cheese. They’ll honestly change how you think about chocolate chip cookies forever. The flavor is less buttery than regular chocolate chip cookies because we’re replacing some of the butter with the cream cheese. But what you get instead are cookies that are thick, almost gooey, and have no dry cookie crumbs.
How to Make Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies
There’s a few secrets to what makes these cookies oh so delicious. If you just want to get straight to the recipe, you can click here – otherwise, let’s talk specifics.
- First, you’ll whisk together the dry ingredients: 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons cornstarch, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and ¼ teaspoon salt. The cornstarch makes the cookies extra soft.
- Then in a separate bowl, you’ll beat together ½ cup unsalted butter, ¼ cup cream cheese, ¾ cup brown sugar and ½ cup white sugar. Both the butter and cream cheese should be softened to room temperature for easy mixing. You’ll notice that we’re using more brown sugar than white sugar. This adds way more flavor.
- Then beat 1 egg, 1 large egg yolk and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract into the mixture – it will look quite liquidy, which is what’s expected. The extra egg yolk makes the cookies chewier and also makes them a little more brown / less pale in color.
- Carefully beat in the flour mixture – I do this about ½ at a time with the mixer on low speed to avoid spills.
- Then stir in the chocolate chips. You’ll notice that the batter is a little different in texture than normal chocolate chip cookies. It will be very sticky and feel a little thinner. This is due to the cream cheese and totally normal.
- Cover the bowl in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Chilling the dough is 100% mandatory. Because the dough is so sticky, the cookies won’t hold together and will spread way too thin if you don’t chill the dough.
- Then scoop the cookies into balls about 1.5 tablespoons in size, and place on a lined cookie sheet. They’ll bake for about 9-11 minutes at 350F or until the tops are just set. If you’d like cookies that are a little thinner like the ones pictured, press down the cookie dough balls just slightly with your hands before baking. Or for extra thick cookies – just leave them as they are.
Pro Tip: After the cookies come out of the oven and are still a little gooey – place a few extra chocolate chips on top each cookie for that “eat-me” look.
Freezing The Dough
This cookie dough freezes extremely well. If you’d like to freeze the dough – make the dough up until step 6 in the recipe (stirring in the chocolate chips). Then scoop the dough into balls, place them on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2 hours. You want the dough to firm up in the ball shape. Then transfer the dough balls to a freezer bag, zip out the air, and freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to bake, preheat the oven, place the dough balls on lined cookie sheets, and bake from frozen. They’ll take 1-2 minutes longer.
Baking Tips
- Use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese – not light, spreadable or whipped. The cookies won’t turn out properly otherwise.
- If you’d like to make extra-large cookies, form the dough into balls about 3 tablespoons in size and press down slightly. They’ll need about 12-15 minutes to bake.
- For extra soft cookies, slightly underbake them. The tops should look just set when they come out of the oven. They’ll continue cooking slightly as the cool on the cookie sheet.
I honestly think these cookies should be on everyone’s cookie bucket list. Try them for yourself, and let me know what you think! You just may need to leave your self-control at the door!
If crispy cookies are more your thing, be sure to try these thin, crispy chocolate chip cookies. Or for a double dose of chocolate – these double chocolate chip cookies are always a good idea!
Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cup all- purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 4 oz brick-style cream cheese* softened
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk* discard the egg white
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups chocolate chips semi-sweet, milk or dark
Instructions
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt.
- In a large bowl beat together the butter, cream cheese and sugars using an electric mixer
- Mix in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract.
- Turn the mixer to low speed. Slowly add in the flour mixture about half at a time.
- Turn off the mixer and stir in the chocolate chips. I typically reserve about ¼ cup chocolate chips.
- Cover the bowl with clingfilm and chill for 2 hours or overnight.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350F degrees and line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Scoop the dough into balls about 1.5 tablespoons in size (I used a medium cookie scoop) and place 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheets. If the dough is too hard to scoop, let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes first.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes or until tops are just starting to set. Optionally, dot the top of each warm cookie with a few extra chocolate chips.
- Cool cookies on the baking tray for at least 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
Notes
- Use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese - not light, spreadable or whipped.
- You will need 2 large eggs total, but only use 1 large egg plus the egg yolk of the second egg.
- Nutrition information is based on 1 cookie, with the recipe yielding 32 cookies.
- Make-ahead & Storage Instructions: Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. Cookie dough balls can be frozen in a ziploc bag for 2 months. Bake cookies from frozen - they'll likely bake for 1 extra minute.
Nutrition
These are awesome! Great texture. They took a little longer to cook in my oven.
Delicious flavour and amazing texture!
You mentioned cornstarch but not how much..I read instructions in first how it keeps it soft but recipe doesn’t have it. How much do you use?
Hi Jackie, thanks for the catch! I’ve updated the recipe now 🙂