My double chocolate walnut cookies are so simple to make and incredibly chocolatey, thanks to cocoa powder and chocolate chips. I can’t get enough of them!
If you love quick and easy cookie recipes, these are for you. The chocolate dough melts around the walnuts as they bake, leaving chewy edges and soft, fudgy centers.
You can mix the dough in minutes, and they bake in just 10. If you’re craving even more chocolate, try our chewy chocolate cookies, chocolate toffee cookies, or chocolate snickerdoodles.
Key Ingredients
- Cocoa Powder: Use natural unsweetened cocoa powder for this recipe. Dutch-processed cocoa won’t react properly with the baking soda, which is essential for helping the cookies rise and stay chewy. I love Ghirardelli and Hershey’s, or Guittard if you’re feeling fancy.
- Walnuts: The star of these cookies! I use plenty of chopped walnuts for texture and flavor. Feel free to swap or mix in nuts like hazelnuts, almonds, or pistachios.
- Chocolate Chips: These are double chocolate chip cookies, after all. Stir in ½ cup of chocolate chips or chopped chocolate before baking for rich, melty pockets of chocolate in every bite.
- Flour: All-purpose flour gives the cookies structure and that perfect chewy texture.
- Baking Soda: Our secret to soft, chewy cookies. It helps the dough rise slightly and keeps the centers tender.
- Butter: I use salted butter, but unsalted works too (see the tips below the recipe for adding a bit of salt). Make sure the butter is at room temperature so it creams easily with the sugars.
- Sugar: Combining brown and granulated sugars creates the best cookie dough. The brown sugar adds moisture and rich flavor, while granulated sugar gives you crispy edges.
- Egg: You’ll need one large egg at room temperature. If you forget to take it out beforehand, place it in a bowl of lukewarm water for a few minutes.
Find the full recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies
Tip 1: Cream the butter and sugar. An electric mixer makes this easy. Use a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Start by creaming the butter with both sugars and vanilla until light and fluffy, guaranteeing cookies with soft, chewy centers. Then, you can add the egg.
Tip 2: Mix in the dry ingredients slowly. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder, then add them to the butter mixture on low speed (so you don’t end up wearing the flour!). Once combined, stir in the chopped walnuts and chocolate chips.
Tip 3: Bake, chill, or freeze the dough. You can bake the cookies right away, chill the dough for a day or two for an even richer flavor, or freeze dough balls for later. To freeze, scoop the dough into balls and freeze on a lined baking sheet until firm, then transfer to a freezer-safe container. Then, bake them from frozen, just add 1 to 2 minutes to the bake time.
Chocolate Walnut Cookies
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
These double chocolate chip walnut cookies are incredibly delicious and easy! We love them with walnuts, but hazelnuts or almonds would also be delicious. We use a handheld mixer, but a stand mixer works, too. I use salted butter in the recipe, but you can use unsalted butter (add ¼ teaspoon of salt to the batter to accommodate).
You Will Need
1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled (130g)
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (20g)
½ teaspoon baking soda
8 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature (113g)
½ cup granulated sugar (100g)
½ cup brown sugar (100g)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg, at room temperature
¾ cup chopped walnuts (85g)
½ cup chocolate chips (85g)
Directions
1Prep: Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or use a silicon baking mat.
2Mix dry ingredients: Sift or whisk the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda together. Set aside.
3Cream butter and sugar: Add the butter, sugars, and vanilla to a large bowl. Cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. You can also use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
4Add egg: Scrape the side and bottom of the bowl, and then add the egg. Mix on medium-low speed for 30 seconds. The egg will not be completely incorporated.
5Make cookie dough: Turn the speed to the lowest setting. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, mixing until just combined, 1 to 2 minutes. With the mixer on low, add the walnuts and chocolate chips and mix until just incorporated.
6Bake: Drop heaped tablespoons of cookie dough onto baking sheets (or use a medium cookie scoop). Leave 2 inches between the cookies to allow for spreading. Lightly press cookie dough mounds down towards the baking sheet.
7Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, for 8 to 10 minutes. The edges should be dry, and the tops should be slightly cracked. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing: Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature or a week in the refrigerator.
- Make ahead: Refrigerate unbaked cookie dough for up to 3 days. Or freeze cookie dough balls for up to 3 months. To do this, add balls to a baking sheet and freeze until hard. Transfer frozen balls to an airtight container. Bake frozen cookies without thawing (adding 2 to 5 minutes of baking time).
- Butter: If using unsalted butter, whisk ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt into the flour mixture.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
Easy recipe and yummy cookies that my 12 year old can make. We used 3/4 cup of sugar instead of 1 cup. Got about 16 pcs. Thanks Joanne and Adam!
Wonderful! This recipe is really fun to make with kids! 🙂
Can this be made as a bar cookie? If so how should I adjust the baking time?
Hi Sue, I’ve not done this, but I am sure you can. Just watch the bake time, as it may be slightly different.
not to be greedy but… if i wanted to make 10 larger cookies how much would you increase the cooking time? thanks.
Hi Jenny, I’d assume 3 to 4 more minutes, but check them and keep an eye on them.
I was looking for a way to use up some walnuts and now this is my favorite cookie recipe. So glad for my excess almount of walnuts so I can keep making this recipe. Everyone loves them!
These taste like subway cookies, so moist and delicious- will be saving this one for sure! I skipped on the chocolate chips as I was all out and still amazing
My 13-year-old granddaughter tried these for the first time the other day. She always checks the cookie jar and these were my latest. Her response was.Grandma, these are awesome. I would pay you to make me some!
Can this batter be made and frozen for future use?
Absolutely! I like freezing in balls, and then bake from frozen (just add a minute or two to the baking time).
Very successful recipe. To save bowls, sift and add dry ingredients to wet bowl.(in stages). Also give the weight for 1 stick of butter. 8 tbsps is a bit hit and miss. But can’t fault this biscuit.
These are the best chocolate cookie recipe that I have ever eaten. I have taken them to a fun Bunco, Left Right Center group that I belong to and they were an amazing hit. My husband and I ate quite a few ourselves, and I usually do not like chocolate cookies. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Thank you for this recipe! I make them twice per month and I double the recipe. I stick with the walnuts and they turn out great. They look pretty. I live at an elevation of 6000 feet, so I have to add an extra half cup of flour or they are a little flat. Your recipe is great.
Excellent recipe. Simple and very, very tasty. I did two things that may have helped. I toasted the walnuts at 350 for 7 minutes and I put the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before baking.
Thanks for this recipe. Wondering if i don’t want the chocolate chips should I increase the cocoa?
I’d just leave out the chocolate. No need to increase the cocoa.
Really easy and good recipe. Cookies just went in but I know they will be perfect, the batter is for sure. Thank you for sharing this!
My husband and I are having this tasty lovely cookies right now!He loves it!I have tried other recipes but this recipe I just found was the best! Greetings!
These cookies are fantastic! Made them last week, GF loved them. So had to make them again. I did toast the walnuts this time, with a tiny bit of salt and it kicked these cookies up a notch. Definitely worth it. Also recommend sprinkling some sea salt on top while still warm, maybe pull a little salt back on the recipe if you do though.
Easy to make,followed the recipe exactly, in my oven took 11 minutes, and best of all they were the best tasting chocolate cookies we’ve ever tasted. Thank you 😍
Fabulous! I have not had these cookies in a while, I might need to bake a batch soon!
Made these for my wife she told me they where the best choc. Cookies shes ever had! Got to admit they are the bomb😋
I love these cookies so much that they will be my contribution to a cookie swap. I always double the recipe and add chopped dried cherries. I like the combination of white and brown sugar for the crisp and chewy texture.
First time baker and I followed the recipe and had excellent results. So excited to continue to follow recipes
Easy double chocolate walnut cookies. I have to tell you that this recipe is a killer hit. I have friends that need sugar free so I substituted the sugar with Truvia white and brown sugar. They didn’t want the chocolate chips so I omitted them. And WOW!!!! You can’t tell they are sugar free. I am making again but this time I will add sugar free chocolate chips. I am going to go through more of your recipes. Even I loved these cookies.
In my opinion, These cookies are excellent! Super easy to make. The taste is NOT too sweet! Definitely will satisfy the Cookie Monster and Chocolate Monster!
Thanks for this super-easy and totally delicious recipe – a real keeper! I used dark chocolate chunks, instead of semi-sweet chips; otherwise, I followed it to a T. Wonderful!!
Love them
If you love walnuts and chocolate, you won’t be disappointed. These are delicious !!!
LOVE this recipe!! My 5 year old is dairy free and loves chocolate, yet is super picky with her chocolate desserts, lol. I used vegan butter and used Enjoy Life dairy free chocolate chips. I also refrigerate the dough for 20-30 minutes before I roll them and put them in the oven. I’ve made these a few times now and they’ve come out awesome every time! My 5 year old refers to these as “my favorite chocolate, chocolate chip cookies”. She does without the nuts, but not me, so we make half with and half without :). Great recipe, thank you!!
Can this recipe be doubled ?
Yes, absolutely!
I tried this recipe and it turned out really excellent! I’m not an experienced baker at all, but I didn’t have any trouble. I had to sue salted butter instead of unsalted because that was all we had. The only thing was that I had to bake them in the over for 15 – 20 minutes, so I’m not sure if that’s because I refrigerated them beforehand or I messed up somehow? But they still tasted great so it wasn’t a problem
The cookies are great , but in my oven it also took 20 minutes.
I’ve made your Easy Double Chocolate cookies several times and each batch turns out so delicious.I would love to receive your free newsletter can I get it on my smartphone? I’m not computer savvy. I’m 67 and a little behind the times.
Hi Twila, So glad that you liked the cookies. Yes, our newsletter works great on mobile devices.
I love this recipe! Really yummy. Can you also add the grams to this recipe (Like your chocolate chip recipes)? It would be easier as I don’t have to do all the conversion, plus I would know that I am using the right amount of ingredients. Thank you 😀 And great job. Keep it up.
Made these (minus chocolate chips) because I didn’t have them on hand. These are delicious!! Baked up perfectly in 9 minutes. Crispy edges and softer in the center. Yum!
Delicious and easy! I have used this recipe multiple times
This is the best cookie recipe I have found and I have tried 10-15 recipes without success. These cookies turned out thin and crispy which is what I like. They tasted the best 1 or 2 days after baking, when the flavors had “gotten happy”. When I make key lime pie, I have the same experience – it tastes much better a day or two after baking. I found the batter needed some “vavavoom” so I added orange zest and 2 drops of orange flavor. Orange and dark chocolate go well together. Next time I will add more nuts and chocolate chips. Overall, I was very happy.
The recipe looks great ! I would like to know if I can grease the baking sheet with butter or is there any other option as I don’t have parchment paper :/
If you have a non-stick baking sheet, there is no need to use parchment.
Followed recipe and turned out flat 🙁
I don’t see the egg in list of ingredients? What am I missing?
Hi Cindy, the egg is listed after vanilla extract.
how long will these cookies last after baking them? I will making them for a Christmas cookie party and they need to last for about 3weeks
If you need the cookies to last 3 weeks, we recommend keeping them tightly wrapped in the freezer. They should last up to a month this way.