Before finding this recipe in Rebecca Firth’s The Cookie Book, a gift from our friend Martha, we had never used olive oil in baking cookies. I typically think of brownies, not cookies, when I think of oil in a handheld baked good.

We can’t say that we tasted a distinct flavor difference by using olive oil, but we can say that this recipe makes a very tasty, moist chocolate chip cookie with a delightful richness and plenty of melty, gooey chocolate. It also makes for a distinctly chewy cookie that holds together well, much like many brownies. We made a few small changes for simplicity, but otherwise kept the recipe similar to the original.

There’s a specialty olive oil store in our county, and we might try using one of their many different flavors in a second test of this recipe to see if there’s a dramatic flavor change.

In a world with plenty of chocolate chip cookie recipes, we highly recommend this one. Let us know what you think if you try it!

 

Olive Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies

What You Need

1 ½ cups light brown sugar

2/3 cup olive oil (you can substitute other oils)

½ cup granulated sugar

6 tablespoons butter (at room temperature)

2 large eggs (at room temperature)

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate

 

What You Do

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix brown sugar, olive oil, granulated sugar and butter on medium speed in electric stand mixer (or in a bowl using a handheld mixer) until smooth.

3. With the mixer on low, add in the eggs one at a time. Then add the vanilla, and mix until well blended.

4. In another medium bowl, whisk all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a little at a time, until the cookie dough is well blended. It’s okay to still see streaks of flour.

6. Add your chocolate, and mix just until evenly distributed.

7. Use a cookie scoop or spoon and place spoonfuls of dough about 2-3 inches apart on cookie sheet.  This isn’t an exact spacing guide. Basically, the bigger your cookie dough pieces, the more space you should allow.

8. Bake one sheet in the center of the oven for 10 to 11 minutes, depending on how your oven heats. They should look slightly underdone.

9. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 3 minutes. Then move the cookies to a cooling rack before serving.

Pro tip: Add 1/2 cup of chopped nuts like salted almonds or pecans for a burst of crunchy, unique flavor!

Yield: About 2 dozen, depending on the size of the cookies you make.