Moist, chewy, rich, and perfectly balanced between sweet and salty, these Chocolate Chip Cookies stuffed with Nutella are phenomenal!
Like many, I’ve had my fair share of chocolate chip cookies, and I can be overly picky, but these are hands down the best. They totally blew me away. Since cookies are a guilty pleasure, when you do indulge, you’ve got to make sure they’re really good. Agree? And if you only eat the best cookies, then you need to make this recipe!
What Makes These Cookies Special
You know your chocolate chip cookies are going to be extraordinary when you stuff them with Nutella. Another secret ingredient? Brown butter, added to the cookie dough, which brings out a caramelized, deep, rich, and intense flavor. Each bite makes your heart skip.
As if that weren’t gourmet enough, the final touch comes after the cookies come out of the oven—they’re sprinkled with sea salt.
Yep, these cookies have it all. ‘What a great balance of flavors!’ Those are my friend John’s words.
Brown Butter for The Best Cookies
Brown butter, also known as beurre noisette in French, is a magical ingredient with a rich, nutty aroma. It’s made by cooking unsalted butter until it separates into butterfat and milk solids. The milk solids sink to the bottom of the pan and brown, releasing a toasted, nutty flavor.
Browning the butter takes a little extra effort, but the result is 100% worth it! I’m in heaven when the aromatic smell wafts through the whole house.
Ingredients for This Recipe
- Nutella or other chocolate hazelnut spread — I included other brands in the Tips section.
- Unsalted butter — for making the all-important brown butter.
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Light brown sugar and white sugar — You need a mix of both to create the best texture.
- Eggs
- Sea salt for sprinkling on later
- Unsweetened plain yogurt or Greek yogurt — It imparts the extra soft chewiness it imparts to the cookies.
- High quality chocolate chips — I use both semisweet and dark chocolate chips for this winning combo.
- Vanilla extract — Natural (pure vanilla) extract gives these cookies a depth of character that you will love!
How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies with Nutella
- Make Nutella filling by piping small dollops onto a baking sheet and freezing them.
- Prepare the brown butter by melting the butter in a saucepan until it starts to foam and brown.
- Make the cookie dough by mixing the flour mixture and the remaining ingredients. Chill the dough briefly in the refrigerator.
- Press the frozen Nutella centers into the cookie dough balls, and bake! It is that easy.
Variations and Tips
While these cookies definitely land into the ‘perfect just the way they are’ category, they are also very easy to customize. Here are some tips:
- Nutella is the most popular brand of chocolate hazelnut spread, but I know the ingredients might not be the healthiest. We don’t eat it often, so I am ok using it for the cookies. If you want a healthier version and don’t mind paying for more, you can try Justin’s Hazelnut Butter Blend, Rigoni di Asiago Nocciolata, or Whole Foods Organic Hazelnut Cocoa Spread.
- Walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts make a great addition to these cookies, and any of them complement the delicious Nutella center. Simply add 2 or 3 tablespoons of your favorite chopped nuts to the batter before baking the cookies.
- Feel free to make the cookie dough in advance and keep it in the freezer until needed. However, you’ll want to add the frozen Nutella centers right before baking (like in this recipe).
Storage
You can store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week and in the freezer (using freezer-proof bags) for up to a month.
This past weekend I gave these cookies as a little gift with party favors for my daughter’s 5th birthday party. My own children were crazy over these cookies so I hope other children enjoyed them as well. And I need to make these again soon!
More Delicious Cookie Recipes
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Classic Japanese Butter Cookies
- Meyer Lemon Cookies
- Miso Butter Cookies
- Green Tea Cookies
Chocolate Chip Cookies with Nutella
Ingredients
- ½ cup Nutella (if Nutella is hard enough, you can use two teaspoons to make dollops, instead of piping)
- 1 cup unsalted butter (16 Tbsp)
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (plain flour)
- 1 ¼ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp coarse sea salt (plus more for sprinkling)
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 large egg (50 g each w/o shell)
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp plain yogurt (I used Greek yogurt)
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Before You Start…Please note that this recipe requires 2½ hours of chilling time. Gather all the ingredients.
To Make Nutella Filling
- Line a baking sheet/pan with parchment paper. Place Nutella in one corner of a plastic bag. Twist so that it does not squeeze out of the top. Cut one corner off at the end of the bag.
- Pipe small dollops of Nutella onto the parchment paper, about 1-1 ½ tsp each. You will need about 2 dozen and make some extra just in case. Transfer the baking sheet to the freezer and let sit until firm, about 2 hours.
To Make The Brown Butter
- Cut the butter into a few pieces and place in a large skillet or a saucepan over medium heat. Melt the butter completely stirring frequently with the spatula. As the butter heats, it will begin to foam and then bubble. After several minutes, the milk solids will start to become brown on the bottom of the pan (sorry no pics after this – I was a bit pre-occupied). Make sure that milk solids do not stick to the pan. Continue stirring until the butter is evenly browned, being careful not to burn. Remove from the heat and let cool for a few minutes (see the video in the post).
To Make The Cookie Dough
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugars and the brown butter. Mix on medium speed until well blended and smooth.
- Blend in the egg and egg yolk, vanilla and Greek yogurt, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- With the mixer on low speed, blend in the dry ingredients just until incorporated.
- Fold in the chocolate chips. Chill the dough in the refrigerator briefly, about 30 minutes.
To Bake Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (175ºC). For a convection oven, reduce cooking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). Line baking sheets with parchment paper. We will work in 2-3 batches as the Nutella dollops soften quickly when they are outside of the freezer.
- Use a tablespoon, scoop two tablespoons of the cookie dough roll into a ball. Place the cookie dough rolls on the prepared baking sheets, 2-3 inches (5-7.6 cm) apart. Put the remaining cookie dough in the refrigerator.
- Take out the frozen Nutella dollops from freezer. Press an indentation into the center of the dough ball to create a bowl shape. Place a dollop of the frozen Nutella in the indentation and pinch together the edges of the cookie dough over the top to completely seal it in the center.
- Make a couple of pinches on the top part of the dough so that the finished product will look more appealing. Place the cookies back on the baking sheets, 2-3 inches (5-7.6 cm) apart. By this time Nutella dollops are too soft to pick up with your hand so put them back in the freezer.
- Bake the first batch of the cookies at 350ºF (175ºC) until golden brown about 14 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through. After you rotate the baking sheet, start working on the next batch with the remaining dough and nutella dollops as needed.
- When the cookies are finished baking, sprinkle lightly with additional sea salt. Let sit a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.
To Serve
- You can rewarm the cookie(s) in microwave for a few seconds before you eat.
To Store
- Once they are completely cool, keep them in an airtight container and store them at room temperature for a week. If you don’t want to bake the whole cookie dough, shape the dough balls and flash freeze on a baking sheet. Then put in a freezer bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you bake in the future, thaw the cookies while preheating the oven and bake them about 2 minutes longer than the original recipe says.
Notes
Nutrition
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