Thin-and-Crisp Chocolate-Chip Cookies

By Amanda Hesser

Updated Jan. 15, 2026

Thin-and-Crisp Chocolate-Chip Cookies
Craig Lee for The New York Times
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(706)
Comments
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Chocolate-chip cookies tend to spark the kind of tense debate usually reserved for topics like religion and politics. Opinions on various brands abound, but an excellent recipe is the key to baked good paradise. This recipe, one of three that were extensively tested, is for a golden brown emblem of cookie engineering.

Note that in this crisp version the ingredients include milk and light corn syrup, and the balls of dough are quite small. This version also calls for what might seem like a lot of salt, but one tablespoon is correct. Be sure to use Diamond Crystal kosher salt, and if you use Morton's, reduce the amount by about half. (Make the chewy and gooey versions to compare.)

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Ingredients

Yield:Makes 24 cookies
  • 1¾cups all-purpose flour
  • ¾teaspoon baking soda
  • 1tablespoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
  • 14tablespoons butter, melted
  • ½cup packed light brown sugar
  • ½cup sugar
  • 2tablespoons light corn syrup
  • 1tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2tablespoons milk
  • 1½cups chopped bittersweet chocolate (peasize pieces and shavings)
  • 2cups chopped toasted walnuts (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (24 servings)

249 calories; 16 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 25 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 16 grams sugars; 3 grams protein; 117 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with foil. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.

  2. Step 2

    In a mixer fitted with a paddle, cream the butter, sugars and corn syrup for about 3 minutes. Stir in the vanilla, then the milk. Add the flour mixture all at once and blend just until a dough forms. Fold in the chocolate and walnuts. Chill the dough for at least an hour.

  3. Step 3

    Roll 2-tablespoon lumps of dough into balls, then place on the baking sheet and flatten to ¼ inch-thick disks spaced 2 inches apart. Chill the dough between batches. Bake until the edges are dark golden brown, 14 to 17 minutes. Let cool slightly on the baking sheet, then transfer to a baking rack.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
706 user ratings
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Comments

Sarah Cole

Are you sure the thin and crispy chocolate chips cookies ask for 1 TBSP of salt? Made them and they were terrible...too salty.

Randy

Tests show Diamond Crystal is 50% as salty as Morton's; actually 50% of the sodium content. It is due to the shape of the crystals. Diamond Crystal uses a proprietary process that makes pyramid shaped crystals which mean there is more air in a measure of their salt. Morton's process yields flat crystals which stack more compactly. Some of us would also argue there is a more complex flavor in the Diamond Crystal. If all you have is Morton's just use half as much as is specified.

Megan

I don't think the 24 hours of refrigeration is necessary. Scoop the cookies and place them on a cookie sheet. Then put them in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking. Cookies turned out great.

Franklin

Why does it say to preheat the oven and then let the dough chill for an hour!? Seems like a waste to me

Lynne

The cookies are awesome. I didn’t have light corn syrup and substituted dark corn syrup which made the cookies chewier but delicious. The baking time exceeded the 14 minutes, I turned the pan at 8 minutes and then eight again and it worked. I would make again! Also, I understand now why chilling the dough before and during each batch is important. The dough is very sticky when warmer which made it a little bit harder to flatten them. I’ll know for the next time!

Tess

I made these as is and they are delicious, and exactly as named: thin, crisp. The only thing is they are rather labor intensive: After the dough is chilled, it is not easy to gather up into tablespoons; I had to use a knife to dig out the dough. But, very worth it.

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