Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies
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The BEST EVER chocolate chip cookies just got a makeover – super soft and chewy and stuffed with salted caramel, the flavor and texture is absolute perfection!
Cookie Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies, and Best Easy Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are more recipes to head to next after enjoying these cookies.
I almost called these, the ultimate most incredibly soft and chewy stuffed with salted caramel and wonderfully perfect cookies on the planet. But I ran out of room and it was sort of mouthful. Which is kind of an issue because my mouth was also stuffed with cookie so there just wasn’t any spare room for a title like that. Salted caramel chocolate chip cookies is gonna have to do.
Look at that gooey caramel right in the center there. Do you see that? Are you drooling yet?
There are a couple of easy peasy tricks to making these dreamboats. First off, you need instant vanilla pudding. It will make the cookies soft in the center but still lightly crispy on the outside – the perfect texture. Plus a little extra vanilla never hurt in the flavor department.
I love me some vanilla.
Another key step is the chilling time. I know, it’s hard to wait, but it is SO worth it. It’s like Christmas – well worth the wait. Just plan ahead and give yourself an hour to throw the dough in the fridge – just one hour! You can totally wait an hour.
I have faith in you.
And lastly, you’ve gotta make these cookies BIG. Each cookie requires about 6-7 tablespoons of dough. This is another part of that texture thing we were talking about. Yes, you can technically use a smaller amount of dough and make smaller cookies, but they won’t be and dense and chewy in the middle – they’ll be crispier. Not necessarily a bad thing, but these cookies are intended to be big and super soft in the middle.
And the last thing, my own little tip for enjoying these at their very best… After letting them cool completely to room temperature you warm them back up. I know, that seems completely contradictory to warm them up after letting them cool. But here’s how it works. The middle of the cookies needs to cool completely in order to get the correct chewy texture, but then when you warm them up the caramel gets all ooey gooey. Just trust me on this one – you’ll totally get it after the first bite!
What people are saying about these Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies
“Mine turned out great! Also only used 1 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and topped them off on top of the cookie before putting in the oven. I probably used less than 1/4 cup though. I also used caramel bits instead of the caramel cubes. They smell delish. Haven’t tried them yet, mine are on the cooling rack right now. 
” – Teresa
“My guests absolutely loved these and I’m sure I will make them again. Even my usually nit-picky husband couldn’t find anything wrong with them! Thanks for a great recipe!” – Jenna
“I think that I may have died and gone to heaven! Salted caramel combined with a soft chocolate chip cookie… you are AMAZING! I have to make this asap.” – Crystal
“These are actually amazing! Thank you so much for sharing. I’ve made hear for Mother’s Day. I am in the UK and substitutes instant vanilla pudding mix with Angel Delight, although I am told creme caramel mix would be better (I couldn’t find it). I think they have worked well – that ear just on the cooling rack and smell and look wonderful! They look like they have the right texture anyway. First class!” – Alice
Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup butter, softened (12 tablespoons)
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 egg
- 2 cups flour
- 1 small box instant vanilla pudding mix – dry , not prepared, (one 3.4 ounce box, it must be INSTANT – not cook and serve, etc)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
- 24 soft caramels , (such as Kraft square caramels, unwrapped)
- optional: coarse sea salt
Instructions
- Start by beating butter and sugars together for 1-2 minutes until very fluffy. Add vanilla and egg and mix well. In a separate bowl whisk together flour, pudding mix, baking soda, and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until incorporated and dough comes together. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 and very lightly grease baking sheets. (I lightly mist mine with cooking spray, then wipe it off with a paper towel, too much grease will yield very flat cookies!) Roll about 3-4 tablespoons of the chocolate chip cookie dough into a ball , then repeat with 3-4 more tablespoons of dough. Press a caramel square into the center of one dough ball. Gently smash the two dough balls together and roll into one single ball. Repeat with remaining dough and place dough balls at least 3-4 inches apart on the baking sheet. Poke additional chocolate chips into the top of each cookie if desired (this is just for looks).
- Bake cookies for 10-13 minutes until set but still slightly undercooked. Remove from oven and (optional) sprinkle immediately with coarse sea salt (highly recommended!). Allow to cool at least 10 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack and allow to completely cool to room temperature. Store in airtight container.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I love the idea. I find the dough itself too dry and difficult to roll, esp after chilling.
But when i modified the dough it turned out lovely using 1 and 1/4 cup (160g)all-purpose flour instead of 2 cups, they came out perfectly.
I followed the recipe exactly and only ended up with 11 giant cookies. I used 6-7 Tbsps for each cookie ball. Should they be smaller? Thanks
Hi Trina – the cookie dough balls should be slightly larger than a golf ball – hope that helps! 🙂
I would recommend then not saying in your recipe 3-4 tablespoons for each dough ball to roll…
Also I’m sure 10-12 minutes isn’t long enough.
I tried this recipe and 10-12 minutes does not cut it.
Hi! I wrote the recipe per my notes when I was baking these so whatever is in the recipe, that’s what worked for me! There are lots of recipes I’ve tried from other people though and they sometimes require a little tweaking on my end – that’s just the nature of baking and cooking. I hope you enjoyed these cookies though! 🙂
i made these cookies exactly as the recipe stated but they didn’t spread. Great recipe however I think I’ll omit chilling them for an hour next time I make them.
That’s so strange that they didn’t spread out – I’ve made these twice since Christmas and they spread out nicely, without becoming “flat” which is part of why I love them so much. Did you grease your baking pan at all?
I used medium organic eggs so I ended up having to use two in order to get the mixes to emulsify because the yolks are smaller, but two worked perfectly. Can’t wait to try them!
Do you flatten the cookies before baking? Mine stayed in a ball. Also 24 servings can’t be 24 cookies right?
You can flatten them slightly with the palm of your hand but they spread out during baking anyway. And yes – 24 cookies. 🙂
These were insane! I would love to feature the recipe on my blog, with a link back to your page, of course, if that’s alright!
I’m so glad you liked them! I’d love for you to share the on your blog – you can either 1) share one of my images with a link back to my blog for the full recipe, or 2) make and photograph the recipe yourself and share your own photo with the recipe re-written in your own words on your blog, including a link to my blog for the source. Thanks Merina~! 🙂
Thank you so much!
Your narrative mentions rewarming. When and how do you do that.
You can put them in the microwave for 5-8 seconds and they’ll come out soft and gooey!
I made these last night and they are absolutely amazing. The sea salt on top makes a huge difference!
Isn’t it incredible how much that changes the whole cookie?? A little sprinkle of sea salt can absolutely make a dessert in my opinion. So glad you enjoyed these cookies – they’re my FAV!
I am absolutely in love with this recipe. And the photography is beautiful! I am so going to try to recreate this amazingness. The cookies are literally eatable off the computer screen. lol Thanks for sharing!!! Xx
Thanks Jennifer! They really are soooo yummy! 🙂
Did you mean to say repeat with 3-4 more tablespoons of dough, or 3/4 tablespoon?
3-4 tablespoons