The Best Chocolate Filled Cookies (Thick and Gooey)

Ingredients Needed

• Cornstarch: adding cornstarch will give you a super soft cookie.
• Butter: I used European style butter which makes the cookies extra creamy and rich due to the higher butterfat content.
• Chocolate Chips: these chocolate filled cookies are packed with 3 types of chocolate chips! I used semi-sweet chips, white chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips.
• Chocolate Hazelnut Spread: this delicious chocolate hazelnut spread is what fills these cookies! I have tested this recipe with both Nutella and grocery store brands of chocolate hazelnut spread.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Step 1: Place a piece of parchment paper on a plate or a small baking sheet. Use a tablespoon or small cookie scoop to scoop out 8 tablespoons of the chocolate hazelnut spread. Place the parchment lined plate or sheet in the freezer until firm, about 20-30 minutes.

Step 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the cold cubed butter with the white sugar and light brown sugar. Beat for 3-4 minutes, until light and fluffy.

Step 3: Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. I recommend using a rubber spatula to scrape the side of the bowl so everything is getting mixed.

Step 4: Add the dry ingredients - the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cornstarch. Mix on low until just combined.

Step 5: Add all three types of chocolate chips to the cookie dough in the bowl.

Step 6: Stir everything together until just combined. Divide the dough into 8 large cookie dough balls. If you find the dough is too sticky, you can place it in the fridge for 20-30 minutes to chill.

Step 7: Use your thumbs to create a well in each cookie dough ball. Take the frozen nutella out of the freezer and place one in each well. Use your fingers to cover the chocolate ball completely in cookie dough. If you feel like your cookie dough has gotten warm from doing all of this, place in the fridge for 15-20 minutes.

Step 8: Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place 4 cookies on each sheet, so they have plenty of space. Bake one sheet at a time (keeping the other sheet of cookies in the fridge) in the oven preheated to 400°Fahrenheit/205°Celsius for 11-13 minutes. Let the cookies sit for at least 15 minutes as they need to firm up.

Expert Tips & Tricks

• Bakery Style Cookies: Once the chocolate filled cookies come out of the oven, I use a large biscuit cutter to scoot the cookies and make them perfectly round. I then press extra chocolate chips on top of each cookie.
• Chocolate Hazelnut Spread: I have tested this cookie recipe with both Nutella and a store brand version of chocolate hazelnut spread. I noticed with the store-brand version that the chocolate filling was much more melty after baking, while the Nutella was firmer.
• Cold Butter: Usually, I always say start with room temperature ingredients, but this time you want your butter to be cold!
• Chilling the Cookie Dough: If your kitchen is cold and you started with cold butter, you shouldn't have to chill the cookie dough. But, while testing this recipe several times, I found that on some days my cookie dough was warm. If that happens to you, just place it in the fridge for 20-30 minutes to firm up!
• Chocolate Chips: This might seem like a lot of chocolate chips, but the mix-ins help keep the dough together. Feel free to swap out the chocolate chips for your favorite type of baking chip! Just make sure you use an equal amount.
• High Temperature: I typically bake my cookies at 350ºFahrenheit, but I really wanted that Levain bakery style look, so I experimented with various oven temperatures. What I discovered was that baking them at 350ºFahrenheit resulted in flatter cookies, whereas using a higher temperature for a shorter duration yielded beautifully tall and thick cookies.

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