Small-Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies for Two

 In this post, we’re going to make a recipe that is perfect for those times when you want something sweet, but you really don’t want to spend hours in the kitchen. You know the vibe—you don’t want to make a big production of it, and you definitely don’t want to make too much.

If you’re craving some homemade cookies but you don’t want to end up making way more than you could possibly ever eat, or deal with a giant mess, then these small-batch chocolate chip cookies are totally the way to go.

Why You’ll Love This

• The Perfect Yield: This makes about 24 cookies—exactly two dozen. It’s the perfect middle ground between those tiny “mug cake” recipes and a standard massive batch that yields 40+ cookies.
• No “Weird Math”: A lot of small-batch recipes ask you to split an egg, which can get kind of weird. This uses exactly one whole egg. Easy.
• Thick and Soft: The dough is nice and thick, which means these bake up with golden brown edges and soft, chewy centers.
• Low Stress: We aren’t making a huge production here. Simple ingredients, simple cleanup.

things you need

Special Equipment:

• Electric hand mixer (or stand mixer)
• Medium cookie scoop (approx. 2 tablespoons)
• Baking sheet
• Parchment paper

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups (approx. 190g) All-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
• ½ teaspoon Baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon Baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon Salt
• ½ cup (1 stick / 113g) Unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• ½ cup (100g) Light brown sugar, packed
• ¼ cup (50g) Granulated white sugar
• 1 Large egg, room temperature
• ½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
• ⅔ cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips
• ½ cup Chopped walnuts (optional)

Step 1: Prep Your Dry Ingredients

First things first, let’s measure out the flour. We are using 1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour.

Pro Tip on Measuring: To make sure you aren’t adding too much flour, use the “spoon and level” method. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level off the top with a knife. This ensures you aren’t packing the flour down, which is what leads to dry, cakey cookies.

Add the flour to a bowl along with:

• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Whisk that all up and set that bowl to the side.

Step 2: Cream the Butter and Sugar

In a separate bowl, it’s time for the wet ingredients. You’ll need:

• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup packed light brown sugar
• ½ cup unsalted butter (room temperature)

Mix this at medium-high to high speed for several minutes. You really want it to be light and fluffy, and it’s going to take a few minutes to get there, so be patient! Once it’s creamy, add one large egg (near room temperature) and your vanilla extract. Mix that all in until smooth.

Step 3: Putting It All Together

Start adding in your flour mixture. I usually add it in three different parts. Add a little, mix it, and repeat until the flour is just incorporated.

The dough is going to be pretty thick here, so just work with it as best you can! You may have to turn your mixer up a little, but that’s just the nature of good cookie dough.

Now, stir in about ⅔ cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips. I like to mix these in by hand. (If you like a crunch, you can add ½ cup of chopped walnuts)

The Waiting Game: Cover the bowl and chill the dough for about an hour. This is key for the flavor and texture!

Step 4: Time to Bake!

After the hour is up, preheat your oven to 350°F.

Get your sheet pan ready with some parchment paper. Quick Tip: To get the parchment paper to lay flat, I usually just ball it up into a tight mess and then smash it back out. It works for me—whatever works for you!

Use a medium-sized cookie scoop (or a tablespoon) to scoop out mounds that are about two tablespoons in size. You can usually fit about 12 on a dish. Space them about 2 inches apart.

Bake at 350°F for 12 to 18 minutes (mine usually take 15). You’ll know they are done when the edges are a beautiful golden brown.

Pull them out, wait about 5 minutes for them to set, and then transfer them to a cooling rack.

I hope you enjoy these—happy baking!

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Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies (The “Perfect Two Dozen”)

Recipe by Sana ReiCourse: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

24

cookies

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

15

minutes

Calories

110

kcal

Chill time

60

Total time

1

hour 

30

minutes

The ideal chocolate chip cookie recipe for when you want homemade treats but don’t want a massive production. These cookies are thick, soft-centered, and have crisp golden edges. Yields exactly 24 cookies—no leftover egg halves and no huge mess.

Ingredients

• Equipment Needed

• Mixing bowls

• Electric mixer

• Whisk and spatula

• Baking sheet

• Parchment paper

• Cookie scoop

• Ingredients

• ½ cups (190g) All-purpose flour

• ½ tsp Baking soda

• ¼ tsp Baking powder

• ¼ tsp Salt

• ½ cup (113g) Unsalted butter, room temperature

• ½ cup (100g) Light brown sugar, packed

• ¼ cup (50g) Granulated sugar

• 1 Large egg, room temperature

• ½ tsp Vanilla extract

• ⅔ cup (115g) Semi-sweet chocolate chips

• ½ cup (60g) Chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

• Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. (Tip: Spoon and level your flour so you don’t accidentally pack it down!) Set aside.
• Cream Butter & Sugars: In a separate large bowl, combine the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat for several minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy.
• Add Wet Ingredients: Add the egg and vanilla extract to the butter mixture. Beat until well combined.
• Combine: Gradually add the dry flour mixture into the wet ingredients in three parts, mixing between additions. The dough will be quite thick—you may need to increase the mixer speed slightly.
• Fold in Mix-ins: Switch to a spatula or use your hands to fold in the chocolate chips (and walnuts, if using).
• Chill: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
• Preheat: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (Pro tip: Crumple the parchment paper into a ball and then smooth it out to make it lay flat).
• Scoop: Use a medium cookie scoop (or about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie) to form dough balls. Place them on the baking sheet about 2 inches apart. You should fit about 12 per sheet.
• Bake: Bake for 12–18 minutes (15 minutes is usually perfect). The edges should be golden brown.
• 10. Cool: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes to set, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes

• Yield: This makes about 24 cookies. If you try to halve this to make just 12, you’d have to use half an egg, which gets weird. Stick to the full batch!
• Dough Texture: Don’t panic if the dough seems very thick before you add the chips; that is just the nature of this recipe and helps them stay soft.
• Parchment Hack: If your parchment paper keeps curling up on the pan, ball it up tight in your hands first, then flatten it out. It loses its curl instantly.
• Nuts: I don’t use them because of allergies, but walnuts add a great crunch if you like them.