This Brookie recipe is a mashup between a chocolate chip cookie and a brownie in one easy-to-eat dessert bar. With a professional-bakery flavor, they are guaranteed to be the hit dessert of any gathering.
“I followed the recipe exactly and they came out great! Everything came together beautifully and as described. The foil trick is priceless — worked like a charm and everything baked up evenly with no sinking or overcooking of the edges. They are chewy and fudgy and just delicious! I am a bit of a brownie snob lol… but these are for sure my go-to now!” — Adrienne, Volunteer Recipe Tester
Why choose between a brownie or a chocolate chip cookie when you can bake them into one delicious bar? This Brookies recipe does just that and they’ve easily become my family’s new favorite treat. Ready in about an hour, these bars have chewy edges with a fudgy center that is so decadent.
When developing this dessert recipe, I made sure there was no fancy equipment needed. Just a couple of mixing bowls, a baking dish, and a mixer for the cookie dough. If you know how to make chocolate chip cookies from scratch, then this recipe will be foolproof for you!
A fair warning, when making these for a party, I recommend you make a second batch to enjoy at home, because they truly disappear instantly! Serve them alongside Triple Chocolate Cookies or Cinnamon Roll Cake for the best sweet spread.
This recipe was rigorously tested, we had a lot of brookie variations rolling through out house, which made my son and his college roommates very happy!
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- The best of both worlds in one delicious dessert. Now there’s no choosing between a brownie or a cookie, these Brookie bars are fudgy, decadent, and so delicious.
- A big hit with all ages. Kids and adults love them, making this recipe perfect for parties, potlucks, and gifting.
- Easy treat for beginner bakers. With all pantry staple ingredients, these are so easy for anyone to bake at a moment’s notice!
What is a Brookie?
If you’ve never heard of a brookie, you’re in for something very special. It’s a bar similar to a blondie or a brownie but with a twist.
The bottom layer of the bar is brownie batter and the top layer is chocolate chip cookie dough. They bake up into the most delicious dessert that’s chewy on the outside and fudgy on the inside.
Ingredients
Brownie Layer:
- Salted butter | I like to use salted to bring out even more of the sweet and cocoa flavors of the brookies. If you’re using unsalted, add ¼ teaspoon of extra salt.
- Cocoa powder | I like to use Dutch Processed cocoa here which is milder and smoother in flavor.
- Granulated sugar | Sweetens the brownie layer perfectly. I typically use all-natural cane sugar, but regular white sugar works too.
- Light brown sugar | Adds molasses and caramel notes.
- Pure Vanilla extract | A little dash gives a hint of floral flavor.
- Kosher salt | Add if you are using unsalted butter.
- Large eggs | Used for binding the cookie dough, room temp works best.
- Semisweet chocolate chips | Gives an extra hint of chocolate that I love in a brownie.
- All-purpose flour | Provides structure to the brownie batter. I use unbleached for the best texture and flavor.
Cookie Dough:
Make the Cookie Dough:
- Salted butter | Base of the cookie dough, I also use salted here to bring out the flavors. You can use unsalted; just add an extra pinch of salt.
- Light brown sugar | Used again to add chewy texture and light caramel flavor to the dough.
- Granulated sugar | Sweetens the cookie dough perfectly.
- Large eggs | I use both an egg and an egg yolk here for extra richness.
- Vanilla extract | The key extract to flavoring any delicious cookie dough.
- All-purpose flour | Structures the dough to be light but chewy, I like unbleached AP flour.
- Baking soda | Leavening agent that helps the brookies be dense yet tender in texture.
- Kosher salt | A pinch will add lots of flavor to the cookie dough layer.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips | Key to any great chocolate chip cookie dough. You can use milk chocolate or dark chocolate if you prefer as well.
- Flaky Sea Salt | A little extra salt adds both crunch and heightens the flavors of the brookies.
Get the full recipe in the recipe card below.
How to Make Brookies
Step 1 – Make the Brownie Batter:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper or non-stick foil with a little overhang to make removing the brookies easy for cutting.
In a large bowl, whisk cocoa powder into melted butter. Whisk in the brown sugar and the granulated sugar until well blended. *If your cocoa powder is very clumpy, run it through a sieve first.
Whisk in the salt, eggs, and vanilla extract, then beat well. This should take a couple of minutes.
Add the flour and fold it into the brownie batter. When it’s close to being fully combined, fold the chocolate chips with a spatula, scraping the sides and the bottom making sure you incorporate all of the flour.
Spread evenly into the prepared pan and set aside until ready to add the chocolate chip cookie dough. By the way, this is a stellar fudgy brownie recipe by itself!
Step 2 – Make the Cookie Dough
In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugars on medium speed for 3-4 minutes (4 minutes if using all-natural cane sugar).
Add the egg and egg yolk and vanilla. Beat for 30 seconds after each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt, whisking to combine.
With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture a little at a time (with water if you are at high altitude), mixing just until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Step 3 – Assemble and Bake the Brookies
I prefer to drop spoonfuls of cookie dough batter over the top of the brownie batter, leaving space between. I personally like it when some of the brownie batter bakes through. However, you can also pat the cookie dough into uniform thickness “patties” and lay them over the top of the brownies, connecting or not, your decision. Cover tightly with foil.
Bake covered with foil for 22 minutes in the preheated oven, then remove foil and continue baking for another 18-20 minutes. Don’t overbake. The center will still be a bit glossy and slightly underbaked, but the edges should have begun to pull away from the pan. A toothpick inserted should come out with a few moist crumbs.
Remove to a wire rack, sprinkling a few chocolate chips over the top for a bakery finish, I love a little flaky sea salt, too! Cool completely before slicing. When ready to slice, use the parchment or foil to remove from the baking pan, slice into squares.
Expert Tips
- Use your favorite type of chocolate chips. I personally find semi-sweet to be the perfect balance of sweet and bitter. You can also use a chocolate bar, just chop it up to fill ¾ of a cup.
- If you want brownies with a glossy top, the key is to whisk the sugar, butter, and eggs well, about 2 minutes! Get that arm workout!
- Make sure you oven is the accurate temperature. If your oven runs hot, then the edges can puff before the center is cooked. Check the temperature using an oven thermometer.
- If you are using unsalted butter for both the brownie layer and the cookie layer, just add ¼ teaspoon of extra salt.
- Don’t forget to cover with foil for the first part of baking. This will help the inside to cook at a similar rate as the outside. Then uncover for the last portion of the baking to help the top set. The bars will be a little underbaked when they are finished and this is a good thing! It gives you that ultra fudgy center.
- When layering the batters, you can do it two different ways. Either add dollops of cookie dough on top or make small patties of cookie dough to lay on top for more even coverage. Both will give you fairly distinct layers.
High Altitude Adjustments
Brownie Batter: Reduce brown sugar and granulated sugar by 1 tablespoon each, and increase flour by 1 tablespoon.
Chocolate Chip Cookies Dough: Reduce the brown sugar and granulated sugar by 1 tablespoon each, increase the flour by 2 tablespoons, and add 1 teaspoon of water at the end with the flour.
Bake as directed, but always be sure to check the brookies a couple of minutes before they’re finished baking.
I bake at about 5280 above sea level (Denver), but rest assured, I have a team of volunteer recipe testers across the country who raved about them too!
Variations & Substitutions
- Gluten-Free: I haven’t tried this particular recipe using gluten-free swaps, but I’ve made my brownies and chocolate chip cookies gluten-free plenty of times previously before, so it should work, just don’t over-bake the bars.
- Replace the flour in the brownies with gluten-free all-purpose flour.
- In the chocolate chip cookie dough, replace 1 ⅓ cups of flour with gluten-free all-purpose flour and the remaining ⅓ cup with oat flour for the best texture and flavor. Allow the dough to hydrate for 5 to 10 minutes before assembling. Watch the bake time, they may not need to bake as long.
- Stir in some nuts: Add ½ cup of nuts to the brownies and to the chocolate chip cookies. I personally love chopped walnuts or pecans.
- Add a layer of Oreos: If you want to take these brookies to the next level, add a layer of Oreo cookies between the brownies and the chocolate chip cookies. These are actually called slutty brownies (ah!).
- Dairy-Free: Replace butter with plant-based butter, my favorite is brand Miyokos.
- Swap Dutch-processed cocoa powder with natural cocoa powder: You can use natural cocoa powder (in place of Dutch processed), but add ½ teaspoon of baking soda to the brownie batter.
What to Serve with Brookies
Brookies are fantastic at room temperature, when the brownie layer is fudgy and the cookie top is perfectly chewy. For a truly swoon-worthy treat, warm a bar slightly and serve with:
- A scoop of vanilla ice cream
- Pour a drizzle of chocolate fudge, butterscotch or magic shell
- Or just a hot cup of coffee or tea
Storage
These Brookies are easy to store at room temperature for up to 3 days in an airtight container.
They also freeze beautifully for up to 2 months. We recommend cutting them into bars and wrapping them individually for easy eating later! Thaw fully on the counter before enjoying.
If you want to warm a brookie bar, then just place individual thawed bars into the microwave and heat on 10 to 15-second intervals or in the oven at 300ºF for 8 to 10 minutes. If you are warming from frozen, they will take a couple of extra seconds in the microwave or minutes in the oven.
FAQs
Brookies have a layer of chocolate chip cookie dough on top and are a mashup of brownies and cookies in one bite.
We add more chocolate chips for a bakery-style look and additional chocolate flavor.
The outside edges should be baked and chewy, while the inside should be set but a little underbaked so it’s fudgy in texture.
More Easy Cookie Recipes
Ingredients
Brownie Layer:
- ½ cup melted butter I used salted; if using unsalted, add ¼ teaspoon extra salt
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder Dutch processed
- ½ cup granulated sugar minus 1 tablespoon for high altitude – see Notes
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar packed (minus 1 tablespoon for high altitude)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt ¾ teaspoon if using unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips see Notes for chocolate bar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour + 1 tablespoon for high altitude, I use unbleached
Make the Cookie Dough:
- 10 tablespoons salted butter room temperature
- ⅔ cup light brown sugar packed (minus 1 tablespoon high altitude)
- ½ cup granulated sugar minus 1 tablespoon high altitude
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour + 2 tablespoons high altitude
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips plus extra for after baking
- 1 teaspoon water high altitude only
- Flaky Sea Salt optional for sprinkling on top
Instructions
Make the Brownie Batter:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper or non-stick foil with a little overhang to make removing the brookies easy for cutting.
- In a large bowl, whisk cocoa powder into melted butter. Whisk in the brown sugar and the granulated sugar until well blended.½ cup melted butter, ⅓ cup cocoa powder, ½ cup granulated sugar, ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- Whisk in the salt, eggs, and vanilla extract, then beat well. This should take 2 minutes, really, set your timer!
- Add the flour and fold it into the brownie batter. When it’s close to being fully combined, fold the chocolate chips with a spatula, scraping the sides and the bottom making sure you incorporate all of the flour.½ cup all-purpose flour, ¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips
- Spread evenly into the prepared pan and set aside until ready to add the chocolate chip cookie dough.
Make the Cookie Dough:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugars on medium speed for 3-4 minutes (4 minutes if using all-natural cane sugar).10 tablespoons salted butter, ⅔ cup light brown sugar, ½ cup granulated sugar
- Add the egg and egg yolk and vanilla. Beat for 30 seconds after each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt, whisking to combine.
- With the mixer on low, add the flour a little at a time (with water if you are at high altitude), mixing just until combined.1 teaspoon water
- Stir in the chocolate chips.1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Assemble the Brookies:
- I prefer to drop spoonfuls of cookie dough batter over the top of the brownie batter, leaving space between. I personally like it when some of the brownie batter bakes through. However, you can also pat the cookie dough into uniform thickness “patties” and lay over the top of the brownies, connecting or not, your decision. Cover tightly with foil.
- Bake covered with foil for 22 minutes in the preheated oven, then remove foil and continue baking for another 18-20 minutes. Don't overbake. The center will still be a bit glossy and slightly underbaked, but the edges should have begun to pull away from the pan.
- Remove to a wire rack, sprinkling a few chocolate chips over the top for a bakery finish, I love a little flaky sea salt, too! Cool completely before slicing. When ready to slice, use the parchment or foil to remove from the pan, slice into squares.
Notes
- These Brookies are easy to store at room temperature for up to 3 days in an airtight container.
- They also freeze beautifully too for up to 2 months. We recommend cutting them into bars and wrapping them individually for easy eating later! Just thaw fully on the counter.
- If you want to warm a brookie bar, then just place individual thawed bars into the microwave and heat on 10 to 15 second intervals or in the oven at 300ºF for 8 to 10 minutes. If you are warming from frozen, they will take a couple of extra seconds in the microwave or minutes in the oven.
- Use your favorite type of chocolate chips. I personally find semi-sweet to be the perfect balance of sweet and bitter. You can also use a chocolate bar, just chop it up to fill ¾ of a cup.
- If you want brownies with a glossy top, the key is to whisk the sugar, butter, and eggs well, about 2 minutes!
- Make sure you oven is the accurate temperature. If your oven runs hot, then the edges can puff before the center is cooked. Check the temperature using an oven thermometer.
- If you are using unsalted butter for both the brownie layer and the cookie layer, just add ¼ teaspoon of extra salt.
- Don’t forget to cover with foil for the first part of baking. This will help the inside to cook at a similar rate as the outside. Then uncover for the last portion of the baking to help the top set. The bars will be a little underbaked when they are finished and this is a good thing! It gives you that ultra fudgy center.
- When layering the batters, you can do it two different ways. Either dollop the cookie dough on top or make small patties of cookie dough to lay on top for more even coverage.
- High Altitude: Follow ingredient adjustments for high altitude on recipe, adding water to the chocolate chip cookie dough. Watch your baking time, as bar cookies can bake faster at altitude.
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