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    Home » Recipes » Cookies

    Dutch Cocoa Cookies

    Published: Apr 16, 2019 · Modified: Sep 21, 2021 by Heather · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. · 774 words. · About 4 minutes to read this article.

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    Dutch Cocoa Cookies by The Toasty Kitchen

    Dutch Cocoa Cookies are rich and chewy, with a crunchy sugar coating. These chocolate cookies are reminiscent of Archway's Dutch Cocoa Cookies.

    A stack of chocolate cookies on a grey counter top

    I began a search for this cookie recipe a few years ago when I was reminded of Archway’s Dutch Cocoa Cookies. A soft, chocolate cookie covered in sugar - yes, please!

    In my search, I came across this recipe by Martha Stewart for Grammy’s Chocolate Cookies. Anything made by Martha must be perfection, right? I made a batch, and from the first taste I was instantly taken back to childhood.

    I've since adjusted the recipe slightly, but Martha's version was my starting point. While it might not be an exact replica of Archway’s version, it certainly comes close.

    Chocolate cookies on a grey countertop, with sugar and cocoa powderBaking soda with dutch cocoa

    This recipe calls for baking soda. Previously, I didn't understand why Martha included baking soda alongside dutch cocoa. After all, it does not have the acidity of regular cocoa powder.

    You need to use acidic ingredients alongside baking soda so that your cookies will rise. However, dutch cocoa cookies are not meant to rise!

    These cookies should spread thin when baking, with a crispy outside and a chewy inside. Just like an Archway cookie.

    But guess what? Baking soda helps the cookies to spread, and also gives them that crispy exterior. Check out this post with more details - Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder.

    Ingredients and substitutions

    Ingredients to make dutch cocoa cookies.Since baking is an exact science, I do not have many substitutions to offer. Each ingredient has its purpose, so I do not recommend omitting anything.

    Unsalted butter and salt can be substituted with salted butter.

    Make sure your butter and eggs are room temperature. This ensures that your ingredients mix together seamlessly into an even, creamy, dough.

    Properly measured flour

    It is extremely important that the flour is measured properly for this (and any) baking recipe. Either weight your flour with a kitchen scale (1 cup of flour weighs 120 grams), or use the spoon and level method.

    Using a spoon, fill your measuring cup with flour, then level off with a knife.

    Using your measuring cup to scoop your flour directly from a bin compacts the flour into the cup, adding up to 25% extra flour to your dough. This makes your cookies cakey and thick. They'll spread less when baking and may turn out dry.

    Dutch cocoa cookies on a cooling rack.

    Cookie dough scoops

    For this recipe, I like to use two different sized cookie scoops depending on the situation. For a regular sized cookie, I recommend using a medium sized cookie scoop.

    For something like a holiday tray or a party, sometimes I like to use a small cookie scoop. They make a nice, two-bite cookie that's small and easy to enjoy.

    A stack of chocolate cookies on a grey counter top
    Print Recipe
    4.75 from 39 reviews

    Dutch Cocoa Cookies

    Dutch Cocoa Cookies are rich and chewy, with a crunchy sugar coating. These chocolate cookies are reminiscent of Archway's Dutch Cocoa Cookies. 
    Prep Time15 minutes
    Cook Time10 minutes
    Resting Time1 hour
    Total Time1 hour 25 minutes
    Servings: 36 cookies
    Calories: 118kcal
    Author: Heather

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
    • 1 ½ cups (297 g) granulated sugar
    • 2 large eggs, room temperature
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    • 2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour
    • ¾ cup (63 g) dutch cocoa
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar, for rolling

    Instructions

    • In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla extract. Beat for up to 3 minutes, or until mixture looks fluffy.
    • In a separate bowl, sift (or whisk) together the flour, dutch cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
    • Slowly mix dry ingredients into butter mixture until just combined.
    • Cover bowl or wrap dough in wax paper. Chill for at least 1 hour (up to 24 hours) in the refrigerator. Refrigerating will help the flavors meld and also create a firmer dough to roll into balls.
    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
    • Remove dough from refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Scoop dough using a 1.5 tablespoon (medium) scoop or shape by hand into 1.5 inch balls. Roll balls in granulated sugar.
    • Place cookie dough balls 2 inches apart onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cookies begin to crack on top. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

    Equipment Recommendations

    • Nordic Ware Half Baking Sheet
    • Reynolds Parchment Paper
    • OXO Cookie Scoops
    • Nicewell Digital Kitchen Scale

    Notes

    • Cookies will keep for 5-7 days in a sealed container. To help keep cookies fresh, place a slice of bread in the container with the cookies. Replace the bread slice as needed.
    • Raw cookie dough will keep in the refrigerator for 3 days. Cookie dough balls (and baked cookies) freeze well, up to 3 months, in a sealed plastic container or freezer bag. Allow frozen balls to thaw for up to 10 minutes on the baking sheet before baking, or add 1-2 minutes to the baking time.
    • Be sure to check out my 10 tips for baking cookies, based on reader comments and questions!

    Nutrition Estimate

    Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 118kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 67mg | Potassium: 39mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 170IU | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 0.6mg
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American

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    1. Wendy

      December 23, 2022 at 4:16 am

      Anyone ever made these with gluten free flour? And if so how’d they turn out?

      Reply
    2. Joanna

      August 25, 2022 at 8:45 pm

      Delicious warm out of the oven and equally delicious, if not more so, the next day when they are chewy in the center and slightly crisp on the edges from the sugar coating. Rich chocolate flavor with the right amount of sweetness. Thanks for the recipe!

      Reply
    3. Jonah

      July 22, 2022 at 9:50 pm

      Hi there,

      I have both dark and light dutch cocoa. Do you recommend one or the other, or is it to taste? I may try a mixture... Looking forward to these lovelies.

      Reply
      • Heather

        July 22, 2022 at 9:58 pm

        Hi Jonah, I've never tried this recipe with light dutch cocoa, but I think either would work in this recipe. Let us know how you like the cookies!

        Reply
    4. Kendra

      December 22, 2021 at 4:03 pm

      Hi! Quick question , I only have 1 stick of unsalted butter and one stick of salted. How much salt should I add do you think? Maybe a 1/4 teaspoon

      Reply
      • Heather

        December 22, 2021 at 4:13 pm

        Hi Kendra - yes! One stick of butter contains about 1/4 teaspoon of salt, so for each stick of salted butter, I'd suggest reducing the amount of salt in the recipe by 1/4 teaspoon.

        Reply
    5. Chris O

      December 10, 2021 at 11:24 am

      Hi, thank you for this wonderful recipe. I loved Archway Dutch Chocolate cookies as a kid but kinda forgot about them over the past couple decades. Then over the past year I started to take up baking as a hobby. I've made all kinds of cookies over that time but this recipe I've used twice.. Each time I follow instructions to a T and bake for 10 minutes in my gas over and they are perfect by the time they fully cool. There's just something different and addictive about these. The flavor just has this subtle deliciousness and aftertaste that combines so well with the texture. Anyways these have been the biggest hit amongst family and coworkers when compared to my other works, so I'm not alone,

      Again, thank you for your efforts putting this recipe up as it is a winner!!! I have butter and eggs on the counter warming to room temp for my third batch as I type this. Happy baking

      Reply
    6. Samantha Barrymore

      December 04, 2021 at 2:33 am

      These look so good! Can I add bitter sweet chocolate chips and white chocolate chunks? I was also wondering if I could use half brown sugar and half granulated sugar?

      Reply
      • Heather

        December 04, 2021 at 8:41 am

        Yes, chips and chunks can be added to the dough! I haven't tried the recipe with brown and granulated sugar, but it should be fine. If you give it a try, let us know how it goes!

        Reply
    7. Kellyn

      November 27, 2021 at 5:54 pm

      Delicious chocolatey cookies!! I’ve made them with both regular all purpose flour and gluten free all purpose flour and both worked great! I highly recommend. And I always underbake them a minute so they’re extra gooey 🙂 delicious!!!

      Reply
    8. Amy

      February 20, 2021 at 9:50 pm

      These are the first chocolate cookies I've made and they came out perfectly. My entire family ages 3 and up can't stop eating them! I added a 1/2 tsp cinnamon because I add that to almost everything I bake, and sprinkled a little coarse salt on top, but I'm sure they'd still be great without.

      Reply
      • Heather

        February 21, 2021 at 10:18 am

        Yum, cinnamon sounds like a great addition - so glad you enjoyed them!

        Reply
    9. Amy Marie Orozco

      January 21, 2021 at 1:45 pm

      An easy cookie to make and delicious to eat. Thanks for sharing. I was out of vanilla, so substituted almond extract (half the amount of the vanilla). Success! Next time I'll try with vanilla.

      Reply
    10. JV

      June 13, 2020 at 2:47 pm

      These were so easy to make, and delicious the first day. But OMG, the next few days... absolutely addictive. Like, we had to hide the cookie jar so we wouldn't destroy them! I added some flaky sea salt on top for the combination of sweet and salty. Ok, off to make more. Thanks for a great recipe!

      Reply
    11. kristin

      May 03, 2020 at 9:21 pm

      Oh man! First batch, first sheet out of the oven. These look and smell soooo good, but they didn’t spread much and puffed up quite a bit. Maybe my dough balls (straight from waiting in the fridge for oven space) were too cold? I’m a huge fan of thinner, crunchy-chewy cookies like what you described. Fingers crossed I can let the chill off a little and get them to spread more.

      Reply
      • Heather

        May 04, 2020 at 7:28 am

        Hi Kristin! Warmer dough will help them spread more. A common issue I see when cookies are too thick/don't spread is that too much flour was added to the dough. I recommend the spoon and level method, spooning flour into the measuring cup, then leveling with a knife. If flour is scooped with the measuring cup, it often compacts flour into the cup and adds up to 25% more flour to the recipe.

        Reply
        • Lisa

          September 19, 2020 at 8:18 pm

          I don’t know if this will be helpful so much after the fact, but my experience was that they did, indeed, puff quite a bit during baking, but as I had hoped, they flattened perfectly as they cooled.
          These delivered the crisp exterior and chewy interior described in the recipe in a BIG way...and I suspect that by tomorrow the deep chocolate flavor will be more complex and pronounced. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!

          Reply
    12. Maria

      February 19, 2020 at 10:31 pm

      These were the most amazing cookies I’ve ever made, ever. Ever. And I’ve made a lot of cookies! What a wonderful recipe you’ve created here! I will say this: I made these for Valentine’s Day and so I wanted to bump up the chocolate so I added about 1 1 1/2 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips. Holy moly. Amazing. Wanna know what else I did, because I’m ridiculous? I ate them with a spoonful of Nutella. Oh my. Currently trying to figure out a way to stuff them with Nutella! Thanks again, this ones a keeper!

      Reply
      • Heather

        February 20, 2020 at 7:53 am

        Hi Maria, thank you for the great review! I'm so glad you love the recipe.

        Reply
    13. Deborah Breen

      December 11, 2019 at 3:27 pm

      Super good cookie ! Have made them twice already and they are going to go on my Christmas cookie platter for sure ! Thank you so much for sharing !!

      Reply
      • Heather

        December 11, 2019 at 3:30 pm

        Thank you Deborah for the review, I'm so glad you enjoy the recipe!

        Reply

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    Heather of The Toasty Kitchen

    Hi, I'm Heather of The Toasty Kitchen. I love cooking with real, unfussy ingredients, and I want to help you make homemade meals with ease.

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