Time to bake some crinkle cookies! These holiday classics are the ultimate crowd-pleasers: rich and fudgy like the best homemade brownies, with a soft, melt-in-your-mouth center and an indulgent chocolatey flavor. Chunky, charming, and completely irresistible!
What Are Crinkle Cookies?
Crinkle cookies are soft, cake-like delights known for their signature cracked, crinkled surface and bold chocolate flavor.
Before baking, each cookie is generously coated in powdered sugar, which creates their iconic look. As the cookies bake, the sugar absorbs moisture, causing the surface to crack beautifully while keeping the inside irresistibly soft.
Nowadays, there are many exciting variations of crinkle cookies in addition to the classic chocolate version. From zesty lemon and vibrant red velvet to unique Asian-inspired flavors like ube and pandan, there’s a crinkle cookie to satisfy every craving!
Ingredients
Cocoa powder: The main ingredient for the intense chocolate flavor.
All-purpose flour
Melted butter (or cooking oil): The flavor will be even more intense if you use clarified butter or nut butter.
Granulated sugar
Salt
Vanilla extract
Egg
Baking Powder
Additional chocolatey ingredients: Instant coffee and chocolate chips for an even more intense flavor.
Dusting: There are two options: granulated sugar and powdered sugar or powdered sugar and cornstarch.
How to prevent the powdered sugar from melting
Since the cookie dough is quite moist, the powdered sugar may slightly melt during baking and turn yellowish.
If you want the powdered sugar to stay bright white and resemble snow, you have two options:
- Quick and easy: Roll the cookie dough balls first in a bit of granulated sugar, then generously coat them in powdered sugar.
- Less sweet (my preferred method): Mix powdered sugar with cornstarch and thoroughly dust the cookie balls with this mixture.
Helpful Tips
- If your cookies turn out flat, it could be because the dough wasn’t chilled long enough or didn’t contain enough flour.
- Crinkle cookies are done as soon as the characteristic cracks appear on the surface. This typically takes 10-12 minutes, depending on their size. Aim for slightly underbaked rather than overbaked for the perfect soft texture.
- The cookie dough can be frozen for up to 3 months. To bake, let the dough thaw at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling and baking.
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies (So Fudgy!)
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (100g)
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (60g)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar (150g)
- ¼ cup melted butter or cooking oil (60ml)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp instant coffee (optional)
For Dusting:
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1½ tsp cornstarch
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix the melted butter with cocoa powder and sugar until smooth. Add the egg, vanilla extract, instant coffee, and salt, stirring until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Gradually fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. Avoid overmixing.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes, or preferably overnight. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) about 15 minutes before baking.
- Shape the chilled dough into balls weighing 0.7-1.0 oz each, and generously coat them in the powdered sugar and cornstarch mixture.
- Place the coated dough balls on a baking sheet and bake on the middle rack for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies puff up and develop cracks on the surface.
