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Home » Cookies » High Altitude Chocolate Cookies

High Altitude Chocolate Cookies

Published: Mar 22, 2023 by Mara · This post may contain affiliate links - as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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These delicious High Altitude Chocolate Cookies are a dream for chocolate and cookie lovers! They are made with cocoa powder and your choice of chocolate chips. The result are chewy, delicious and of course chocoately cookies!

High Altitude chocolate cookies (some with semi-sweet chocolate chips and some with white chocolate chips) on white parchment paper on a metal baking pan with sea salt on top of the cookies and more chips spread out on the tray.

I transformed my High Altitude Chocolate Chip Cookies into these High Altitude Chocolate Cookies! These cookies are a chocolate lover's creams. They are rich, chocolately, chewy, and tender with lots of chocolate chips of course.

I love using a dark chocolate cocoa powder which results in a rich, dark and slightly bitter cookie dough that contrasts deliciously with the sweetness of the semi sweet and white chocolate chips. This creates super balanced cookies which can be made a head of time and freezes well. So you can have cookies whenever you're craving one.

If you're looking for even more high altitude cookie recipes, you have to check out my Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, Smoked S'mores Cookies and Bailey's Ganache Thumbprint Cookies.

High Altitude chocolate cookies with white chocolate chips on white parchment paper on a metal baking pan with more white chocolate chips spread out on the baking sheet.

Why You'll Love this Recipe

Lots and lots of chocolate! - while chocolate chip cookies are always delicious, these double chocolate cookies are an equally delicious version with one simple change. The added cocoa powder adds a rich depth that pairs with your choice of chocolate chips.

Easy to Make - This cookie dough is easy to make with simple pantry staple ingredients. Making these cookies your go-to recipe for anytime and occasion.

No Chilling Required - While you CAN chill the dough to develop the dough even more it is not required. Make these High Altitude Chocolate Cookies right when you want them. Create the dough and bake immediately for delicious chocolate cookies.

Ingredient Notes

High altitude chocolate cookies on a brown plank background. Each item is labeled with a white rectangle with black text in all caps.

Unsalted Butter - I use unsalted so that we can control the amount of salt. The butter adds richness and results in a delicious buttery cookie.

Sugar - I use dark brown and granulated sugar to give us just the right amount of sweetness and chewiness. I like dark brown sugar for its robust taste and it also reacts with the baking soda.

Eggs - to bind the cookie dough, add moisture, and adds richness. 

Flour - I always use all-purpose flour. Make sure you see my Expert Tips section on how to properly measure flour.

Cocoa Powder - I used dark cocoa powder (Hershey's Dark) but you can use a dutch process cocoa powder or a regular cocoa powder. Also see my Expert Tips section on how to properly measure the cocoa powder.

Salt - I prefer to use kosher or fine sea salt in my recipes.

Vanilla Extract - I recommend using a nice vanilla pure extract for best flavor. You can also use vanilla bean paste. 

Baking Soda - it's our only leavening agent in these cookies. It reacts with the acidic molasses in the dark brown sugar. Which can result in a higher rise than using a light brown sugar.

Chocolate Chips - use your favorite chocolate chips - semi sweet, milk, dark, butterscotch, peanut butter or even white chocolate chips. I like the contrast of the dark bitter cocoa powder and the sweet white chocolate personally. But, semi-sweet chocolate chips are also my go-to!

Step-by-Step Instructions

a red stand mixer with a beater attachment with the butter and sugar being creamed together on a wood plank background.  In the upper left corner is a dark red square with a white '1' in the center.
  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. While it's preheating, in a large mixing bowl, beat melted butter, room temperature butter, and both sugars until completely creamed together ~ 2-3 minutes.
a red stand mixer with a beater attachment with the eggs and vanilla being beaten into the butter and sugar mixture .   In the upper left corner is a dark red square with a white '2' in the center.
  1. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract, beat until combined together.
the mixing bowl with the chocolate cookie dough combined with a red silicone spatula.  In the upper left corner is a dark red square with a white '3' in the center.
  1. Add in kosher salt, baking soda, all purpose flour and cocoa powder. Beat until just combined. It's okay if there are a few streaks of flour.
2 white bowls of dark chocolate cookie dough. One dough with white chocolate chips and one dough with semi-sweet chocolate chips. Each bowl has a gold spoon in it and the bowls are on a wood plank background.  In the upper left corner is a dark red square with a white '4' in the center.
  1. Add in chocolate chips and use a silicone spatula to fold the chocolate chips into the batter until it's fully combined. If you want to make two varieties like picture - divide dough in half and add add chips to each batch.
A baking sheet pan with 8 pieces of cookie dough on the sheet spread out. 4 cookie dough balls with white chocolate chips and 4 cookie dough balls with semi-sweet chocolate chips. The baking sheet sits on a wood plank background.  In the upper left corner is a dark red square with a white '5' in the center.
  1. Scoop cookie dough using a 2.8 tablespoons or 1.4 ounces tablespoon scoop onto a silicone mat lined on a baking sheet. Leave about a couple inches between each cookie.
A baking sheet pan with 8 baked double chocolate cookies on the sheet spread out. 4 cookies with white chocolate chips and 4 cookies with semi-sweet chocolate chips. The baking sheet sits on a wood plank background.  In the upper left corner is a dark red square with a white '6' in the center.
  1. Bake for 11 - 13 minutes in a pre-heated oven. Cool cookies on a baking sheet for about 10 minutes. Enjoy warm or move the cookies to a cooling rack to cool until room temperature.

Expert Tips

Properly Measure Flour & Cocoa Powder - If you just dip your measuring cup into a bag of flour or into your cocoa powder container, chances are you have way too much flour or cocoa powder due to packing. I keep a small digital scale to accurately measure flour BUT you can also you the spoon and level method too if you don't have a scale. To do this, use a spoon to fluff up the flour or cocoa powder within your flour bag or container. Then, use a spoon to scoop the flour or cocoa powder into the measuring cup and finally use the straight edge of a knife to level the flour across the measuring cup.

Dark Brown Sugar > Light Brown Sugar - I like dark brown sugar because of the robust flavor and how chewy it makes the cookies but its also key to activating the baking soda.

Don’t Over bake! - The cookies should still be slightly soft in the center, they’ll firm up as they cool.

Stacked High Altitude Chocolate Cookies. Some cookies with semi-sweet chocolate chips and some with white chocolate chips. Cookies are stacked on top of each other and white parchment paper underneath.

Recipe FAQ

What altitude were these cookies baked at? How do I adjust for my altitude?

I baked these cookies at 5,280 ft! Check out this high altitude resource to adjust these cookies for your altitude.

How do I make perfectly round cookies?

To make my cookies perfectly round, after taking the cookies out of the oven, I'll take a 3-inch circle cookie cutter and wiggle/swirl until its perfectly round. Repeat with the rest of the cookies. Then, let it cool as instructed in the directions.

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PS If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page? I always appreciate feedback. You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram.

Stacked High Altitude Chocolate Cookies. Some cookies with semi-sweet chocolate chips and some with white chocolate chips. Cookies are stacked on top of each other and white parchment paper underneath.

High Altitude Chocolate Cookies

Mara
These soft & chewy High Altitude Chocolate Cookies are made with your choice of chocolate chips and cocoa powder and are absolutely delicious!
This recipe was developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet.
4.60 from 5 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 12 minutes mins
Cooling Time 30 minutes mins
Total Time 57 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 25 cookies
Calories 184 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 2 unsalted butter sticks 1 stick melted, 1 stick room temperature
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup dark brown sugar packed
  • 2 eggs, large room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup cocoa powder 100 grams
  • 2 & ⅓ cups all purpose flour 270 grams
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 cups your choice of chocolate chips (semi-sweet chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, peanut butter chips)

Instructions
 

  • Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. While it's preheating, in a large mixing bowl, beat melted butter, room temperature butter, and both sugars until completely creamed together ~ 2-3 minutes.
  • Add in the eggs and vanilla extract, beat until combined together.
  • Add in kosher salt, baking soda, all purpose flour and cocoa powder. Beat until just combined. It's okay if there are a few streaks of flour.
  • Add in chocolate chips and use a silicone spatula to fold the chocolate chips into the batter until it's fully combined. If you want to make two varieties like picture - divide dough in half and add add chips to each batch.
  • Scoop cookie dough using a 2.8 tablespoons or 1.4 ounces tablespoon scoop onto a silicone mat lined on a baking sheet. Leave about a couple inches between each cookie.
  • Bake for 11 - 13 minutes in a pre-heated oven. Cool cookies on a baking sheet for about 10 minutes. Enjoy warm or move the cookies to a cooling rack to cool until room temperature.

Notes

Properly Measure Flour & Cocoa Powder - If you just dip your measuring cup into a bag of flour or into your cocoa powder container, chances are you have way too much flour or cocoa powder due to packing. I keep a small digital scale to accurately measure flour BUT you can also you the spoon and level method too if you don't have a scale. To do this, use a spoon to fluff up the flour or cocoa powder within your flour bag or container. Then, use a spoon to scoop the flour or cocoa powder into the measuring cup and finally use the straight edge of a knife to level the flour across the measuring cup.
Dark Brown Sugar > Light Brown Sugar - I like dark brown sugar because of the robust flavor and how chewy it makes the cookies but its also key to activating the baking soda.
Don’t Over bake! - The cookies should still be slightly soft in the center, they’ll firm up as they cool.
 
Note: I baked these cookies at 5,280 ft! Check out this high altitude resource to adjust these cookies for your altitude. 
 
Nutritional information for this recipe is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. Please calculate your own nutritional information if you want it exact to what you make and use my calculations as a guide only.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 184kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 72mg | Potassium: 159mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 9IU | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Tag me on Instagram @makewithmara or hashtag #makewithmara
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Shelby Snow says

    October 09, 2024 at 9:24 pm

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious! We live it just shy of 8000 feet and these turned out absolutely gorgeous. Family, friendly, and fun to make with kids because the recipe is so simple. A save for the future and a 10/10 from our household! 🤗 thank you!!

    Reply
  2. Martin says

    October 03, 2023 at 11:05 am

    5 stars
    I made these a couple of weeks ago, and I keep thinking about them and can't wait to make them again. I'm thinking about making them for Christmas.

    Reply
  3. Megan says

    August 27, 2023 at 8:21 pm

    3 stars
    I made the cookies and I love them, they are worth 4 stars but I was frustrated with the recipe while making them because no where is there an indication of how many eggs to use. I had to guess. The recipe does not include eggs in the ingredients list. The instructions say "add in the egg..." and the blog post shows a picture of ingredients used in the recipe and there are 2 eggs in that picture. So I had to guess how many eggs to put in my cookie dough about half way through making the recipe. Luckily, I went with 2 eggs and the recipe turned out.

    Reply
    • Mara says

      August 31, 2023 at 12:28 am

      Hi Megan! Thanks for taking the time to write a review. I totally understand your frustration and just updated the recipe to show 2 eggs in the recipe. Thanks again for taking the time to write one and I'm glad you enjoyed them.

      Reply

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Hi, I’m Mara! The home baker and cook behind Make With Mara. This is where I share my love of recipe testing, plating, and all things tasty. Let’s crEATe something delicious together! More about me →

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