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These delectable Nutella Cookies are subtly chocolaty with a hint of hazelnut. Perfectly soft and chewy, with bittersweet chocolate scattered throughout.
Mouthwatering and simple nutella cookies are a dynamite reason to open (or finish) your cupboard’s coveted jar of nutella! In this recipe, the bittersweet chips give a welcome burst of rich chocolate that beautifully complement the smooth and creamy Nutella dough. I tested and retested the ratio of ingredients, so that everything is perfect in this easy to make cookie!
If you prefer extra-chocolate cookies, my Quadruple Chocolate Pudding Cookies, Double Chocolate Chip Cookies or Double Chocolate Biscotti will satisfy even the most intense chocolate craving!
Why this is the best nutella cookies recipe:
- Irresistible chewy texture. These cookies are chewy, thick and tender with the perfect amount of nutella for taste and texture, and the ideal process for a slightly crunchy exterior.
- Subtle and nuanced flavor. Nutella gives your cookies added richness, softness, and a small hint of hazelnut that sets them apart from other chocolate chip cookies in the most delightful way.
- Step-by-step practical guidance from a pro pastry chef. I gradually break down exactly how to make the softest, chewiest, and most balanced nutella cookie in the easiest way possible. I even included a how-to video in the recipe card!
Professional tips for success:
- Brown sugar is essential. You can use light or dark brown sugar, whichever you have on hand, but don’t substitute 100% granulated white sugar. The cookies will not be as thick and they will spread more.
- Incorporate your flour slowly. For the thickest, chewiest nutella cookies, gradually add your dry ingredients so that you do not overwhelm your mixture. I wait until my flour is barely just incorporated before adding a little more. This ensures I never end up with tough cookies!
- Chill your cookie dough. I recommend refrigerating your cookie dough for between 2 hours to overnight. This allows extra meld time for the flavors and gets you the ideal chewy cookie texture.
What is nutella?
Nutella is a brand of cocoa and hazelnut paste that originated from Italy. There are many different brands all with their own unique taste. The best one is the one you enjoy the most. You can find Nutella and other similar cocoa hazelnut spreads in grocery or specialty stores.
Ingredients
- Butter: I use unsalted butter for baking, because you want to control the amount of salt you are adding. Every brand is different and it makes adjusting the recipe a challenge.
- Nutella: I am partial to the flavor of Nutella but you can use the chocolate hazelnut spread of your choice. Since you already have the nutella out, you only need 3 ingredients more to make my wildly popular and super easy Nutella Truffles!
- Light Brown Sugar: Using light brown sugar adds sweetness along with a little moisture. This will keep the cookies softer and also offer a light molasses flavor.
- Granulated Sugar: Granulated sugar is here for sweetness. However, if you add too much in proportion to the nutella, the cookies will spread rather than stay tall and chewy.
- Whole Egg: The egg is here to add fat, moisture and leavening. The fat from the yolk adds richness and helps keep the cookies chewy. Beating in the eggs just enough will add a little or a lot of leavening depending on the desired texture.
- Cornstarch: Adding cornstarch to nutella cookies helps make them chewy and thick. If you don’t have cornstarch you can omit it, or you can use a cornstarch substitute like tapioca starch instead.
- Baking Soda: Baking soda reacts with an acid, the molasses in the brown sugar in this instance, to leaven the cookies. It reacts more powerfully than baking powder and will create a more dramatic rise, but will not continue to react in the heat of the oven or without the presence of an acid.
- Chocolate Chips: I use Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips for contrasting flavors in my nutella chocolate chip cookies.
- All Purpose Flour
- Kosher Salt
- Vanilla Extract
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations
- Ice cream sandwiches: These nutella cookies are delicious with a scoop of chocolate ice cream or vanilla bean ice cream between them.
- Many mix-in possibilities. You can definitely add mix-ins to nutella cookies, making them very versatile! Experiment with adding oats, chopped toasted hazelnuts (for extra hazelnut flavor), or candied citrus peel. You could even use chopped chocolate as an alternative to chocolate chips, like I do in my Salted Chocolate Cherry Pistachio Pecan Bark. Be sure to let me know in the recipe comments which mix-ins are your favorites, so I can give them a try!
- Nutella stuffed cookies. Flatten each cookie dough ball into a disk. Wrap this disk around a frozen scoop of peanut butter, caramel candy or more nutella.
- Salty sweet finish. Sprinkle the top with fleur de sel or sea salt for an elevated salty sweet finish!
How to Make Nutella Cookies:
Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below!
Make the cookie dough:
Step 1: Whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
Step 2: Cream the butter, nutella, and sugars on medium-high speed until combined. Then, add the egg, and vanilla and mix until light and fluffy. I use the paddle attachment on my stand mixer for this, and it takes about 4 minutes total. Scrape down the bowl with a spatula once during this time.
You want to be sure the butter is cold, but soft and pliable. That way it will incorporate smoothly, and cream nicely with the sugar but not take on too much air. This will help your nutella cookies stay chewy rather than cakey.
Step 3: Reduce your stand mixer’s speed to low and add the flour mixture in small additions slowly. You don’t want flour to get everywhere! It usually takes me 5-7 additions, and I only mix each until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl several times. Add chocolate chips, and briefly mix so that they are evenly distributed.
Step 4: Scoop the dough using a 1” cookie scoop.
Optional, chill your cookie dough: This step is optional, though I do find that the flavors enhance with chilling. Roll the dough into balls 1 inch in diameter and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet, plate or tray. Cover well with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to 3 days.
Bake:
Step 5: Preheat the oven to 350℉.
Step 6: Bake the preheated oven on a parchment-paper lined sheet with the dough balls 2” apart. I usually bake them for 9-11 minutes, or until the edges are set and the tops have just started to brown.
Don’t over bake or they will be crispy and the bottoms will burn…I know…I ruined some in the name experimentation. Check and rotate your cookies after about 6 minutes!
Step 7: Let your nutella cookies cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet, and move to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Chef Lindsey’s Recipe Tip
I like to scoop my dough using a 1” cookie scoop prior to chilling so that the dough balls are ready-to-bake! There is nothing more frustrating than portioning chilled dough.
Frequently Asked Questions
They will keep up to 10 days in an airtight container at room temperature or several months frozen. If opting to freeze, I’d recommend that you freeze the cookie dough balls. Bake the dough straight from frozen at 350°F for 12-14 minutes.
Chilling is only truly ‘required’ when butter in the dough was melted, which it was not in this case. However, chilling nutella cookies dough before baking will create thicker, chewier cookies and also give more time for the flavors to meld. I find it best to scoop the cookie dough and chill in balls, because it is easier to manipulate before it solidifies.
These cookies ship wonderfully. Package in a decorative tin or just place in a zip-top bag in a mailer box. They keep for 10 days and they stay chewy for almost as long. The larger the cookie, the longer they stay chewy!
If you tried this recipe and loved it please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below. I love hearing from you; your comments make my day!
Nutella Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ⅓ cup Nutella stir before scooping, heaping
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips I use Ghirardelli, in case you’re new around here
Instructions
Make the cookie dough:
- Whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
- Cream the butter, nutella, and sugars on medium-high speed until combined. Then, add the egg, and vanilla and mix until light and fluffy. I use the paddle attachment on my stand mixer for this, and it takes about 4 minutes total. Scrape down the bowl with a spatula once during this time.
- Reduce your stand mixer’s speed to low and add the flour mixture in small additions slowly. You don’t want flour to get everywhere! It usually takes me 5-7 additions, and I only mix each until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl several times. Add chocolate chips, and briefly mix so that they are evenly distributed.
- Scoop the dough using a 1” cookie scoop. Optional, chill your cookie dough: This step is optional, though I do find that the flavors enhance with chilling. Roll the dough into balls 1 inch in diameter and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet, plate or tray. Cover well with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to 3 days.
Bake:
- Preheat the oven to 350℉.
- Bake the preheated oven on a parchment-paper lined sheet with the dough balls 2” apart. I usually bake them for 9-11 minutes, or until the edges are set and the tops have just started to brown. Check and rotate your cookies after about 6 minutes!
- Let cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet, and move to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Before You Go!
I hope you enjoyed this professional chef tested nutella cookies recipe. Check out our other delicious cookie recipes, or keep your hazelnut trend going with some Flourless Chocolate Torte!
Delicious, sweet, gooey goodness. These cookies are a must-try. You have to taste how good they are! Thank you Lindsey
Hi John! Thank you so much for sharing your experience, it made me so happy to hear you loved these!
These are like my all time FAVORITE cookies!! They are absolutely amazing! This is my second day in a row making them, yes they are gone from yesterday ????
I wouldn’t change anything in this recipe, except I don’t measure the nutella I just add 2 huge spoons full???? totally worth making and it doesn’t take long either to make the dough, except the chilling part which you can’t skip, but they all worth it in the end!
I’m SO happy to hear this! Thanks so much for commenting, and happy baking! ????
Yum, I am a huge cookie monster and chocolate chip is my favorite, will definitely have to try these!
Yes!!! You must!
great tips, pictures made me hungry xD I’m planning to give this a try, I just hope it turns out well as it’s in the pictures <3
Thank you for this awesome post. All the pics are so fabulous and simply mind-blowing. I am going to use some of the tips which you have mentioned on here for preparing more mouthwatering, softer and yummy cookies.
Thank you!
I made these today. they are absolutely fantastic! Such a huge hit with our family. Thank you!
I’m so glad you liked them, Amber!!