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–+ servings
multiple chocolate cookies in a pan with some frosted with sprinkles on top
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4.91 from 33 votes

Chocolate Sugar Cookies Recipe

Chocolate Cookies without brown sugar. Different ways to frost cookies or leave them plain as well!
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time14 minutes
Total Time39 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 23 servings
Author: Dorothy Kern
Cost: $8

Ingredients

Cookies

  • ¾ cup (170g) unsalted butter, softened
  • ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • ⅓ cup (27g) unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 ¾ cups (217g) all-purpose flour
  • Granulated sugar for rolling (optional; see note)

Frosting:

  • 4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 tablespoons (10g) unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 ¼ cups (141g) powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • 1-2 tablespoons milk
  • Sprinkles optional

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
  • Cream butter and sugar for about a minute, or until fluffy, using a hand or a stand mixer.
  • Add egg, egg yolk, vanilla, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt and mix until combined, then mix in cocoa.
  • Add flour and mix until smooth.
  • Scoop 2 tablespoon size balls of cookie dough and place on cookie sheet 2-inches apart. If desired, roll them in granulated sugar beforehand.
  • Bake 9-14 minutes, or until no longer glossy. If you’ve rolled them in sugar, those will be slightly cracked. Do not over bake. Cool before frosting.
  • Make frosting: beat butter with cocoa and powdered sugar until crumbly. Add salt, vanilla and 1 tablespoon milk; mix until smooth, adding more milk as needed for spreadable consistency.
  • Frosting cookies as desired. Top with sprinkles if you want.

Notes

  • These cookies spread more on parchment than they do on silicone, so for puffier cookies bake on a silpat baking mat.
  • I roll the cookies in sugar prior to baking if I’m not frosting them. It makes them prettier.
  • If you’re frosting them, you don’t need to roll them in sugar.
    Frosting recipe is enough to frost entire batch of cookies.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 237kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 39mg | Sodium: 94mg | Potassium: 110mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 281IU | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 2mg

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