Chocolate Crinkle Cookies have a rich and fudgy center with a crisp powdered sugar outer layer. Crinkle Cookies are just as important as Sugar Cookies on your holiday cookie tray.
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You know I love easy desserts with simple ingredients. These Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are no exception.
Why these are the Best Crinkle Cookies:
- Simple Ingredients: Made with just a handful of kitchen staples you probably already have on hand.
- Fast: these cookies can be whipped up quickly and you can chill them ahead.
- Fudgy & Crisp: The centers are soft and gooey with crisp edges.
- Keep Well: most cookies are best eaten fresh but these seem to get better with time.
These cookies are perfect for gifting and they are so good, you’ll want to make a double batch!
What is a Chocolate Crinkle Cookie?
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are like a cross between gooey Fudgy Brownies and crisp Chocolate Chip Cookies. They are rolled in powdered sugar before baking so they form “crinkles” as they expand in the oven.
The best part? Just like a good homemade Baklava, these cookies get better as they get a little stale. The outer layer just gets crunchier, while the center stays so gooey. Let’s just say you’ll find yourself hanging around your cookie jar for several days.
How to Make Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are a blast to make. If you have kids around, they can help make these cookies. They will love rolling the chocolatey dough into bite-sized balls and coating them with a generous amount of powdered sugar, similar to Russian Tea Cakes.
- Whisk together sugar, cocoa powder, oil, vanilla extract, and eggs.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Slowly add flour mixture to the cocoa mixture. Mix well.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for 3 hours and up to overnight.
To Finish and Bake the Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Shape cookie dough into balls (a cookie scoop makes it easy to portion) and roll into powdered sugar.
- Place cookies on a baking sheet, leaving space between each cookie. Bake for 10-12 minutes, depending on the size of the cookies. Cookies will come out soft but will harden as they cool down.
- Once cookies are slightly cooled, move them to a wire rack to fully cool down.
Common Questions
There are two reasons why your Chocolate Crinkle Cookies came out flat. Either the dough wasn’t chilled or you didn’t use enough flour. Make sure to properly measure flour by scooping it into your measuring cup and leveling off the top.
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies first premiered in Betty Crocker’s famous cookie cookbook, “Cooky Carnival”. Crocker recounts being served the cookies by home chef Helen Fredell and begging her for the recipe. Fast forward to today and these cookies are gracing just about every holiday tray each year.
You’ll know when Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are done when they start to develop those signature cracks on top. Typically, this takes anywhere from 10-12 minutes depending on their size.
The dough for crinkle cookies should be very moist. Be sure to measure flour correctly, and it helps to roll the moist dough with wet hands.
Storing Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Room Temperature: Keep your Chocolate Crinkle Cookies stored in an airtight container on the counter. They should stay fresh for up to a week.
- Freezing: Freeze your dough balls for up to 2 months in an airtight container. When you are ready to bake, remove them from the freezer and allow them to thaw for 30 minutes in the fridge before rolling them in powdered sugar. Bake according to instructions.
Make-Ahead Tip: You can make the dough a day or two in advance. Keep it refrigerated and only bake right before serving.
Cookies Recipes You’ll Love
- Peanut Butter Cookies – These nutty cookies always hit the spot
- Snowball Cookies – Melt-in-your-mouth delicious
- Meringue Cookies – easy and so festive dusted in powdered sugar
- Madeleine Cookies – Just as good as Starbucks Madeleine cookies
- Macaroon Cookies – The mother of all coconut cookies
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, (unsweetened)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil, (or canola, or light olive oil)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, combine granulated sugar, cocoa powder, oil, vanilla extract and eggs. Whisk until the mixture is smooth.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour together, baking powder and salt.
- Add the flour mixture to the cocoa mixture and stir to combine.
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Scoop dough with a mini ice cream scoop for even portioning into 20 cookies then roll cookie dough into even-sized balls (it's easier to roll with wet hands) and generously roll each into powdered sugar.
- Place cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet, being sure to leave space between each of the cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes, depending on the size of the cookies. Cookies will come out soft but will harden as they cool down.
- Allow cookies to slightly cool. Then, move them to a wire rack to fully cool down.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
I just made these for the first time, they turned out great! The dough is sticky so I used nitrile gloves to roll the dough. I need to make more now because they are disappearing quickly.
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies ki recipe bahut hi simple aur tempting lag rahi hai! Perfect holiday treat ke liye isse zarur try karenge. Thanks for sharing! 🍪😊
I hope you try and love it! (I translated the original message using Google Translate – The recipe for Chocolate Crinkle Cookies looks very simple and tempting! Must try these for the perfect holiday treat. Thanks for sharing!)
These cookies are absolutely amazing! Have to make another batch as they will not make it to Christmas! This will be added to my Christmas baking list from now on, thank you for sharing this recipe!
Hi there, I made these again this year they are delicious. I put the dough in the refrigerator overnight as usual. Why are they so gooie and difficult to roll I have a mess on my hands. I use a small scoop and difficult with that also. Anybody else have a problem rolling without sticking on your hands.
I had an issue with that as well the first time I made them, so I tried wearing gloves and putting a bit of oil on them. It was way easier after that.
Amasing cookies. They are crunchy on the outside and deliciously gooey on the inside.
Always love making these cookies with our grandchildren this is an excellent recipe always turns out great i do substitute the eggs for applesauce or sometimes the egg replacer.
That’s great to know! thank you for sharing!
Your recipe instructions do not include butter…..so i will assume it’s beaten with the sugar/cocoa powder prior to adding the eggs
Hi Mary! See step 1 in the recipe card for instructions on this (we use oil).
The cookies turned out as they should. However, I suggest lightly spraying cooking spray before baking. I did not, and my cookies were falling apart as I removed them from the cookie sheet due to sticking to the pan.
Hi Robin! Sorry to hear that. Did you use a non-stick pan? Uncoated or darker pans tend to stick more compared to lighter and nonstick pans.
Cookies looked and tasted great! I’ve made these before using a cake mix, which were also good, but decided to try with the cocoa for a healthier alternative (cake mix has hazardous additives). This will be my go to from now on. Thanks for sharing!
Do you think I could butter instead of oil
I imagine that would be fine. Hope you love the cookies!
I read somewhere else that butter works, but when the water portion of the butter evaporates the cookies tend to be a little flatter and the powdered sugar melts into the cookie instead of staying a nice white crackle. Just an fyi!
I followed this recipe exactly with the addition of peppermint extract because it’s the holidays. This was my first try at crinkle cookies and they came out so good! They look just like Natasha’s, which I can’t believe. They’re delicious and unbelievably light and airy and soft on the inside. I’m so excited I got it right!! Thank you Natasha
That’s wonderful to hear. Thank you for the lovely feedback. So happy you tried the recipe.
First time baking chocolate crinkle cookies. Love the way they came out. Thank you for sharing all these amazing recipes!❤️
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Cynthia!
These are the best chocolate crinkle cookies I’ve ever made and I am an experienced baker! The oil really gives a brownie texture inside!
Hi Tia! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for the feedback.
Hello,
Made these, they are delicious. Was wondering if I can use this recipe for vanilla cookies? Would I need to add the same amount of extra flour instead of the cocoa powder? THank you 😊
Hi Angela, I imagine with a few adjustments that will be possible, but without trying it myself and baking being such a science, I can’t say that increasing flour alone will make for a delicious cookie. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
So we love your recipe and make it every year.. this year we want to double the batch and make one normal and one with peppermint extract. Do you think I should omit the vanilla in the peppermint batch or just add it in addition?
Hi Danielle! That sounds delish! I think you could just add peppermint extract to this recipe. It doesn’t take a lot since it tends to be a stronger extract so I would start with a little and add more as needed.
I tried these cookies last Christmas and when baked them they spread out into one big cookie. Don’t know what happened.
Hi Joanne, I wonder if anything was substituted in the process or if any ingredients were substituted? They should not spread out like that. I wish I could be more helpful, but its hard to say without being there.
Joanne could possibly be accidentally using baking soda instead of baking powder. I’ve done that before with other cookies, and without powder cookies tend to be flat.
I have extra large eggs, would that matter for the recipe?
Hi Beth! Yes, it can make a bit of a difference in the consistency, the cookies could be more runny. A large egg weighs about 50-60g with the shell. You may want to weigh the eggs for the recipe.
my 7 yr old granddaughter just loves to help me bake these delicious cookies she scoops them out with the mini ice cream scoop and we roll them into balls and she smothers them in a bowl of confectioner sugar….they are so easy to make and everybody loves them
Thank you so much for the recipe
My BFF’s 98 year old mother loved these.. I would make a double batch and freeze the balls. Pull out 6 or so and bake them up for her. She loved to have them as a chocolate treat with her coffee. Sadly she passed away a month ago… I just discovered I had a dozen in the freezer. Will have my friend and her hubby over for dinner.. chocolate crinkles for dessert!
These are absolutely delicious and sooo addictive. Thank you so much for a beautiful recipe. My intention was to gift them but they were so delicious we ate them lol. So I’ll attempt another batch to hopefully gift. Love