Thin, Crispy, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

One bowl, one egg yolk, a tray tap at minute 4, and no parchment. Rippled, crispy-edged cookies with a chewy middle.

Time: 1 hr | Yield: 10-12 cookies | Difficulty: Easy | Serves: 6 | Published: 2026-10-26

These are the thin, rippled, crispy-edged cookies with the chewy center, the ones that look like they came from a bakery that charges too much. The whole thing is one bowl and a whisk, and every unusual move in the method is doing a specific job.

The butter gets melted only halfway, then whisked smooth, which keeps it at 85-95 degrees so the dough bakes thin instead of greasy. One egg yolk and a spoon of heavy cream instead of a whole egg keeps them dense and chewy. And the fridge time is a dial: 20 minutes for thinner and crispier, 30 for a touch more body.

The signature move is the tray tap. At minute 4, rap the baking sheet on the rack a few times and watch the puffed cookies collapse into ripples, then once more at the end. No parchment, no spray, bare metal sheet, that is where the crispy bottom comes from. Flaky sea salt while they rest, and try to let them cool the full 20 minutes. Try.

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F on the convection setting, or 375 degrees on the bake setting.
  2. In a large bowl, melt your butter but only half way. Then whisk until fully melted. This keeps the butter temperature below 100 degrees.
    You'll know it's right: Half-melt, then whisk the rest of the way. The butter should read 85-95 degrees, warm enough to whisk smooth, cool enough that the sugars do not dissolve into grease.
  3. Add your brown sugar and white sugar. Whisk for about one minute.
  4. Add your egg yolk, heavy cream and vanilla paste. Then whisk for another minute.
  5. In a separate bowl, mix your flour, salt and baking soda. Then add it to the wet mixture.
  6. Use a spatula or spoon to GENTLY fold the flour in the dough. It's important not to over mix it.
    You'll know it's right: Gentle folds, stop early. Overmixed flour is the difference between chewy and tough.
  7. When the flour is about 90% incorporated, add the chocolate chips and mix until evenly distributed.
  8. Cover and put in the fridge for 20-30 minutes. The less amount of time in the fridge = a thinner/crispier cookie.
    You'll know it's right: The fridge is the thickness dial: 20 minutes bakes thinner and crispier, 30 holds a little more chew.
  9. After 30 minutes, pull out a baking sheet. You do not want to use parchment paper or any spray. Baking directly on the sheet will make them crispier.
    You'll know it's right: Bare metal sheet, no parchment, no spray. Direct contact is where the crispy bottom comes from.
  10. I use a scoop and weigh out about 50g of dough per dough ball. I press the dough into the scoop so it's compact. The goal of using the scoop is so one side is flat and the other rounded. So if you don't have a scoop, firmly roll your doughball and press down.
  11. Put in the oven and set a timer for 8-10 minutes. The goal is thin, crispy browned edges and a lighter/yellowish middle.
  12. At about 4 minutes, I will tap the tray on the oven rack or counter 2-3 times to flatten them a little. This will create ripples. And then I do it one more time at the very end of the bake.
    You'll know it's right: The 4-minute tray tap is the signature move. Two or three firm raps collapse the puff into those crispy ripples, then one more tap at the end.
  13. After removing from the oven, let them sit in a pan for 10 minutes. This is where I will apply flaky sea salt.
    You'll know it's right: Flaky salt lands during the 10-minute pan rest, while the surface is still tacky enough to hold it.
  14. After 10 minutes, rest on a cooling rack for another 10 minutes.
  15. ENJOY!!

Troubleshooting

Cookies came out thick and cakey

Butter too cool, fridge too long, or overmixed flour. 85-95 degree butter, 20-30 minutes in the fridge maximum, and fold the flour gently until just combined. Every one of those pushes thin.

They spread into one giant cookie

Butter fully melted and hot. Melt halfway, whisk the rest. Butter over 100 degrees melts the sugars and the dough runs.

No ripples

Skipped the tray tap, or tapped too late. Minute 4, while they are puffed, two or three firm raps on the rack. The collapse IS the ripple.

Bottoms stayed pale and soft

Parchment paper or a greased sheet. Bare metal, directly on the sheet. The recipe says no parchment on purpose, that contact is the crisp.

Greasy, dense pucks

Eyeballed the dough balls. 50 grams each, compacted in the scoop, flat side down. The scale is doing real work in a recipe this small.

Nutrition (2 cookies): 340 calories, 4g protein, 44g carbs, 17g fat.