These Amaretto Chocolate Chip Cookies are bursting with almond flavor, which pairs beautifully with the semi-sweet chocolate chips.
They are crisp on the outside and chewy in the middle. My favorite type of chocolate chip cookie. If you love almonds and chocolate, you have to try these cookies.
Do you really love amaretto-flavored cookies? Try these Chocolate-Iced Amaretto Sugar Cookies.
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Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Chocolate chip cookies are pretty good all on their own. But when you add almonds and spike them with Amaretto they become pretty amazing!
- Like most chocolate chip cookies these cookies freeze well. Mix up a batch and freeze them so that you can enjoy a freshly baked cookie or two anytime.
- The cookies are easy to make to special equipment, ingredients, or techniques necessary.
Looking for more chocolate chip cookie recipes? Try these Fresh Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies, these Bacon Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies, these White Chocolate Lemon Cookies, these Sourdough Discard Chocolate Chip Cookies, or these Condensed Milk Chocolate Chip Cookies.
What is Amaretto Liqueur?
Amaretto in Italian means "little bitter." It is a sweet Italian liqueur that originated in Saronno, Italy.
Originally the flavor was derived from bitter almonds. Modern commercial amarettos are flavored with apricot pits or peach pits.
- Wikipedia
Some amarettos are infused with other flavors, such as vanilla. They're often sweetened with dark or burnt sugar which gives the liqueur its dark amber color. My favorite brand is Disaronno.
You could also make your own amaretto.
Recipe Ingredients
All you need to make these crisp and chewy Amaretto Chocolate Chip Cookies are a few simple ingredients.
Butter: Room temperature butter is easier to cream together with the sugar. I use unsalted butter. If you only have salted butter you will need to omit the salt in the recipe. There is about ¼ teaspoon of salt per stick of salted butter.
Brown Sugar and White Sugar: This recipe uses both types of sugar. The brown sugar adds moisture while the white sugar helps the cookie dough spread while it is baking.
Bread Flour: I typically use bread flour rather than all-purpose flour in my cookie recipes. Bread flour helps to create a chewier cookie. For accuracy, the best way to measure the flour is by using a digital kitchen scale.
Tip: If you don't have a digital scale, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it with the back of a butter knife. Try not to compress the flour into the measuring cup. Too much flour creates dense cookies.
Large Eggs and Egg Yolk: Eggs should be at room temperature. The fat from the additional egg yolk adds richness and helps bind the dough. Save your egg whites for another recipe like this Lemon Swiss Meringue.
Tip: Egg whites and egg yolks are easier to separate while they are still cold. Separate the eggs, save the whites for another recipe, and then allow the yolks to come to room temperature.
Amaretto: Most of the alcohol cooks out while baking. Use whatever amaretto you have on hand. No need to go out and buy an expensive bottle of amaretto.
If you would prefer to not use any alcohol substitute 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 1 teaspoon of almond extract for the amaretto. Use a smaller amount. Extracts tend to have a stronger flavor.
Almonds: Almonds add a little crunch to these cookies and reinforce the almond flavor.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
Cocoa Powder: Add 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder to the flour mixture to create a chocolate cookie dough.
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: You can use either regular milk chocolate chips for a sweeter cookie or chopped semi-sweet chocolate. Even white chocolate chips would taste really good.
Step by Step Directions
Step 1: In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars with the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth.
Step 2: Lower the mixer speed to stir and add in the egg, egg yolk, amaretto, and almond extract. Mix until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds.
Step 3: Add the bread flour, kosher salt, and baking soda, Stir until just combined.
Step 4: Fold in the semi-sweet chocolate chips and slivered almonds with a rubber spatula.
Step 5: Wrap the dough in wax paper and refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours.
Step 6: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it into balls, about 2 tablespoons of dough each. The dough may be a bit crumbly but will become smoother as you roll it.
Tip: To quickly portion out the dough use a knife to cut the chilled dough into smaller pieces.
Step 7: Place the balls on an ungreased cookie sheet leaving at least 2 inches in between each cookie. Flatten the balls slightly with your hand to help them spread.
Tip: Use a light-colored cookie sheet. Dark cookie sheets absorb too much heat and can cause your cookies to overbake. Check out this post from Handle the Heat to see a comparison of cookies baked on different types of cookie sheets.
Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack cooling to cool completely.
Tip: For crispier cookies increase the bake time by 2-3 minutes.
Tip: Want perfectly round cookies? Immediately after removing the cookies from the oven grab a round cookie or biscuit cutter and place it around one of the cookies. Move the cookie cutter in a circular motion to gently round the cookie before it sets completly. Check out my cookie shaping video on Instagram if you have questions.
Make-Ahead, Storing, and Freezing Instructions
Make-Ahead: You can mix up the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Chilling cookie dough keeps it from spreading too much as it bakes by hydrating the flour and solidifying the butter.
Chilling the dough is especially important when you bake cookies made with browned butter like these Sourdough Snickerdoodles or these Sourdough Discard Peanut Butter Cookies.
Storing: Baked cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for two to three weeks.
Freezing Cookie Dough: Unbaked cookie dough balls can be frozen for up to 3 months. I always have a batch of Crispy Nutella Brownie Cookies dough in my freezer for when a cookie craving strikes.
Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze until solid. Once frozen, remove from the baking sheet and place in a zip-top bag. Label with the date and contents.
When you are ready to bake cookies, remove the cookie balls from the freezer, let them sit at room temperature while the oven preheats, and then bake. You may need to add a minute or two to the baking time.
Freezing Baked Cookies: Baked cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Once the cookies have cooled completely, place them on a sheet pan and freeze until solid. Transfer the frozen cookies to an airtight container or zip-top bag. Label with the date and contents.
Thaw frozen cookies overnight in the refrigerator or on the counter.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, In fact for the best results, this cookie dough needs to chill for at least 2-3 hours. But feel free to leave the dough in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Refrigerating cookie dough before baking is essential to prevent it from spreading. If the dough isn't refrigerated the butter in the cookies melts quickly causing them to spread. A hot oven also helps to prevent cookies from spreading. A hot oven allows the cookie edges to set quickly before the cooking has a chance to spread out too far.
Hard dry cookies can happen for several reasons. Usually it means they were baked for too long. Also, remember cookies continue to bake while they sit on the cookie sheet. It is better the remove the cookies from the oven a little early rather than late.
Dark cookie sheets attract and hold more heat causing cookies to cook more quickly. I prefer to bake using light aluminum pans.
If your flour measurements were of your cookie dough could have been too dry which will create dry cookies.
Expert Tips
- For the best results, I recommend using a kitchen scale to weigh your ingredients rather than the cup measurements. In baking accuracy matters. If you don't have one this is my favorite kitchen scale, because the display pulls out making it easy to see even if you are using a large bowl.
- Make sure all of the ingredients are at room temperature. This ensures the ingredients mix evenly and will give you the best final texture. To quickly bring the eggs to room temperature, place them in a bowl of warm water for 10-15 minutes.
- Refrigerate the dough for 2-3 hours to allow the flour to fully hydrate. Refrigerating the dough also allows the butter to solidify and stops your cookies from spreading too far when baked.
- Use a cookie scoop for evenly portioned cookies. Take the guesswork out of portioning cookies by using a cookie scoop to make sure each cookie is the same size. Alternatively, you could cut the block of cookie dough into even pieces with a knife.
- Baking times for all recipes are only suggestions. The actual baking time will vary depending upon your oven. It is helpful to know your oven and worth purchasing an inexpensive oven thermometer. Oven temperatures can vary as much as 50 degrees plus or minus.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. These cookies are so soft and gooey that they may fall apart if you try to move them too soon.
- My new favorite thing to do with homemade chocolate chip cookies is to sandwich them around a scoop of ice cream to make my own ice cream sandwiches.
More Cookie Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Amaretto Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1 egg yolk room temperature
- 3 tablespoons amaretto
- 2 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 ½ cups bread flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ½ cup slivered almonds
Instructions
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the 1 cup unsalted butter. ¾ cup brown sugar and ¼ cup granulated white sugarwith the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth.
- Lower the mixer speed to stir and add in the 1 egg, 1 egg yolk, 3 tablespoons amaretto, and 2 teaspoon almond extract. Mix until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds.
- Add the 2 ½ cups bread flour, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon baking soda, Stir until just combined.
- Fold in the 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips and ½ cup slivered almonds with a spatula.
- Wrap the dough in wax paper and refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it into balls, about 2 tablespoons of dough each. The dough may be a bit crumbly but will become smoother as you roll it.
- Place the balls on a baking sheet leaving at least 2 inches in between each cookie. Flatten the balls slightly with your hand to help them spread.
- Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Allow the cookies to cool for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Art W says
Could I replace the amaretto with more almond extract? If so, how many tsp’s more?
Erica Schramek says
If you would prefer to not use any alcohol substitute 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 1 teaspoon of almond extract for the amaretto. Use a smaller amount. Extracts tend to have a stronger flavor.
Mac says
Would these still be good with gluten free flour? If so, which would you recommend?
Erica Schramek says
I'm sorry but I don't have any experience with gluten-free baking, so I don't have any recommendations.