If you have a love for classic chocolate chip cookies, prepare to fall head over heels for these truly irresistible Cookie Butter Cookies! What makes them so special? They’re crafted with the beloved Biscoff spread (or Speculoos spread, depending on your preference), infusing every bite with an utterly delicious warm-spiced flavor and creating an exquisitely soft and chewy texture that’s simply unmatched. This isn’t just a good cookie recipe; it’s the best cookie recipe, consistently earning rave reviews from everyone I’ve had the pleasure of sharing them with. Imagine the comforting spices of ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg mingling with rich caramel notes, all enveloped in a perfectly baked cookie – pure bliss!

Craving more amazing cookie recipes? Explore some of our other favorites:

• Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Almond Butter Blossoms
• Cowboy Cookies
• Snickerdoodle Cookies
• Monster Cookies

Essential Ingredients for Perfect Cookie Butter Cookies

Crafting these delectable cookie butter cookies requires just a few key ingredients, each playing a vital role in achieving their signature flavor and texture. Here’s a closer look at what you’ll need:

• Cookie butter: This is the star of our show! You can choose between popular brands like Lotus Biscoff or Trader Joe’s Speculoos. Both offer that distinctive warm-spiced, caramelized biscuit flavor. While I typically opt for the creamy version for a smoother dough, feel free to use crunchy cookie butter if you enjoy extra texture in your cookies. The cookie butter provides a deep, rich flavor that truly sets these cookies apart from traditional chocolate chip varieties.
• Graham crackers: These add a delightful crunch and a subtle honey-graham flavor that complements the cookie butter beautifully. Break them into small, ½-inch pieces before adding them to the dough. For an even more intense cookie butter flavor, you can substitute the graham crackers with crushed Biscoff or Speculoos cookies, creating an incredible layered biscuit taste experience.
• Chocolate chips: No cookie is complete without chocolate! Semi-sweet chocolate chips are a classic choice, offering a balanced sweetness. However, if you’re aiming for those coveted melted chocolate puddles in your finished cookies, I highly recommend using or adding some dark chocolate chunks. Dark chocolate melts into richer, more gooey pockets, elevating the indulgence factor. You could also experiment with milk chocolate for a sweeter profile or white chocolate for a different flavor dynamic.
• Other Pantry Staples: Don’t forget the usual suspects like unsalted butter (at room temperature for proper creaming), granulated sugar and light brown sugar for sweetness and moisture, a large egg (also at room temperature for better emulsion), vanilla extract to enhance flavors, all-purpose flour for structure, baking soda for lift and spread, and a pinch of salt to balance the sweetness.

Refer to the recipe card below for the precise quantities of each ingredient.

What Exactly is Cookie Butter? Discovering the Delicious Spread

Cookie butter is an absolute revelation for anyone who loves sweet, spiced treats! At its core, it’s a spread with a luscious consistency remarkably similar to peanut butter, but with a flavor profile that transports you straight to a European bakery. It tastes like warm-spiced, caramelized biscuits, often reminiscent of Speculoos cookies (known as Biscoff in the U.S.).

The origins of cookie butter trace back to Belgium and the Netherlands, where Speculoos cookies have been a beloved holiday treat for centuries. Traditionally, these thin, crispy biscuits are made with brown sugar and a unique blend of warming spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and cardamom. The spread is created by finely grinding these delicious cookies, then blending them with vegetable oils and other ingredients until a smooth, spreadable butter is formed.

The two most widely recognized brands producing cookie butter are Lotus Biscoff and Trader Joe’s (Speculoos). Both offer delicious versions in creamy and crunchy textures, allowing for a bit of customization depending on your preference. While I find the creamy variety integrates seamlessly into cookie dough for a uniform texture, the crunchy option provides delightful little biscuit pieces for an added textural dimension. You can typically find Biscoff cookie butter in most major grocery stores in the peanut butter or jam aisle, while Speculoos is a popular find at Trader Joe’s. Conveniently, both brands are also readily available for purchase online through retailers like Amazon, ensuring you can get your cookie butter fix no matter where you are!

Creative Substitutions & Delicious Variations

While this recipe is tried and true, a little creativity in the kitchen can lead to exciting new flavors! Here are some ideas for substitutions and variations:

Substitutions: This specific recipe has been carefully developed and tested to achieve the perfect balance of flavor and texture. If you do decide to replace any core ingredients, we encourage you to experiment thoughtfully. Please let us know how your substitutions turned out in the comments below – your insights help the entire baking community!

Variations: Elevate these cookies even further by introducing some delightful variations:

• Double the Cookie Butter Flavor: As mentioned, for an even more pronounced cookie butter experience, swap out the graham cracker pieces for crushed Biscoff cookies or Speculoos cookies. This amplifies the signature spiced biscuit flavor and texture.
• Chocolate Lovers’ Dream: Besides semi-sweet chips or dark chocolate chunks, try white chocolate chips for a creamier, sweeter contrast, or even a mix of different chocolate varieties. A sprinkle of sea salt on top before baking can also enhance the chocolate’s depth.
• Spice It Up: If you adore the warm spices of Biscoff, consider adding a tiny pinch (¼ teaspoon) of ground cinnamon or a dash of nutmeg to your dry ingredients. This will subtly boost the existing spice profile.
• Nutty Addition: For an extra layer of flavor and crunch, fold in half a cup of finely chopped toasted pecans or walnuts along with the chocolate chips and graham crackers.

Essential Equipment for Effortless Baking

These cookie butter cookies are wonderfully simple to make, requiring only basic baking tools that you likely already have in your kitchen. However, having the right equipment can make the process even smoother and ensure the best results:

• Food scale: For consistent and accurate baking results, particularly with flour, I always highly recommend weighing your ingredients in grams using a reliable kitchen scale. It eliminates the guesswork associated with volume measurements, which can vary greatly depending on how ingredients are packed. A good scale is an inexpensive investment that will last for years.
• Mixer: While not strictly necessary, an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment will make creaming the butter and sugars and mixing the dough significantly easier and faster, ensuring a perfectly aerated and uniform batter. If you don’t have one, a sturdy whisk and a strong arm will do the job!
• Large cookie scoop: To achieve those perfectly rounded, generously sized, and wonderfully chewy cookies, I recommend using a scoop that holds approximately 4 tablespoons of dough. This ensures consistent cookie size, which leads to even baking. If you prefer smaller cookies, a smaller scoop (around 2 tablespoons) works just as well, though your baking time will be slightly reduced. You can also eyeball it, but a scoop ensures uniformity.
• Baking sheet: A good quality, light-colored baking sheet is crucial for even heat distribution and preventing the bottoms of your cookies from burning. Lining it with parchment paper is also highly recommended for non-stick baking and super easy cleanup.
• Mixing Bowls and Spatula/Whisk: Of course, you’ll need a couple of mixing bowls for wet and dry ingredients, and a sturdy spatula or whisk for combining everything.

Easy Step-by-Step Instructions for Your Best Cookie Butter Cookies

Ready to bake? Follow these clear instructions to create a batch of perfectly soft, chewy, and spiced cookie butter cookies that will disappear in no time!

Step 1: Cream the wet ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer (or a sturdy whisk), cream together the softened unsalted butter, creamy cookie butter, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar. Beat them together for about 2-3 minutes until the mixture is light, fluffy, and noticeably paler in color. This step incorporates air, which contributes to the cookies’ soft texture.

Step 2: Incorporate egg and vanilla. Add the large egg and vanilla extract to the creamed mixture. Mix thoroughly until everything is well combined and smooth. Ensure there are no visible streaks of egg yolk remaining.

Step 3: Combine dry ingredients. In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisking ensures these ingredients are evenly distributed, so your cookies rise consistently.

Step 4: Mix dry into wet. Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing on low speed (or by hand with a spatula) just until the flour streaks barely disappear. Be careful not to overmix, as this can develop the gluten too much, leading to tough cookies. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure all ingredients are fully incorporated without excessive mixing.

Step 5: Fold in the delicious add-ins. Gently fold in the chocolate chips and graham cracker pieces (or crushed Biscoff/Speculoos cookies) until they are evenly distributed throughout the dough. Avoid overmixing once the add-ins are in.

Step 6: Scoop and bake. Preheat your oven to 350℉ (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop large cookie dough balls (about 4 tablespoons each) and place them on the prepared baking sheet, ensuring they are spaced about 2-3 inches apart to allow for spreading. For an extra visual appeal, press a few additional chocolate chunks and graham cracker bits onto the tops of the dough balls (optional but highly recommended!).

Step 7: Bake to perfection. Bake the cookie butter cookies for approximately 9-12 minutes, or until the edges begin to turn a very light golden brown. The centers should still look slightly soft and even a bit underbaked – this is key for a chewy interior. If you notice your cookies spreading a bit too much, a neat trick is to take them out around the 9-10 minute mark and give them a gentle “scoot” with a round cookie cutter or a large circular object. This helps reshape their edges into a perfectly round form. Let them finish baking, then give them another quick scoot once they’re out of the oven. (Curious about “cookie scooting”? See it in action in this cooking scooting video!)

Step 8: Cool and enjoy. Once baked, let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes. This allows them to firm up slightly. Then, carefully transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Or, if you’re like me, enjoy them warm with a glass of milk!

Expert Baking Tips for Flawless Cookie Butter Cookies

Achieving bakery-quality cookie butter cookies at home is easier than you think with a few expert tips. These small adjustments can make a big difference in the final outcome, ensuring your cookies are always perfectly soft, chewy, and full of flavor:

1. Always weigh your dry ingredients: This is arguably the most crucial tip for consistent baking success, especially when it comes to flour. Using a food scale to measure flour in grams is far more accurate than using measuring cups, which can vary wildly depending on how tightly the flour is packed. Incorrect flour measurements are a common cause of dry, crumbly, or overly puffy cookies. If you must use measuring cups, employ the “scoop and level” method: gently spoon flour into the cup until overflowing, then level it off with the back of a knife, without packing.
2. Opt for a large cookie scoop (about 4 tablespoons): While this recipe works with a standard medium cookie scoop (around 2 tablespoons), using a larger scoop will result in thick, gloriously chewy, and extra gooey centers – a hallmark of an exceptional cookie! Larger dough balls take longer to bake, allowing the edges to set while the middle remains soft. If you opt for a medium scoop, you’ll get more cookies, and they will likely require less baking time, so keep a close eye on them.
3. Use dark chocolate chunks for melty puddles: If you dream of those beautiful, shiny pools of melted chocolate in your cookies, ditch the standard chips and reach for dark chocolate chunks (or a chopped dark chocolate bar). Chocolate chips are designed to hold their shape, while chunks or chopped chocolate melt more readily, creating those desirable, gooey chocolate puddles that make every bite extra special.
4. Do not over-bake the cookies: This is the golden rule for chewy cookies. The cookies will continue to cook and firm up on the hot baking sheet even after they’ve been removed from the oven. For the perfect soft-chewy texture, you want the centers to appear slightly underbaked, almost still a bit doughy, when you pull them out. If you bake them until they are completely firm in the oven, they will harden significantly as they cool, resulting in a crispier, less desirable texture. Trust your instinct and pull them out when the edges are just set and lightly golden.

Cookie Butter Cookies: Your Questions Answered

Storage Tips to Keep Your Cookie Butter Cookies Fresh

Once you’ve baked a batch of these glorious cookie butter cookies, you’ll want to ensure they stay fresh and delicious for as long as possible. Here’s how to store both baked cookies and raw dough:

Room temperature: To keep your baked cookies wonderfully soft and chewy, store them in an airtight container at room temperature. For an extra touch of freshness, I highly recommend placing a slice of plain bread (any type will do!) in the container with the cookies. The bread will absorb any excess moisture, helping to keep the cookies perfectly soft for up to a week. Make sure to replace the bread every couple of days if it becomes dry or hard.

Refrigerator: While I don’t typically recommend refrigerating baked cookies (it can dry them out), you can absolutely refrigerate the raw cookie dough. Form the dough into a disc, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and then place it in an airtight container. It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. When you’re ready to bake, let the dough soften at room temperature for about 30 minutes before scooping into balls and baking as usual.

Freezing instructions: Freezing is a fantastic option for making these cookies ahead of time, ensuring you always have a fresh batch ready to go!

• Cookie dough – Scoop individual dough balls onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Place the tray in the freezer for about 30 minutes, or until the dough balls are firm. Once frozen, transfer them to a freezer-safe bag or airtight container, labeled with the date, and freeze for up to 1 month. When a craving strikes, simply place the frozen dough balls directly onto a baking sheet (no need to thaw!) while your oven preheats, and then bake as normal, adding a minute or two to the baking time if needed.
• Baked cookies – If you have leftover baked cookies (a rare occurrence!), you can freeze them for longer storage. Allow the cookies to cool completely. Wrap each cookie individually in plastic wrap, then place them in a freezer-safe bag or airtight container, clearly labeled with the cookie name and date. They will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 2 months. To enjoy, let them thaw at room temperature for an hour or so, or gently warm them in the microwave for about 20 seconds for a quick, warm treat.

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Thank you for baking with us!
-Kayla

Cookie Butter Cookies

Kayla Burton