Espresso Cookies with Dark Chocolate Chunks

These Espresso Cookies have layers upon layers of coffee and dark chocolate flavor packed into them with a hefty sprinkling of flaky espresso salt to top them off. Homemade coffee-infused butter is my trick to baking the most rich, flavorful and chewy espresso cookies! Ready? Let’s bake ‘em. Yields 15 cookies.

Kickass Baker reader Ashlyn says of these cookies: "Followed the recipe exactly (except for the chocolate on top) and they came out perfect! Thaaaaank you! Love these!!!" ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

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Coffee and Dark Chocolate are an ideal pairing for cookies

The flavors of coffee and dark chocolate pair together so very well. So why not incorporate them both into a recipe for coffee cookies with espresso powder?

These espresso chocolate chip cookies utilize coffee in many different ways to maximize the coffee flavor. There's no mistaking the flavor profile of these cookies when you take a bite, that's for sure!

I recommend, as always, using the highest quality ingredients you can afford to make the flavors of the espresso and dark chocolate really stand out in this recipe. Use high quality coffee or espresso beans and high quality dark chocolate bars to achieve those big pools of melted chocolate you see in the photos here.

For every chocolate chip cookie recipe in my homemade cookie collection where I want to have those big pools of chocolate, I particularly like Ghirardelli, Guittard and Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Baking Bars for these cookies. If you want the really expensive stuff, go for Scharffen Berger or Callebaut dark chocolate.​

If you love coffee and chocolate, try adding some chocolate chips to my small batch coffee muffins for a breakfast treat!

How to Build Layers of Coffee Flavor in espresso chocolate chunk cookies

To achieve the most coffee flavor in these Espresso Chocolate Chunk Cookies, the recipe calls for using coffee in four different ways. 

1. The first is to infuse the butter with coffee or espresso flavor. To do so, melt the butter and throw in ½ a cup of whole coffee or espresso beans. Allow that to steep for 30-60 minutes.
2. Next, you'll add in both brewed espresso or coffee and instant espresso powder. I recommend brewing the coffee or espresso so that it's very strong. You won't be drinking this straight, so amp up the amount of coffee or espresso grounds used to brew the coffee and you'll be happy you did.
3. Lastly, just before baking, sprinkle a hefty dose of espresso salt on top. Espresso salt is simply equal parts espresso powder mixed with flaky sea salt. I'm so happy with how the espresso salt helps maximize the flavors in the finished cookie here. This finishing touch makes these the best cookies for coffee lovers!

Ingredients needed to make this recipe

Coffee-Infused Butter

• Butter: I recommend using unsalted butter to control the salt level in the recipe. However, if you only have salted butter, go ahead and use it. I would recommend cutting the amount of salt in the cookies by half in this case to ensure the cookies are not overly salty since flaky salt is also sprinkled on top.
• Espresso beans or coffee beans: Use whole beans without any flavoring. These beans will be used to infuse espresso or coffee flavor into the butter. If they are flavored, they flavor will carry through to the cookies. I do not recommend using ground coffee here because the coffee will brew in the hot melted butter rather than infusing it with flavor.

Cookie Dough

• Brown sugar: Use either light or dark brown sugar for this. I use dark brown sugar because I think the richness it adds to cookies, but either will do here. Unlike other dry ingredients like flour, be sure to pack the brown sugar into the measuring cup when measuring it to get the correct amount.
• Sugar: use regular granulated sugar (white sugar). I would not recommend substituting for sugar substitutes such as monkfruit sweetener or stevia. These sugars will change the composition of the original recipe.
• Egg: You will need one large whole egg at room temperature. To bring it to room temperature, remove it from the fridge at least 30 minutes prior to baking. Room temperature eggs incorporate much easier and more evenly into the wet ingredients than do cold eggs
• Egg yolk: You will also need one large egg yolk at room temperature. Save your egg whites for breakfast sandwiches or, if you have enough egg white from other uses, whip up an Angel Food Cake!
• Espresso powder: I use Cafe Bustelo which is available at the grocery store. King Arthur makes another good option. You can also grind fresh espresso beans to make espresso powder for this use.
• Vanilla extract
• Freshly brewed espresso or strong coffee
• All-purpose flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Salt: If using salted butter, cut the amount of salt in half for the cookie dough 
• Dark chocolate baking bars: See note above for the types of chocolate I prefer to use here. Chocolate chips may substituted here. Use semi-sweet chocolate chips of dark chocolate chips to get the desired flavor.

Topping

• Espresso powder
• Flaky sea salt

How to make Espresso Cookies with Dark Chocolate Chunks

Step 1

Infuse the Butter: In a small saucepan set over medium heat, melt the butter. Once melted, stir in coffee or espresso beans. Remove from the heat, cover and steep for 30-60 minutes. The longer you allow the butter and beans to steep, the more intense the coffee/espresso flavor you’ll get!

Pour the butter and beans through a fine-mesh strainer set over a heatproof bowl. Discard the beans and place the butter in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to solidify.

Step 2

Prepare the Cookie Dough: Preheat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC). Line two cookie sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper and set aside.

In the large bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment affixed, add the chilled coffee-infused butter, brown sugar and granulated sugars. Beat on medium speed for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

Add the egg and egg yolk and mix on medium speed for another minute until fully incorporated. With the mixer off, scrape down the sides and bottom, then add the espresso powder, vanilla, and brewed espresso.

Mix on medium until incorporated. With the mixer off, add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir on low speed just until incorporated, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add in the chopped chocolate and stir just until incorporated.

Using a ¼ cup (2 ounce) cookie scoop, scoop dough onto prepared cookie sheet, about 6 per sheet, spacing dough about 2 inches apart. Gently press chunks of dark chocolate into the tops of each cookie.

Step 3

Make Espresso Salt for topping: In a small bowl, mix together the espresso powder and flaky salt and sprinkle liberally on top of each cookie.

Step 4

Bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, rotate baking sheets and continue baking for 5 minutes more, or just until the cookies are golden brown at the edges and no longer look raw in the middle.

Remove the cookies from the oven and allow to cool for at least 10 minutes on the baking sheets. Optional: circle a large round cookie cutter around each cookie to make them perfectly round.

Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and bake remaining cookies. Store cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Tips for Making Espresso Chocolate Chunk Cookies

• To achieve the most espresso/coffee flavor as possible in these cookies, don't skip the step where the butter gets infused with coffee beans. Allowing the melted butter to steep with coffee beans allows for an additional layer of coffee/espresso flavor to be built into these cookies. The butter will smell amazing and that flavor will translate really nicely to the baked cookie. I would also recommend using the highest quality coffee or espresso beans you can afford for this. You will be discarding them after infusing them into the butter, so keep that in mind when purchasing or using up your coffee beans for these Espresso Chocolate Chunk Cookies
• If you prefer a milder tasting espresso chocolate chunk cookie, trying using a lighter roast coffee bean for infusing the butter as well as a lighter roast for the instant coffee powder and brewed coffee that's called for in the recipe. You can also try infusing the butter for a shorter period of time or skipping this step altogether. In this case, melt the butter then place in the fridge to solidify for about 30 minutes before using in the recipe
• To achieve those large melty pools of chocolate you see in my photos, chop large chunks of chocolate baking bars instead of using packaged chocolate chunks. This will allow you to keep some pieces large to place on top of the espresso chocolate chunk cookies just prior to baking. When these melt in the oven you'll get those huge pools of melty dark chocolate

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Looking for more Chocolate Chip cookie recipes? Give these a try:

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