Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies
by Sommer Collier — on Mar 9, 2026 My chocolate chip walnut cookies are thick, buttery bakery-style cookies packed with melty chocolate chips and crunchy walnuts. I make this easy cookie recipe with a simple no-chill, eggless dough, so the cookies bake up soft, crumbly, and perfectly rich in under an hour. They’re a delicious homemade dessert to enjoy warm from the oven or freeze for later!
Every one of my cookie recipes (and all of my recipes, for that matter) are special to me in one way or another. However, this chocolate chip walnut cookies recipe is extra special because it combines two of my family’s favorite types of cookies: My salted chocolate chip cookies recipe and traditional butter cookies. While you might think a combination like this would be complicated, what you actually have here is essentially a classic walnut cookie dough made with pantry staples and speckled with mini chocolate chips. I also press a walnut half into the center of the dough balls before baking, so each soft, buttery cookie has the perfect bittersweet chocolate flavor and a nice, crunchy bite. These cookies are perfect for all holidays in my opinion, but I love serving them all throughout the year because they’re visually pleasing, give you that cozy chocolate chip cookie taste, and have the perfect crumbly texture!
Table of Contents
Sommer’s Recipe Highlights
Simply Delicious – Like my scottish shortbread recipe, the dough is made without eggs or baking soda, comes together in one bowl, and there’s no need to chill before scooping and baking the cookies. Seriously, this cookie recipe is about as straightforward as it gets, and puts the focus squarely on the rich chocolate and walnut flavors.
Easy to Customize – I use all-purpose flour as the base for this recipe, which is super easy to swap with alternative flours and still achieve the same soft and lightly crumbly cookie texture. You can also substitute walnuts with pecans for a different nutty flavor that pairs beautifully with the semisweet chocolate chips.
Made to Share – The recipe yields about 48 cookies, so it’s perfect to make for holidays and larger gatherings. They are always a hit in my annual Christmas cookie boxes, on platters for company parties and open houses, and shared at potlucks. I like to make them now and freeze them, so they’re ready to go for my next impromptu get-together!
Key Ingredients and Tips
- Butter – I prefer unsalted butter to have total control over the saltiness. The butter needs to be softened, but not melted.
- Sugars – I use a combination of light brown sugar and granulated white sugar. This makes the cookies sweet, but with a mellower, richer sweetness than using all white sugar.
- Vanilla extract – Don’t go cheap here, people! If there’s one ingredient I always suggest splurging on, it’s a high-quality vanilla. It absolutely affects the taste of the cookie.
- Dry ingredients – I only use all-purpose flour and salt in this recipe. But as I noted above, you can easily swap the flour with your favorite baking mix alternative to suit your dietary needs.
- Mini chocolate chips – I use mini chocolate chips in this recipe versus regular chips. Why? You get a lovely balance of chocolate and walnut, without large pieces of chocolate overpowering the cookies.
- Walnuts – Buy a bag of walnut halves or large pieces. You use most of them to grind into a fine powder and just a few handfuls of halves to press into each cookie before baking.
How to Make
Find the full ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, storage tips, and a video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post.
Prep – Remember, you’ll need softened butter to make the cookies. Once the butter is ready, I preheat the oven to 350 degrees, line a few baking sheets with parchment paper, and get out my trusty stand mixer.
Cream Butter and Sugars – Next, I add the butter, both sugars, vanilla, and salt to the mixing bowl. Turn the mixer to high and cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. This can take anywhere from 3 to 5 minutes, so be patient!
Grind Walnuts – While the butter and sugar are doing their thing in the stand mixer, I use a food processor (or blender) to grind 1 cup of walnuts into a coarse, almost flour-like texture. Don’t grind them for too long, though, or it’ll turn into walnut butter.
Add Ground Walnuts and Flour – Now that I’ve got a fluffy butter and sugar mixture and ground walnuts I scrape the mixing bowl down with a spatula and turn the mixer on low. I slowly add the all-purpose flour followed by the walnut “flour”… I want to combine this all into a cookie dough that is smooth, but don’t overdo it.
Add Chocolate Chips – Next, I add the mini chocolate chips, about 1/4 cup at a time, and mix them in on low to fully incorporate the chips into the walnut cookie dough. Turn off the mixer immediately after the chips are evenly mixed in.
Roll the Dough – I use a 1 1/2-inch cookie scoop to, well, scoop the dough into even-sized balls. Then I use my (clean, obviously) hands to roll them tightly.
Note: If you don’t have a real cookie scoop and you make more than 1 batch of cookies per year, do yourself a favor and buy one! Trust me, you deserve it.
Place the cookie dough balls on the lined baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.
Top with a Walnut – Now it’s time for my favorite part of making the chocolate chip and walnut cookies! I place a walnut half on top of the ball and boop to gently press the nut into the dough. Don’t push down too hard! The walnut should stick in there, but not be covered by the dough.
Bake – I bake the cookies for 15 minutes, then check them for doneness. As soon as the edges are set and lightly golden, I take them out of the oven to cool.
If they’re not quite done, I bake them for an additional 2-3 minutes. But keep watch so they don’t get too dark around the edges!
Expert Tips
When making cookie dough, the two most important factors that create the perfect texture are first to cream the butter and sugar very well until they’re light and fluffy. This creates that crispy exterior but light airy interior.
Second, once all of the other ingredients, including the flour, are incorporated, do not overmix the dough. The longer you mix the flour into the dough, the more it develops the gluten, so it has a tougher texture, not a light, crumbly shortbread texture.
Freezing Tips
Freezing Dough – When I want to have dough ready to use later, I roll the raw cookie dough into a log, wrap it in plastic, and transfer it to an airtight zipper bag. I keep it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Then thaw the dough in the refrigerator overnight, unwrap and continue the recipe as instructed.
Freezing Cookies – If you want the baked cookies to last for more than a few days, you can freeze them for up to 3 months. I wrap each cooled cookie in plastic wrap, then place them all together in an airtight zipper bag. Defrost on the counter for about 20-30 minutes. I find that wrapping them individually helps them taste fresh longer, and makes it easy to pull out just a few cookies at a time.
Storage Notes
I store the baked and cooled cookies in an airtight container, and keep them in a cool, dark spot in the pantry for up to 5 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nope, there’s no need to toast the walnuts first! I grind them raw into flour, and place raw halves on top of the cookies. I find they get just the right slightly toasty taste when baked.
Yes you can, technically, but I don’t advise doing so. These delicate cookies are on the smaller side, which is one of the reasons they are perfect for piling onto cookie platters. But because of that, regular-sized chips overtake the cookies and throw off the chocolate-to-walnut flavor balance.
Sure, you can! I love to grind my own walnuts, but if that’s not your thing, feel free to use 1 cup of store-bought walnut flour.
Absolutely! As-is, my recipe makes 48 cookies, which is great for sharing or freezing for later. Simply halve the ingredients to make closer to two dozen (24) cookies.
More Cookie Recipes
Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsalted butter softened 1 pound
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup mini chocolate chips
- 1 cup ground walnuts from 1 heaping cup pieces
- 48 walnut halves for tops
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Set out several large baking sheets and line them with parchment paper.
- Set out an electric stand mixer. Add the softened butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and salt to the mixer. Beat on high to cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. *It usually takes 3 to 5 minutes to cream the mixture properly, but has a huge impact on the texture of the cookies.
- Meanwhile, grind 1 cup of walnut pieces in a food processor or blender. Grind long enough to create a fine walnut crumble or flour, but not so long you make walnut butter! Save all the prettiest walnut halves for the tops.
- Once the butter mixture is light and fluffy, scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula. Then turn the mixer on low and mix in the all-purpose flour and ground walnuts. When the mixture is smooth, mix in the mini chocolate chips. Once they are well incorporated, turn off the mixer, as to not overmix the dough.
- Use a 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop, or a cooking scale, to measure out 1 ounce balls of dough. Roll the balls tightly and place on the baking sheets 2 inches apart.
- Press a walnut half in the top of each ball, pressing down until the cookie is about 3/4 of an inch tall.
- Bake the cookies for 15 to 18 minutes. Check at the 15 minute mark. The centers should be just barely cooked through but not doughy, and the edges should be just slightly golden. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets to continue firming.
These cookies are incredible! Thick, buttery, and packed with chocolate chips and walnuts – just like bakery cookies.