Easy Cookie Recipes - 3 Classic Cookies, One Dough

Three cookie recipes, one bowl, one afternoon. Chocolate chip, peanut butter, and oatmeal raisin. You mix each batch by hand in about ten minutes.

Start at 8am and you have cookies cooling by 10. The dough chills while you clean up, and the oven does the rest.

Chocolate chip dough needs 30 minutes in the fridge before it bakes. Skip that and the cookies spread thin and greasy at the edges. The other two can go straight in.

About the Ingredients

1 cup (225g) unsalted butter, softened

Take it out of the fridge an hour ahead. If you forgot, cut it into cubes and leave it on the counter for 20 minutes. Salted butter works too, just skip the added salt.

1 cup (200g) granulated sugar

White sugar gives crisp edges. Caster sugar measures the same and dissolves a touch faster.

1 cup (220g) light brown sugar, packed

Press it into the cup so it holds its shape. Dark brown sugar works and tastes more like caramel.

2 large eggs, room temperature

Cold eggs make the dough look curdled. Sit them in warm water for five minutes if you're in a hurry.

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Real extract, not imitation, if you can. Bourbon vanilla is the usual pick for baking.

3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour

Spoon it into the cup and level it off. Scooping straight from the bag packs in too much flour and dries the cookies out.

1 teaspoon baking soda

Check the date on the box. Baking soda loses its lift after about six months in the cupboard.

1 teaspoon fine salt

Fine table salt, not flaky sea salt, which won't dissolve into the dough.

2 cups (340g) chocolate chips

Semisweet is standard. Chopped chocolate bars give you puddles instead of chips, which some people prefer.

1 cup (260g) creamy peanut butter

Use a no-stir brand like Jif or Skippy. Natural peanut butter separates and makes the dough oily and flat.

1 cup (90g) rolled oats

Old-fashioned rolled oats, not quick oats. Quick oats turn to mush in the dough.

1 cup (150g) raisins

Soak them in warm water for 10 minutes and pat dry if yours are hard. Dried cranberries work the same way.

Tips & Tricks

• Chill the chocolate chip dough for 30 minutes. Warm dough spreads before it sets, so the cookies come out flat and greasy at the edges.
• Measure flour by spooning it into the cup. A cup scooped straight from the bag can weigh 30g more than it should, which makes dry, crumbly cookies.
• Pull the cookies when the centers still look underdone. They finish setting on the hot tray, which is what keeps them chewy instead of brittle.
• Use one tray at a time in the middle of the oven. Two trays block the heat and bake unevenly, so the top batch browns before the bottom one sets.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Heat the oven and line trays

Set the oven to 350F (175C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. If you only have one tray, let it cool between batches.

2. Cream butter and sugars

Beat the softened butter with both sugars for 2 minutes until it looks pale and fluffy. This step traps air, and that air is what lifts the cookies later.

3. Add eggs and vanilla

Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla. The mixture should look smooth and glossy. If it looks grainy, keep beating for another 30 seconds.

4. Mix the dry ingredients

Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a second bowl. Add it to the butter mixture in two goes and stir until just combined. Stop when you can't see dry flour, or the cookies turn tough.

5. Make the chocolate chip batch

Fold in the chocolate chips. Cover the bowl and chill it in the fridge for 30 minutes. Scoop 2-tablespoon balls onto the trays, leaving 2 inches between them.

6. Bake the chocolate chip cookies

Bake for 11 to 13 minutes at 350F (175C). The edges should be golden brown and the centers still soft. Cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving them.

7. Mix the peanut butter batch

Stir the peanut butter into half the base dough, or mix a fresh half batch if you prefer. Roll 2-tablespoon balls and press a crisscross pattern with a fork. Bake 10 to 12 minutes at 350F (175C) until the edges are set and the tops look dry.

8. Mix the oatmeal raisin batch

Stir the oats and raisins into the remaining dough. Drop rounded tablespoons onto the tray and flatten them slightly with your palm. Bake 12 to 14 minutes at 350F (175C) until the edges are golden and the centers spring back when you touch them.

Delicious Variations

Double Chocolate

Swap 1/2 cup of the flour for cocoa powder and use white chocolate chips. The dough is stiffer, so add a tablespoon of milk if it won't hold together.

Brown Butter

Cook the butter in a pan until it smells nutty and the milk solids turn brown, then cool it for 20 minutes before creaming. It deepens the flavor in all three batches.

Nutty Oatmeal

Add 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans to the oatmeal dough. Toast them for 8 minutes at 350F (175C) first and the flavor gets much stronger.

How to Store Cookie Recipes

Frequently Asked Questions

Mix one batch tonight, chill it, and bake it tomorrow morning while the coffee brews. Start with the chocolate chip dough if you're new to this, since it forgives small mistakes. Low and slow, friend.

Easy Cookie Recipes – 3 Classic Cookies, One Dough

Cookie recipes you can bake today: chocolate chip, peanut butter, and oatmeal raisin, all from one bowl and a hand mixer.

15 minPrep time35 minCook time24Servings285 kcalCalories

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🧂 Ingredients

• 1 cup (225g) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
• 1 cup (220g) light brown sugar, packed
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 cups (340g) chocolate chips
• 1 cup (260g) creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup (90g) rolled oats
• 1 cup (150g) raisins

📋 Instructions

1. 1Heat the oven and line trays — Set the oven to 350F (175C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. If you only have one tray, let it cool between batches.
2. 2Cream butter and sugars — Beat the softened butter with both sugars for 2 minutes until it looks pale and fluffy. This step traps air, and that air is what lifts the cookies later.
3. 3Add eggs and vanilla — Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla. The mixture should look smooth and glossy. If it looks grainy, keep beating for another 30 seconds.
4. 4Mix the dry ingredients — Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a second bowl. Add it to the butter mixture in two goes and stir until just combined. Stop when you can't see dry flour, or the cookies turn tough.
5. 5Make the chocolate chip batch — Fold in the chocolate chips. Cover the bowl and chill it in the fridge for 30 minutes. Scoop 2-tablespoon balls onto the trays, leaving 2 inches between them.
6. 6Bake the chocolate chip cookies — Bake for 11 to 13 minutes at 350F (175C). The edges should be golden brown and the centers still soft. Cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving them.
7. 7Mix the peanut butter batch — Stir the peanut butter into half the base dough, or mix a fresh half batch if you prefer. Roll 2-tablespoon balls and press a crisscross pattern with a fork. Bake 10 to 12 minutes at 350F (175C) until the edges are set and the tops look dry.
8. 8Mix the oatmeal raisin batch — Stir the oats and raisins into the remaining dough. Drop rounded tablespoons onto the tray and flatten them slightly with your palm. Bake 12 to 14 minutes at 350F (175C) until the edges are golden and the centers spring back when you touch them.

👨🍳 Chef's Note: A scale makes these cookies repeatable. One cup of flour can weigh anywhere from 120g to 150g depending on how you scoop, and that difference shows up in the bake.

Servings: 24

Cuisine: American

Course: Dessert

Easy Recipes for Everyday Cooking15 minutes35 minutes80 minutes

Nutrition (per serving): 285 kcal · 4g protein · 34g carbs · 15g fat