Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

Pretty much any celebration in life deserves a cookie cake! This thick and soft cookie cake is loaded with chocolate chips and topped with a rich, chocolate buttercream frosting.

We are most definitely a cookie cake family when it comes to celebrating! Whether it's a birthday, big accomplishment, or a holiday, I love whipping up a homemade cookie cake to fit the theme.

This recipe uses my famous chocolate chip cookie base, topped with chocolate buttercream frosting. Decorate with your favorite sprinkles, and you have a dessert everyone will love!

What You'll Learn In This Recipe

• How to brown butter, which adds a unique flavor to the cookie cake.
• The best baking pan that makes removing the cookie for decorating so easy.
• Tips for making a silky, smooth American buttercream frosting.

Ingredients You Need

• Unsalted butter: I prefer baking with unsalted butter and adding my own salt, since the salt content in salted butter can vary from brand to brand.
• All purpose flour: I'd always recommend weighing your flour for accuracy. If you don't have a scale, be sure to fluff the flour, scoop it into the measuring cup, then level off with a knife.
• Baking soda: Double check that your leavener hasn't expired.
• Fine sea salt: I find fine sea salt distributes better into dough compared to kosher salt.
• Sugar: This recipe uses a higher ratio of brown sugar to granulated sugar, giving the cookie cake a super soft texture.
• Egg: Allow the egg to come to room temperature so it better emulsifies into the batter.
• Vanilla extract: A high-quality vanilla, like Rodelle, makes all the flavor difference.
• Semi-sweet chocolate chips: I find semi-sweet chips add the perfect balance of flavor, but feel free to use milk or dark chocolate, as preferred.
• Confectioners' sugar: Always sift to avoid lumpy buttercream.
• Dutch process cocoa powder: This gives the frosting a dark, rich chocolate taste, but you can also substitute it for unsweetened cocoa powder. I love using Ghiradelli brand.

Look at the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and exact measurements.

How To Make This Recipe

Step 1: Line a springform pan with parchment paper. I like to clip in the parchment, then trim any excess off.

Step 2: Next, brown the butter over medium low heat, allowing it to cook until golden brown, and you smell a nutty aroma.

Step 3: Whisk all the dry ingredients together, which ensures the salt and leavener are evenly distributed.

Step 4: In a separate bowl, add the cooled brown butter, making sure to scrape out all the browned bits at the bottom (this is where all the flavor is). Then whisk together with brown sugar and granulated sugar.

Step 5: Add in the egg and vanilla extract.

Step 6: Then, pour the flour, in batches, into the wet ingredients.

Step 7: Mix just until combined. You don't want to overmix cookie dough, or it could become tough.

Step 8: Finally, fold in the chocolate chips.

Step 9: Press the cookie dough into the prepared pan. I like to use a silicone spatula or a leftover butter wrapper for this step.

Step 10: Bake the cookie cake just until lightly browned on top. It may still look a little jiggly on top, but it will harden once cooled.

Step 11: For the American buttercream, begin by beating the butter until it's light and fluffy. Next, add the confectioners' sugar and cocoa powder, followed by heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat everything together until light and fluffy.

Step 12: Then, pipe swirls around the border of the cookie and finish with sprinkles.

Expert Tips

• Make sure the brown butter has fully cooled before mixing the ingredients. Butter that's too warm could melt the chocolate chips, which doesn't look quite as pretty once baked up.
• To easily fill your piping bag, place the bag inside a tall glass and fold the top edges over the rim of the glass. This makes it much easier (and cleaner) to fill the buttercream.
• If you enjoy frosting, then this recipe will give you the perfect amount! If you prefer less frosting on your cookie cake, you may consider cutting the recipe in half. You can also opt for a vanilla frosting instead.