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Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies are an elevated take on the classic chocolate chip cookie, made with nutty rye flour, a splash of bourbon, and a subtle hint of rosemary. Each cookie is tender, rich, and full of chopped dark chocolate.
I love the interesting flavor of these cookies. They are wonderfully soft and chewy. Delicious, this is a keeper recipe. Thank you!
Table of Contents
Tender, Chewy, Chocolatey, and a Touch of Earthy Nuttiness – these are Sophisticated Chocolate Chip Cookies!
Every baker I know has a recipe for chocolate chip cookies, I have a few versions myself. But with this recipe, I wanted to create a cookie to serve a more elevated palate. That’s where rye flour, rosemary and bourbon come into play. A trio of flavors that combine into a speakeasy worthy cookie treat.
Dark chocolate, dark brown sugar, and cardamom create a layered taste experience, almost like sipping a good red wine. The flavors of the dough deepen with a cold overnight rest in the fridge for those with a little patience, baking into complex delicious cookies. They’re soft in the center, have chewy edges, and taste better than any pre-made cookie dough.
For more uniquely flavored cookies, try my dark chocolate chai cookies or brown sugar toffee cookies.
Key Ingredients & Test Notes
- All Purpose Flour: Creates the base of the cookie dough structure. I used a stronger all purpose flour with 11.7% protein.
- Rye Flour: Lends a nutty flavor with a bit of malty and slightly earthy notes that pair nicely with the brown sugar and chocolate.
- Test Note: Use a medium rye flour such as King Arthur Baking Company’s Classic Medium Organic Rye Flour.
- Rye flour and all purpose flour are not a 1:1 swap. I recommend baking my Favorite Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies if you would like chocolate chip cookies without the rye flour.
- Unsalted Butter: Make sure the butter is softened so it creams nicely into the sugar.
- Test Note: This recipe uses American style butter “sweet cream” butter with 80% butterfat.
- Dark Chocolate 65-70% : Dark bitter contrast is needed for the cookie dough’s sugary sweetness.
- Test Note: I prefer to chop quality dark chocolate bars into small chunks as it disperses little chocolate flecks throughout the dough. But, dark chocolate chips will work just fine if that’s what you have on hand.
- Dark Brown Sugar: Creates that softer chewy texture that makes a cookie melt in your mouth. Plus, the caramel and toffee notes from the touch of molasses are what we came for!
- Bourbon: Imparts a nice warming note to the overall flavor, just a splash is all you need.
- Test Note: The alcohol will bake off while the cookies are in the oven, leaving just the flavor behind.
- Fresh Rosemary: The perfect aromatic herb to pair with rye and dark chocolate. I promise you’ll love this flavor combo!
- Cardamom and Cinnamon: We need to add a little spice to make everything nice.
Baking With Rye Flour
Rye flour comes in several shades: light, medium, and dark, each bringing its own flavor and texture to a cookie. Light rye has a mild, gently sweet flavor and keeps the cookies soft and tender without adding too much earthiness. Dark rye offers a deeper, more robust flavor with a hint of malt, along with a denser, chewier texture.
For these cookies, I use an organic medium rye flour, which has the perfect balance of warm, nutty complexity without overwhelming the classic chocolate chip profile. Rye flour also brings extra moisture to the dough, creating a soft, chewy center and a perfectly snackable texture that’s neither too soft nor too crisp.
Some of my favorite rye flours to use for this recipe are King Arthur Flour Medium Rye or Bob’s Red Mill Dark Rye Flour . The dark rye will result in a slightly darker cookie with bolder rye flavor.
How to Make Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies
The cookie dough comes together with creamed butter and sugar, add in the eggs and flavorings, then the flours all in one bowl. Fold in the chopped dark chocolate, chill, and bake until the cookie edges are golden and set. Here’s a step-by-step:
- Cream softened butter and sugar together to form a fluffy paste. Mix in the egg first, followed by the extra egg yolk. Then add the vanilla and bourbon until combined.
- Add dry ingredients of flour, rye flour, rosemary, spices, and leaveners to the wet mixture. Blend on low to form a soft cookie dough.
- Fold chopped dark chocolate chunk into the cookie dough with a silicone spatula.
- Scoop cookie dough into even sized balls using a medium cookie scoop while the dough is still soft.
- Place the cookie dough balls on a parchment paper lined tray and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least 3 hours or overnight for a deeper flavor.
- Place cold, firm cookie dough balls 2-3 inches apart on a parchment paper lined baking tray. Bake until edges are set and center is mostly cooked, but still a little puffy.
Chilling Your Cookie Dough is a Must
Why chill your cookie dough? Chilling concentrates the flavor and keeps these moist morsels from spreading too much in the oven. For this recipe, I like to chill overnight to give the bourbon, rosemary, and spices time to develop, but you can get away with a 3 hour chill. The butter also benefits chilling, as cold butter melts more slowly in the oven. This helps the cookies stay thicker and maintain their shape without over spreading.
Jenn’s Cookie Tips!
- Scoop First: Use a medium cookie scoop to evenly measure your dough balls while the dough is still room temperature.
- Chill Cookie Dough: Make sure to chill your cookie dough for at least three hours, overnight is even better for deeper flavor. When you’re ready to bake, remove the dough balls from the refrigerator and gently compress each one between your cupped hands before setting them on the baking sheet. The dough should be very cold and firm when it goes into the oven.
- Parchment Paper: Line your baking sheets with parchment paper and use trays that are either cold or at room temperature. If the parchment becomes greasy between batches, simply flip it over or replace it with a fresh sheet.
- DO NOT OVER BAKE: As soon as the edges begin to turn golden, pull the cookies from the oven. Slightly soft puffy centers with firmer edges are the sign of a perfectly baked cookie, they’ll continue to set as they cool. I don’t always trust a timer or even the oven itself, but I do trust how the cookies look. In my oven, they’re perfect at about 11½ minutes.
★★★★★ Please leave a star rating and review below if you make this recipe! THANK YOU!!
Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 125 grams (1 cup) all purpose flour, 11.7% protein
- 64 grams (½ cup) medium rye flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 113 grams (½ cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 200 grams (1 cup) dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- 50 grams (1 large) egg
- 20 grams (1 large) egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon bourbon, *brand of choice
- 170 grams (1 cup) dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces
Instructions
- Hand whisk together flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cardamom, cinnamon, and rosemary in a medium bowl. Set aside.125 grams all purpose flour, 64 grams medium rye flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Using a stand mixer with paddle attachment or large bowl and a hand mixer beat the butter and dark brown sugar just until a paste is formed. Medium speed about 1-2 minutes. Don't over cream into a lighter color, just beat until the butter is fully incorporated. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl as needed.113 grams unsalted butter, 200 grams dark brown sugar
- Add egg, yolk, vanilla, and bourbon to creamed butter and sugar. Mix until incorporated.50 grams egg , 20 grams egg yolk , 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon bourbon
- Add 1/3 of the flour at a time until fully incorporated.
- Fold in chocolate chunks with a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon. Fold just enough to distribute. The chocolate crumbs from chopping the bars will slightly darken the cookie dough.170 grams dark chocolate
- Use a #40 cookie dough scoop to measure the room temperature dough into balls. Place the cookie dough balls in a single layer inside a parchment paper lined air tight container.
- Place the container of cookie dough balls into the fridge and chill for a minimum of 2 hrs. This will allow the butter to firm, flavors to develop, and prevent spreading when the cold cookie dough is baked. You can also chill the cookie dough overnight for an even richer flavor.
- I have frozen the cookie dough balls for 1 hour and baked them from frozen with great results. Though, my personal preference is the overnight chill for added flavor.
- Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃). Line two large rimmed cookies sheets with double sheets of parchment paper.
- When its time to bake the cookie dough balls, remove them from the fridge and gently pack each dough ball between cupped hands before placing them on the tray.
- Place cold cookie dough balls 1-2 inches apart on room temperature rimmed baking trays. Bake one tray at time. There should be about 9 cookie dough balls per tray. Keep the rest of the dough in the fridge until ready to bake.
- Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes or until edges start look dark and crisp.
- Place cookie sheet onto cooling rack for 10 minutes. Cookies will finish baking as they cool.
- Remove cookies from sheet and place directly onto wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Yields: 24 chocolate chip cookies that are 3 inches in diameter
- Ingredients Used:
- All Purpose Flour: King Arthur AP Flour 11.7% protein
- Rye Flour: King Arthur Flour Medium Rye
- Butter: American unsalted 80% butterfat
- Mix the Dough Just Enough: When adding in the flour, mix until just combined. Add in the chocolate chunks for a a couple of spins on the mixer, or fold in by hand with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula. Over mixing the dough increases gluten formation which leads to tougher cookies.
Storage, Freezing, & Make Ahead
- Room Temp: Store baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
- Freezer: You can also wrap the cookies in freezer safe plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Just pull out a cookie or two at a time and microwave for 15 seconds and enjoy!
- Freeze Cookie Dough: Freeze the dough balls on a parchment-lined tray for about an hour, or until they’re solid. Then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag or container. The dough keeps best for up to three months. To bake from frozen just add 1–2 minutes to the baking time.
Weigh your flour: The measurement I use: 1 cup of flour equals 125 grams. This amount can change based on a different baker’s recipe or using a conversion tool. The weight listed in the recipe is how it was tested and should be used for accuracy. Different brands of flour are made with soft or hard wheat and have varying levels of protein, ranging from low to high. This can change the final result of a baked good, giving different outcomes on the same recipe. I list the level of protein in the ingredients, the brand of flour tested with and a link to My Baking Ingredients for additional details. When choosing a flour, look at the protein level on the back of the bag and consult the recommended amount for the recipe.
the combo rosemary/chocolate is wonderful! I didn’t make proper cookies but just spread the dough and cut it when still hot from the oven. I got squares of goodness with chocolate puddles:-)
This is rather involved for a choc chip cookie, but, the flavor is fascinating, and my 5 yo wants to eat them all. I’m not sure if I would include the rosemary if I made them again, but I really like the rye flavor. I also used dark chips instead of chopping a block because that’s what I had on hand. Also used bobs red mill dark rye flour.
I’m quite interested in making this recipe, but I’m only finding dark rye at the grocery store, and I’m not sure I want to order online something I’ll only use for one recipe. Can you sub dark rye flour for this?
Hi Ann, The dark flour can be used, but may affect the cookies final texture with a slightly stronger rye flavor. Please let me know how it goes.
I love this recipe, its delicious! I added a bit of molasses to my second batch, and thats good too, but don’t add too much like I did. This is going to be my new go to cookie recipe, I love the complexity of flavor the rye and rosemary give it with the salt and chocolate!
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you love these, they’re a favorite of mine too! Might try the molasses 🙂
I love the interesting flavor of these cookies. They are wonderfully soft and chewy. Delicious, this is a keeper recipe. Thank you!
Would love to make these but I can’t find rye flour. Can I just use all purpose flour instead ? Thank you !
I couldn’t find rye flour either. I used all purpose flour, and they turned out great!
Just took these out of the oven and what a wonderfully unique, adult tasting cookie! I used a couple of small extra dark chocolate bars that have been in my pantry for months (99% and 96% cocoa) and filled out the rest with 72% chips. I made it exactly as written and I have to say, that was a very well written recipe. I used the weight measurements and had EXACTLY 2 dozen cookies with no leftover dough. This is my first time finding your blog and I’m excited to check out your other recipes!
Yay!! I’m so glad you like them!! Thanks for the feedback:)
Made these today and they’re wonderful!! I didn’t have rosemary, but the spices and bourbon give these a great flavor on their own. I’ll add the rosemary next time, i’m sure it will be great with the cardamom
What a unique and complex tasting cookie with great texture! I am a cookie enthusiast and am always up for something new and different. This is a homerun recipe!
I don’t have rye flour, is it going to be a big deal? Does it change much?
I haven’t tried these yet, but THANK YOU! for the tip to bang the tray on the counter after baking! I don’t know how many cakey cookies I’ve been disappointed by, and I can’t wait to try this tip with this recipe!
Please let me know when you make them!:)
These are delish. Everyone in my household loves them. The only thing is I have so much spread in my cookies. They don’t look as fluffy or get that crinkled look. What am I doing wrong ?
Hi Taylor,
so glad you like them! Did you chill the cookie dough before baking? Warm cookie dough will spread more than cold.
Yes. I have chilled them for days– even froze them! The only way I can get this look is to cook the cookies a little and then add another ball of cookie dough on top while and then fully bake through.. gives it more hight and a little crinkle. Can I be over mixing butter and sugar ?