My favorite kind of cookies are typically the unassuming ones. The cookies that look on the plainish side. If they are all sprinkles and shine then I’m probably not all that interested.
Cookies like these Chili Chocolate Chip Cookies have nothing to hide. They are what they are.
Okay. That’s not totally true. What they are hiding is hot sauce and cayenne pepper that will smack your taste buds into tomorrow.
The combination of chocolate and spice is and oldy but a goody and you’ll find these totally addicting thanks to it.
Chili Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- ¾ cups unsalted butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon Sriracha
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ¼-½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a large bowl, use a hand mixer or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment to cream together butter and sugars until they are light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla and sriracha hot sauce.
- In a small bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter base and mix until the flour disappears. Try not to overmix the dough.
- Fold in the chocolate chips with a large spatula.
- At this point you can chill the dough for later if you want or bake them immediately.
- To bake, portion out heaping tablespoons of dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Give the cookies plenty of room. I like to do 6 per sheet.
- Bake the cookies at 325 degrees F. for 12-15 minutes until they are lightly browned around the edges. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before eating.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Chili Chocolate Chip Cookies
Spicy Dough!
I love making cookie dough so much. It’s practically a food group for me this time of year.
The base for this dough is pretty standard.
To the flour and baking powder base, I added some cinnamon and a small spoonful of cayenne pepper. I used 1/4 teaspoon of spice and I think I would up it to 1/2 teaspoon next time. I could’ve handled more heat in my cookies.
You can easily make this dough using a stand mixer or a hand mixer. Even though I have a stand mixer, I used the hand variety just to mix it up.
Just cream together the butter and sugars until they are a light, fluffy consistency and then add in the eggs. You should do them one at a time, but I forgot.
Then add in the vanilla and a big squirt of sriracha.
To be honest, I didn’t measure this. I just eyeballed it at about a tablespoon. You could use any hot sauce really (because I guess there is now a sriracha shortage). I would stay away from hot sauces that have very strong flavors like habanero or probably even tabasco. Something on the milder side (for hot sauces) works well.
Then mix your dry ingredients into the wet and fold in the chocolate chips using a spatula or big spoon.
Baking the Cookies
You can refrigerate the dough for these Chili Chocolate Chip Cookies if you want, but I just made them right away in this case.
Scoop heaping tablespoon-sized balls onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Give the cookies plenty of room to expand. I only do 6 per sheet.
If you wanted to be really finicky you could weigh your cookies, but unless you run a bakery that’s probably not necessary.
Bake these bad boys in a 325 degrees F. oven for 12-15 minutes until they are just browned around the edges. I like mine still on the chewy side.
Spice not for you? Try these brown butter chocolate chip cookies!
These Chili Chocolate Chip Cookies have a great chocolate flavor and the spice kind of snuck up on you. You might not get much of it on the first bite, but by the end of the cookie it will be tickling your tongue.
Spicy cookies? Sure. Why not?
PamelaR
While at a Christmas party the other night, I bit into a cookie and immediately went into anaphylactic shock. You see, I’m allergic to peppers (red, green, yellow, chile, paprika, etc). Who would have thought to ask if there were peppers in the cookies? Obviously, not I. It was exceedingly scary. I have found that my allergy isn’t all that uncommon. So, just a plea from a crazy lady….let people know if there is something out of the ordinary in something you cook. :-) The proliferation of peppers in cooking has made me question absolutely anything I put in my mouth. It used to be just the savory stuff–now I guess I also need to be careful of the sweets. Talk about a lesson.
Pamela
Nick
Yea… I always encourage well-labeled foods at parties and pot lucks for just that reason Pamela. Good reminder. Thanks.
cindy
15 min to the store, can these be made with semisweet chips?
Nick
Sure cindy! That’s a fine substition for cookies. :)
Sarah
Sriracha has a good amount of garlic and umami flavor to it. Did that come through? Was it super weird? I’m totally on board for the cayenne pepper, but not sold on the sriracha…
Nick
Ha… it gives the cookies kind of a subtle savory flavor, but obviously chocolate and sweet and savory can work really well together. I thought it was great and nobody complained when they ate them. :)
Chris
Choco-Sriracha-Chip Cookies, I like that. I don’t like most sweets but the spicy edge on these, I would that.
Rachael
I didn’t have any Sriracha on hand, OR cayenne, but I improvised and used Chili Powder and Cajun hot sauce. These were the prettiest, tastiest, easiest cookies I have ever made! I loved them; they may become my staple cookie recipe. I don’t make cookies often, but these were too good not to repeat!