Bisquick Chocolate Chip Cookies

Out of flour? No leavening agent? It's no problem with these Bisquick chocolate chip cookies! Enjoy classic chocolate chip cookie taste and texture in this quick and easy recipe that requires no chilling or fuss.

In the midst of a winter storm, I had already mixed together the wet ingredients of a cookie recipe when I realized I was out of flour.

Since driving to the supermarket wasn't an option, I panicked/improvised and grabbed a box of baking mix from my pantry. With a little zhushing, these Bisquick chocolate cookies came into existence, and wow! They exceeded all expectations.

While I make no claims that this easy Bisquick cookie recipe will be replacing your current family favorite, it serves to come through in the clutch in a big way when flour is scarce or if you're simply looking for a quick cookie recipe to throw together.

Why This Recipe Works

• Many Bisquick chocolate chip cookies can either bake up totally flat or become puffy and dry if you try and add more baking mix. This recipe uses several tricks to prevent excess spread, all while using less Bisquick to prevent dryness, and no chill time!
• I've tinkered with this recipe over the years to land on an optimal texture: slightly chewy and not cake-y at all. It resembles traditional chocolate chip cookies.
• An equal blend of granulated and brown sugars balances chewiness with cookie spread.

Recipe Ingredients

• Butter: Soften unsalted butter to room temperature before beginning so it efficiently creams with the sugars.
• Sugars: Per Serious Eats, in a recipe where butter and sugar is creamed, granulated sugar leads to taller cookies, while brown sugar can cause spread. Here we're using equal parts brown and granulated sugars to provide a nice balance between height, cookie spread and chewiness. Dark or light brown sugar fine.
• Egg: Just one.
• Vanilla Extract: For that classic chocolate chip cookie taste.
• Bisquick: This baking mix contains flour, starch, leavening, a little sugar, a little fat, and salt. I've tested this Bisquick cookie recipe with both the Original and Heart Smart varieties, but not Gluten-Free.
• Salt: Bisquick already contains salt, so use a light hand when adding an extra pinch.
• Chocolate Chips: Use your favorite: semi-sweet, dark, milk, or blend. Other chips would be delicious (butterscotch or peanut buter), as would a chopped up candy or chocolate bar.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Before beginning - Take out your stick of butter so it can soften. The time this takes will vary depending upon the temperature of your kitchen, but it should be somewhere between 30-60 minutes.

1. Cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until light and creamy.
2. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until evenly combined.

3. Mix in the Bisquick and pinch of salt until no dry steaks remain.
4. Stir in the chocolate chips.

5. Scoop cookie dough balls and roll them into a taller oval shape. Place them standing up on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
6. Bake at 375°F for dinner 11-14 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the tops have just set. Cool on the pan for several minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Prevent Bisquick Cookies from Over Spreading

• Make sure the butter isn't too soft. Overly softened or semi-melted butter can lead to over spreading and thinner cookies. The butter is softened correctly when your finger leaves a slight indent in it when gentle pressure is applied. This may be cooler than room temperature!
• Don't grease the pans. A lining of parchment paper is sufficient.
• Use darker cookie sheets. Darker metal sheet pans more quickly retain heat and sort of "set" the cookie base faster, allowing the cookies to expand taller and not wider.
• Form taller cookie dough balls. Instead of rolling the dough into spheres, shape them into tall eggs and stand them up on the cookie sheet. This taller shape helps produce thicker cookies.
• Chill the dough (optional). This dough isn't overly wet or soft so it's not a must to chill the dough like it is with my beloved ricotta cookies. That said, there's no harm in chilling it for an hour or so before baking.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

• Measuring Bisquick - Treat it like flour, in that you should spoon it into a measuring cup (without packing it in), then level off the top with a straight edge. Do not sift it.
• Using Other Baking Mixes - Generic or other brand name all-purpose baking or pancake mixes will likely work here, as long as they contain leavening. Be aware that pancake mixes may contain up to several grams more sugar per serving than Bisquick.
• Freezing - You can shape cookie dough balls and freeze in an air-tight bag before baking. Thaw in the refrigerator before baking, or you can bake from frozen. If doing so, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and extend the bake time a few minutes.
• Freshen Up Stale Cookies - Wrap day-old (or longer) cookies in a damp paper towel and microwave for 10-15 seconds. You can also place them in a 350°F oven (without the paper towel) and bake for 4-5 minutes to warm them again, though keep a close eye so they don't overly brown.

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Note - The photos have been updated and the recipe slightly tweaked from its original post date in January 2016.