Yesterday I tried a new recipe for Subway Copycat Cookies. It was from Subway UK/Ireland who put it on their Facebook page with a video showing how to make it. This particular Subway cookie recipe mimics their Double Chocolate Chip Cookies, a flavor I wasn’t very familiar with because when I go to Subway I buy their Chocolate Chip or White Chip Macadamia. So before baking the copycats I picked up an actual Subway Double Chocolate Chip Cookie for comparison. The cookie in the photo below is the actual Subway cookie.
And the cookie below on the left is the copycat made with a clone Subway Double Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. So yes! The two cookies are pretty close.
The flavor of the copycat is dead-on, and the texture is similar but not identical. The Subway cookie is flatter, denser and has what I call a “bend-y” texture where if you hold it by its edge, it will slowly bend and break — and that’s hours after baking. Usually homemade cookies have this texture right out of the oven, but eventually firm up. Texture differences aside, the cookies are still alike with the Subway Copycat Cookies tasting fresher.
One last note: The Subway directions are very specific about how you should mix. They suggest using a wooden spoon and creaming by hand, which is pretty simple since this is a relatively small batch recipe. If you ignore that and use a mixer, you’ll get beautifully rounded cookies (below left) that are lighter and have crispy edges. But since the point is to get the soft, flat, almost bendable cookies, it’s better to just mix by hand.
Update: New photo with chilled dough. For flat cookies, remove pan from oven after 11 minutes. Bang gently on counter to deflate, then bake another 30 seconds to 1 minutes.
Now if only I could clone the Subway Caramel Apple Cookie. Oh my goodness! I bought one the other day and was surprised at how good it was. Whatever flavoring they use for the apple and caramel is delicious.
Gluten-Free Subway Cookies
Another update! I finally got around to testing these with a gluten-free 1:1 flour blend, specifically, Thomas Keller’s Cup4Cup. It worked perfectly, though I did find it helpful to reduce the heat to 325 degrees F and add 10 more grams of flour. I will add a note to the recipe card.
Some More Fun Copycats
Recipe
Subway Copycat Cookies
Ingredients
- 125 g salted butter softened (9 tablespoons)
- 100 g light brown sugar 1/2 cup
- 75 g granulated sugar 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 medium or large medium egg 45 grams beaten egg (can use up to 52 grams)
- 150 g all-purpose flour (or a gluten-free 1:1 blend) 1 cup plus about 2 tablespoons
- 40 g cocoa powder, Dutch**
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt optional – definitely use if butter is unsalted
- 100 g white chocolate chips or chopped white chocolate
- 200 g milk chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175°C (or 350 degrees F). Line 2 large baking trays with baking parchment.
- In a large bowl, combine the butter and sugars. Using a wooden spoon, cream the mixture until light and fluffy, for about 3 minutes.
- Lightly beat the egg and vanilla together in a small bowl or custard cup. Add to the butter mixture a little at a time, stirring until well combined. If you are using large eggs, don't blend the vanilla with the egg. Add the vanilla straight to the batter and only use 42 to 45 grams of the egg.
- Mix together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt until very well combined and there are no lumps. If necessary, sift. Add to the butter mixture and stir to make a soft dough. Stir in all the chips (or chunks)
- Using an ice cream scoop or cookie scoop or spoon, divide the mixture into 16 balls. Subway cookies weigh 1.6 oz, so you may want to weigh. Roll into balls and place onto the lined baking trays, spaced at least 2 1/2 inches apart.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until well spread and just set on the surface. The cookies will still be quite soft, but will firm up as they cool. Leave on the tray for 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
Anna
Made a batch today and had to use a little bread flour in place of all-purpose because I ran out. The bread flour made the dough dryer and the cookies came out even thicker and crumblier. Still good, just thicker than with AP. But it’s an example of how changing little things can change the outcome.
Anna
I’ve made these a million times. She probably mis-measured something. Usually spreading means too much sugar and not enough flour or mismeasuring the baking soda. Sometimes cookies spread due to greasing cookie sheets or using nonstick spray, but that wouldn’t cause them to spread all over the pan. If you want me to troubleshoot, let me know what brands of ingredients you used, if you live in the USA or another country (sometimes flours vary) or more info. It’s a pretty straightforward recipe, so she may have just goofed up. It happens. Oh, another thought — it could have been something with the cocoa powder. Did she use the kind meant for drinking? Was her butter actual butter or was it a spread like margarine? A tub spread could cause that. So many variables. I’d love to help your daughter figure out the problem, so just have her leave me a comment here and we can figure it out.
Mama bear
I am not the baker but my 12 yr old daughter tried to make these and they completely ran off the pan. Any tips would be awesome , i told her to try again maybe y’all can help me understand what happened. They smelled amazing the dough tasted good .
Kelly
Bravo! Thank you so much—yum!
Anfisa
Just WOW! I didn’t expect it work, because I’ve been looking for perfect cookies forever! But those are AMAZNG
many thanks! <3
Anna
Yes, definitely! It freezes well. I always shape the dough into rounds before freezing.
Madiha
Are you able to freeze the cookie dough?
Anna
Hi Kate,
Sadly, I haven’t had any luck getting that texture with molasses. I do have a good chocolate chip cookie with molasses, though!
https://www.cookiemadness.net/2013/05/07/jumbo-chocolate-chip-cookies-with-a-secret-ingredient-okay-its-molasses/
It could be something in their palm oil/butter blend or some preservative that’s covered under “natural flavors”, Grocery store bakery cookies and other mass produced cookies also have this texture. It makes it so the cookies have a fresh baked texture hours after baking. Whatever they use also adds a chewy almost sticky quality. It’s not a huge deal, just a weird little textural thing that has become my white whale. The homemade ones always taste better.
That said, I think adding a teaspoon of molasses could add a pleasant hint of flavor and might help the chew a tiny bit. It just won’t give the cookies that dense, bending quality I’m talking about.
kate
I noticed that all of Subway’s cookie ingredients contain molasses. I wonder how adding 1-3 teaspoons of either molasses or milder corn syrup would affect the “bendiness” of the final product, since the higher fructose content’s hygroscopic tendencies can help draw more water into the dough, therefore keeping them chewier for longer.
Anna
Sue, they are surprisingly good! You can also make them with white chunks, but since Subway uses white chips I went with those.
Sue
Thanks for trying and sharing these. They look and sound delicious. White chocolate chips need to go on the grocery list!