Milk Powder Chocolate Chip Cookies are big fat cookies loaded with chocolate chips. Made with a combination of bread flour and cake flour, they may remind you of all the Levain clones that are floating around, but if you look closely you'll see the ratios are different. These have a higher proportion of butter. And then of course there's the instant milk powder.
Jump to Recipe
Stick With Carnation
I've been making these on and off for years now, but wasn't ready to share the recipe because they had a strange flavor. No one else really noticed it, but I found it a little off. A few months ago I made the cookies with a different brand of milk powder (Carnation) and guess what? No weird flavor. So for milk powder cookies, I recommend Carnation.
Milk Powder Chocolate Chip Cookies Notes
- You can use any kind of flour or mixture of flours so long as the total weight is 380 grams. I like using a mixture of bread and cake flour. The cookies are thick and have a crust, and the inside is a little fluffier (relatively speaking). I think what makes the cake flour version fluffier is not just the lower protein level, but the fact that it is bleached, because I've also had success using 380 grams of bleached flour. Using 100% bread flour also works, and gives you a dense cookie with a thick crust.
- Nonfat Dry Milk Powder -- Carnation, as mentioned above. The milk powder gives the cookies a soft, fluffy interior and adds some flavor.
- Eggs -- Not all large eggs are the same size. For instance, the eggs that I'm buying now in NC are labeled as large, but only weigh about 48 grams (15 grams of yolk and about 33 grams white), whereas the ones I bought back in IL were around 54 grams (36 grams white and 18 grams yolk). In Texas they were also around 52 to 54. For this recipe you'll need 1 egg (50) and 1 yolk (18) and a total of at least 68 grams. I sometimes slip a little more white and have gone as high as 80 grams (1 whole egg, a yolk and some extra white).
- Butter -- Land o Lakes or even grocery store brand butter should give you great results. Plugra also works well. Some other brands of European style butter actually caused more spreading.
- Sugar and Brown Sugar -- I use pure cane sugar and light brown sugar.
- Chips -- Use whatever kind you like and at least 2 ½ cups. 3 is probably better. I like to include milk chocolate chips to keep the milk theme, but for some diversity I throw in white and semisweet. The cookies in the first photo also include macadamia nuts. Chips work better than chunks for these particular cookies.
- Parchment vs Silpat -- These spread less if you use parchment, so I recommend using parchment or baking directly on an ungreased baking sheet. I've also tested on a Silpat and the cookies spread more.
- Bake Time -- I get the best results when I start the cookies at a high heat (400F) and turn down the heat after 10 to 12 minutes. So this means 400F for 10 minutes then 330F for 8 to 10. If you like a browner shell or slightly burnt edges, bake at 400F for 13 minutes and 330 for 5 to 8. You can also bake at 375 for 18 to 20 minutes.
Measurements and Scaling
The best way to measure is with weights. The volume measurements are just approximations. Also, the recipe halves well. To make the equivalent of half an egg and half a yolk, set a small custard cup or bowl on the scale, set tare to zero. Crack an egg into the cup and note the weight (should be 48 to 54 grams). Discard egg white in small bits until you have about 38 to 40 grams of egg total.
Half Batch Measurements
ase you want to test the waters with a smaller batch! I've even halved this batch successfully for super small batches.
- 190 grams of flour (mixture of bread and cake or use 100% AP)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅜ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons Carnation dried milk (12 grams)
- 36 to 40 grams of a whole egg, take one whole egg and discard enough of the white so that you have 36 to 40 grams of egg. This gives you a higher ratio of yolk.
- 60 grams light brown sugar
- 60 grams granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- Lots of chocolate chips! Around 1 ½ cups, mixed
Recipe
Old Milk Powder Chocolate Chip Cookies
Milk powder lightens the texture of these crispy and chewy cookies.
Ingredients
- 260 grams bread flour
- 220 grams all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons milk powder
- 2 large eggs (50 grams)
- 265 grams unsalted butter, cut into chunks, still kind of cold
- 190 grams light brown sugar
- 100 grams granulated sugar (½ cup plus 2 scant tablespoons)
- ½ tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 500 grams chopped high quality chocolate
- Coarse sea salt (optional)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together flours, cornstarch salt, baking soda and milk powder. Set aside.
- Put the butter and both sugars in the stand mixer bowl and use the paddle attachment to beat until creamy. Beat in the honey and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy, then add eggs one at a time beating on low until mixed. Increase speed and beat for 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour, mixture scraping the sides of the bowl and pushing the dough together. It will seem dry at first, but once the flour is incorporated it should not be too dry of a dough. It's a little sticky -- should be about the same as normal chocolate chip cookie dough.
- Add the chips and empty onto a pastry mat or clean surface. Knead gently to incorporate any stray flour or chips. Shape into 10 or 12 large balls. Put them on a plate and chill until they are a bit firmer, then press them into tight round balls.
- You can bake one or two right away and chill the rest until they are very firm.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake on a parchment lined baking sheet at 400 for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 330 degrees F and bake for another 8 to 10 minutes (or 5 to 7 minutes if making smaller cookies) or until cookies look brown and have cracks. NOTE: If your cookies spread more than you like, tap them inward with the back of a spatula, shaping them so they are taller and rounder. Also, if you are working with very cold dough, the cookies will most likely need a longer bake time.
- In my opinion these are a little better over-baked than under.
- Let cookies cool on the sheet for about 10-15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. The cooling process will take about two hours. I sometimes throw them in the freezer to quick cool, then bring them back to room temperature before serving.
Notes
The recipe makes 2 pounds or 32 oz of dough. The chips add another 18 oz , so if you use all the chips you should have around 50 oz of dough (3 pounds, 2 oz). You can make 10 5 oz cookies or 12 4 oz cookies.
Anna
It depends on the brand. There was one brand, I think it was Saco, that I could smell. I didn't detect the same smell with Carnation.
Cookies
Does the milk powder give smell to the cookies ?
Anna
Sue, thanks for trying them! I was hoping to get some feedback from another baker.
Sue
I made these today and they turned out great. They’re very thick and not too sweet. They have a nice shell on the outside but have a nice soft crumb on the inside. I only baked a few and am unsure if I will freeze the rest of the dough or keep it on hand in the fridge for a day. I used a combination of bread flour/ AP flour and cake flour due to being short on the bread flour.
Thanks for a well written and well tested recipe.
Anna
Here's a little follow-up to my egg rant :). So far I've been using the same brand of large eggs from the same store. A few weeks ago the eggs weighed around 54 grams with shell and 48 grams cracked. This past week I bought the same brand of large eggs and they are weighing in around 63 grams with the shell and 57 grams cracked into a cup. This is just another good reason to weigh eggs, especially if you're making something with a lot of eggs.
Sue
Your detailed notes are great! Hope to give these a try soon!
Anna
Hi Beth! Next time I crack one I'll weigh with and without the shell. All of the weights I've mentioned in the post are without shell. I'm jealous of all your fresh eggs, btw.
Beth
We have a bunch of chickens that lay all different size eggs. I'm pretty good at eyeballing them, but USDA does list minimum weights for each size. I believe these weights include shell and are averaged across a dozen, so there could be slight variation. Jumbo, minimum 63 grams, extra large minimum 56 grams, large minimum 50 grams, medium 44 grams. I'd be interested to know if your 48-gram eggs weigh 50 with the shell!