Chocolate Chip Treasure Cookies
These amazing, egg-free chocolate chip treasure cookies are so easy to make and are the softest, chewiest cookies thanks to a few, special secret ingredients!
You might be hard pressed to find a chocolate chip cookie recipe as easy and delicious and unique as this one.
This chocolate chip treasure cookie recipe is easily one of my top favorite cookies of all time.
I’ve been making this recipe for years…and it continues to be a favorite.
It should come as no surprise that it was passed on to me by way of my Aunt Marilyn (who is an amazing cook and clearly has friends who know their way around the kitchen just like she does).
Let me extol the virtues of these cookies for you, in case you haven’t made them yet:
1) They are so easy to make. I often rely on my rebellious (ha!) nature and mix them by hand AND ignore the part where the dry ingredients are mixed separately. I just throw everything in there and get an arm workout in and call it good.
But even if you are a rule/recipe follower, they will still be one of the simplest cookie recipes to whip up. Promise.
2) They have enough unique in them to be highly sought after. One bite and you’ll know what I mean.
You can see from the recipe that these chocolate chip treasure cookies have a somewhat surprising lineup of ingredients. The base of the cookie is butter and sweetened condensed milk…with graham cracker crumbs coming soon after.
Believe it! Go with it! Embrace it! It works…amazingly well.
3) They are egg-free. We are not an egg-free house, but I do like knowing my excessive nibbles of raw cookie dough are safe and ethical in the case of these cookies (although if you think I don’t indulge in real, live, raw cookie dough, we probably should have a talk).
However, if you ARE egg-free and need a fantastic go-to chocolate chip cookie, this chocolate chip treasure cookies recipe is the one.
And if I’m sharing all my secrets today, one time I made the cookie dough, rolled into smaller balls, chilled them, dipped them in chocolate, and called them a truffle.
Insane.
4) They are the softest, chewiest cookie you’ll ever meet. Thanks to the unique ingredient lineup, the texture is creamy and unbelievably soft and chewy. There’s really no other way to describe them.
Other than amazing. Addicting. Best-ever. Crazy good.
I think that about covers it.
I know coconut in cookies can be off-putting to some people (you crazy souls, you!), but it’s delicious in these chocolate chip treasure cookies. You should try it.
But.
If you just can’t, I’ll let you in on a secret.
I’ve subbed in old-fashioned oats before with great results (details in the recipe below).
You may be wishing I never told you that, because it’s dangerous knowing an oatmealchocolatechip-esque cookie can be that amazing.
Not only are these cookies unreal in flavor and texture…but you have to admit, they make a pretty darn picture-perfect cookie. Am I right?
Helped along by the use of a cookie scoop for portioning out the cookie dough (I use a #40 scoop for this size of cookies), the perfectly round shape makes them worthy of everything from bake sale to midnight snacking.
And thanks to a little Instagram experiment, I found that baking them on convection at 325 degrees made for a better cookie (read: no spreading).
If you don’t have convection, I’d suggest baking them at 375 degrees F (in a conventional oven). It seems the slightly warmer temperature helps them maintain their perfect shape while baking.
I’m telling you, give these cookies a try!
And if you love them already as much as I do and are ready for Chocolate Chip Treasure Cookie 2.0, take a look at this 7-layer version (like the classic 7-layer bar rolled into cookie form).
Ridiculously delicious.
I’ll forever be grateful these little beauties came into my life so many years ago. I’ve rarely found someone who didn’t immediately fall in love with them.
At the first nibble, you just know they are special.
Chocolate Chip Treasure Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (150 g) graham cracker crumbs, 13 rectangle crackers
- ½ cup (71 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup (113 g) salted butter, room temperature
- 1 ⅓ cups sweetened, shredded coconut (113 g) or 3/4 cup (75 g) old-fashioned oats
- 2 cups (340 g) semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup (120 g) walnuts or other nuts, chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (see note above).
- In a small bowl, add the graham cracker crumbs, flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine.
- In a large bowl with a handheld electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or by hand with a spoon), beat the sweetened condensed milk and butter until smooth and creamy, 1-2 minutes.
- Add the dry ingredients; mix until mostly combined. It’s ok if a few dry streaks remain.
- Stir in the chocolate chips, coconut, and nuts (if using).
- Drop the cookie dough by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheets.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes.
- Let the cookie rest on the baking sheet for 1-2 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.
This is a random recipe!! But I’m excited to try. Also love the treasure bars. Spencer chose those when we had our Christmas baking extravaganZa and they were yum!
You had me at condensed milk! These look amazing!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
From the bottom of my heart…THANK YOU for this wonderful egg-free recipe! We are an egg-free family (husband and son both have allergies), and baking can be a challenge. My go-to has been the Toll House recipe with flax “eggs” instead of real eggs…but it’s just not the same. Can’t wait to give this recipe a try!
Hope you love them, Sarah!
If using oats instead of sweetened coconut, will that affect the overall sweetness of the cookie? Does sugar need to be added to compensate for the lack of sweetened coconut? Thanks!
I don’t add any extra sugar if using oats – the cookies are slightly more hearty-tasting, but definitely still sweet enough, in my opinion.
Hi Mel, so I am curious – do we bake these cookies at the lower temperature using convection – but using the same length of time? 8-10 mins? Or does the time decrease due to the ‘convection’?
I bake them in that time range using convection, also.
I’m making these for a book club that I’m hosting tonight (we read When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi. It’s an amazing book)! Maybe I’m totally missing it, but when do I add the coconut? Thanks, Mel!
I love that book! 🙂 And the coconut is added with the chocolate chips (I just edited the recipe to make it more clear).
Good cookie recipe is more precious than gold 😀
These look so good! Do you ever have trouble with your cookie scoops getting “out of alignment”? It seems to happen every time I make cookies and my husband has to strong arm it back into place! Any help would be appreciated 🙂
What brand of cookie scoops do you have, Katherine? I’ve never had that happen with the OXO brand I have, but if cookie dough is super stiff, I usually forego the cookie scoop and use a sturdier spoon.
The first one I got was an OXO and I actually returned it and it happened with my replacement and then I got one from the Bosch store in Orem and it just happened to me last week with that one…. it’s probably my really big muscles 😉
Haha, maybe that’s it! Bummer, though. I’ve had great luck with the OXO but I’m sorry you have had issues.
These look so good, there are on my “next to try” list! How do you think they would taste made with chocolate graham crumbs?
Yum, sounds like a great idea! They may not be super chocolatey but I bet they’ll be yummy.
PS One day later from my post above: so I went ahead and baked these as a bar cookie and they are good :-)…used a glass baking dish smaller than a 9×13 but bigger than a 8×8 (weird size but it worked) and baked like a brownie/blondie– about 325 degrees for about 25 minutes. Also used “digestive biscuits” and fresh grated coconut since we can’t get graham crackers here (outside of the capital city) or dried American style coconut. In summary, a different, easy and good recipe to try especially if you are out of eggs and low on flour!
Oh, thanks for reporting back. Yum!
Has anyone made these into a bar cookie? It is 102 degrees in my kitchen now and I’d rather open and close my hot oven once :-).
These cookies are awesome!
OMG! I had lost this recipe and I am so happy that I googled the ingredients and found it again! I used to bake these for the holidays and give them to my 8 siblings and their kids. They’ve all been bugging me about these cookies! I remembered all the ingredients, I just needed the measurements. I’m a happy girl now. Love these! ❤️❤️
Hi Mel,
I’ve stumbled into your cookie recipe while searching for recipes to make for my kids. I too am in constant search for the ultimate recipe for chocolate chip cookies. Finding this one with a totally different ingredient mix I would say made me curious and wanting to give it a try. Just one question though, the coconut you meant is the desiccated one right?
Thank you.
Denyse – I use sweetened, shredded coconut for these cookies.
Oh my! I have never liked cookie dough…until now! This stuff is amazing! It would be fabulous in home-made cookie dough icecream. I used part toasted coconut I had on hand and loved the little crunch it added.
Thanks! I’ve got my second batch in the oven right now. They’re honestly one of the best cookies that I’ve ever had. I used pecans instead of walnuts because I’m not a walnut lover but they’re delicious!
Eartha – yes, I use all-purpose flour.
These sound great! I’m guessing that you use all purpose flour?
I made these today. So good. I made them without the coconut and extra 1/2 cup of graham cracker crumbs, worked very well. THIS is now my fav chocolate chip recipe. Thanks for posting it!
We made these last night substituting 1 cup of oats for the coconut. They are delicious! Thanks for another great recipe.
Thank you SOOO much for highlighting this cookie! I’m allergic to eggs and I can’t WAIT to make these!
I’m so glad you re-highlighted these cookies! They remind me of a favorite brownie recipe my family loves that uses graham crackers and sweetened condensed milk. My husband has an aversion to coconut. Do you think it would be okay to leave it out or should I substitute something in its place?
Christina – it will definitely affect the finished cookie to take out the coconut since it is needed for substance and texture. You could try increasing the amount of graham cracker crumbs or adding oats or something else. I haven’t tried it so you’ll have to experiment. Good luck!
These look so yummy – a shape up with some ingredients is always good for a change. Question: did you use unsweetened coconut?
Thanks! Love love your blog!
Jenny – I usually use sweetened coconut since it’s really hard for me to find unsweetened. Either will work just fine.
These are the coolest cookies! No eggs? No granulated sugar? What? Also, for those of us who buy boxes of graham crackers from Costco, (4 boxes in each Costco box) and then our kids decide they don’t like graham crackers as snacks anymore, we can use up some of those crackers with these cookies! I thought they were pretty tasty. I wanted to add that I omitted the coconut and increased the crumbs to just under 2 and 1/4 cups. Worked great!
Luda – thanks for checking back in – I’m glad to know the results!
Mel- I tried both, with the dulce de leche and plain condensed milk, and the ones with condensed milk came out much better. The dulce the leche was quite a bit thicker so I had to add some milk to thin it out and because I am not yet a scientist in the kitchen, I am not sure that I got the right consistency. Also it seems that the dulce the leche ones were a bit sweeter. Both tasted great, but the ones with condensed milk were amazing! Thanks!!!!
Mel- What do you think about using a can of Dulce de Leche instead of condensed milk with these? I have a can, laying around that I need to put to good use.
Luda – I think the dulce de leche should work just fine in these. Let me know if you try it!
WOW! These are better than a “Crazy Zipper Head”!! Thanks for sharing Mel, I hope all is well with you!
This is my new favorite cookie recipe! They taste perfect and are easy to make! Thanks Mel!!
Every since I can remember my favorite dessert (and possibly the yummiest thing to EVER enter my mouth) has been a bar version of these cookies. The graham cracker crumbs and butter are smashed into a pan. The chocolate chips, coconut, and nuts are sprinkled on top and then the sweetened condensed milk is drizzled on top of it all. You bake them for 20-ish and they’re done. Divine. So when I saw this cookie recipe including the exact (except for the flour and soda) ingredients I was so excited to try them. I’m lucky that I even got a batch of cookies out of it because the dough was so delicious. Baked up they are absolutely divine. They taste almost exactly like the bars I grew up on and it’s fun to have another (less messy) way of eating my favorite ingredients. I will make these a billion times before I die.
These are really good. I made them today as they sounded different and was not disappointed. I’ve tucked some away to bring to church and for friends. Definitely a keeper!
Just made these….Uh-Mazing! Not your normal cookies, but so good! These will definately make the rotation! I love your blog, it’s the only one I use for dinner (and sister’scafe) I love you all!
Cicily – so glad you loved these unusual but delicious cookies. And thanks for the nice comment!
These look great. I just happen to have all the ingredients, too. – lucky me. 🙂
These look great!! I LOVE cookies–definetly my favorite dessert! I will have to try these–they are a very unique recipe!
Deborah – thanks for the tip on the Blackberry Pie bars. Would you suggest using something else instead of a food processor? I’ll check out your udpated post. >>Also, I’m so glad you liked the stroganoff – extra bonus is it is so easy!
Chocolate + Sweetened Condensed Milk = SUPER YUM. Yet another recipe I’ll have to try. You amaze me – and you actually make food too!!
Anonymous – I use my trusty silpat liners for all my cookies including these ones and I’ve never had trouble with them sticking – they slide right off. I would suggest silpat liners or parchment paper!
These sound delicious!
i find this very interesting and enticing! when i want to splurge, i go to cold stone creamery (are you familiar with it? it’s an ice cream place that offers lots of mix-ins) and get the coconut cream pie–vanilla ice cream with coconut and graham cracker crumbs in a chocolate-dipped waffle cone. these cookies sound like a terrific (and more figure-friendly) alternative!! 🙂
Rachel – thank you! I hope you like the cookies…let me know!>>Leigh Anne – I think the cookies would be fine without coconut if you aren’t a coconut fan but I would add an additional 1/2 cup of graham cracker crumbs to make up for the lost substance. I’ve never made them that way so if anyone experiments, let me know.>>Grace – amen to the love for Coldstone Creamery. I love that place and MUST try the combination you suggested. I can’t vouch for these cookies being any more figure-friendly, but they are delicious!
CIA – SO glad you like these cookies! Thanks for trying them (and if you are like me, now the issue is trying not to eat the whole batch!).
I’m totally a chewy cookie kind of girl. Way better than crispy!!>>I also wanted to let you know that I just added one thing to my post about the blackberry pie bars – the crust mixture made my food processor too full. I think I have a pretty standard size, but I just don’t want to make a mess of anyone else’s kitchen!!>>And one more thing – I made your stroganoff earlier this week – YUM!!
I will be trying these for sure! I love your blog by the way. Great recipes! I’m glad I found ya!>>:)Thanks,>Rachel
These are awesome and have them in the oven as we speak! DING! That’s the timer gotta go and try them out! Thanks a million for sharing!
Wow, these do sound really different without eggs and WITH graham cracker crumbs. How bizarre!>>If you’re on the hunt for the perfect CCC recipe, I have one on my RecipeGirl.com site that has gotten rave reviews so you may wish to try it. It’s called Secret Recipe Chocolate Chip Cookies. Let me know if you try them!
Melanie, I love reading your blog, so I’ve given you an award! Check it out here: http://sugarandspice-celeste.blogspot.com/2008/04/blogging-with-purpose.html
These look great – I love the idea of the graham crackers crumbs. I wonder how they would work without the coconut though? – I just don’t like the texture or flavor of coconut.
I’ve made thes cookies for years, they are always better the day after they’re baked. I just wish they weren’t so hard to get off the cookie sheet. Any suggestions on making this easier?
Preheat yoyr cookie sheet before hand
You can also try using silicone baking mats! I use the brand SilChef and they work great (and the bottoms don’t get overcooked)!
Made these cookies years ago and loved them. Lost the recipe and even forgot the name of the cookie. I have been on the computer for 1 hour, looking and looking. Lo and behold you saved the day for me. I am so happy to have this recipe once again. Thank you, Rachel, you are my cookie savior. Theresa
Theresa – I’m glad that you found your long lost recipe. These are some of my favorites so I’m glad you like them also!