Sourdough Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

These Sourdough Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are super fudgy and a classic holiday cookie staple! They’re chewy and gooey, made with sourdough discard, and have perfect powdered sugar cracks.

The sourdough discard chocolate crinkle cookies are excellent for Christmas cookie boxes and gifting, as they keep well for days and taste like brownies. Plus, the powdered sugar cracks have a snowy appearance!

I use a couple of special baking tricks to really make the chocolate flavor shine in these easy cookies, elevating them to the next level for chocolate lovers.

Follow my detailed instructions, complete with photos and tips, below for these classic sourdough crinkle or earthquake cookies.

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👍 What Makes This Recipe Special

• Classic chocolate cookies using simple pantry ingredients and a crowd favorite.
• No stand mixer needed.
• Beautiful holiday or Christmas cookies for gifting that keep chewy for days.
• Fudgy and gooey texture with a slightly crisp, powdered sugar exterior.
• Intense chocolate flavor that tastes like brownies.
• Easy-to-make dough that you can make ahead or ferment overnight.

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🔍 Tips for Making Sourdough Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

• Chill the cookie dough for at least an hour so the butter hardens, and portioning is easier. This is important for most cookie and muffin recipes. It also infuses the flavors.
• For a little crunch and better cracks, roll the balls in granulated sugar, then in powdered sugar. This helps keep their dramatic contrast and ensures the powdered sugar doesn’t fade.
• You can make the cookie dough the night before and let it rest in the refrigerator.
• Add a small amount of espresso powder to bring out the cocoa flavor.
• Finally, bloom the cocoa powder in butter (like when making Chocolate Sourdough Bread with Coffee), which makes for a fudgier, richer chocolate crinkle cookie.

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🛠 Tools Needed

• Baking scale
  • Flour and sourdough starter can weigh differently from person to person, so weighing your ingredients is the best option! Measuring your ingredients by weight will make your baking more consistent and accurate.
• Whisk, to mix the wet ingredients and bloom the cocoa.
• Baking Sheets
  • Line the pans with parchment or a silicone baking mat to prevent sticking.
• Spatula, for mixing the cookie dough.

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🛒 Ingredients Needed

• Unsalted butter
  • While many cookie recipes like my Sourdough Shortbread Cookies, Sourdough Linzer Cookies and Sourdough Vanilla Wafers call for room temperature butter, we will melt the butter in this recipe to bloom the cocoa.
  • The melted fat dissolves the cocoa, deepens the flavor and brings out other cocoa notes more, and leads to a less bitter cookie.
• Dutch-process cocoa powder
  • For the best chocolate flavor in crinkle cookies, use a high-quality Dutch-process cocoa powder.
  • Dutch-process cocoa is less acidic than natural, unsweetened cocoa powder and pairs better with baking powder.
  • For other favorite sourdough chocolate recipes, see my Sourdough Chocolate Muffins, Homemade Sourdough Oreos with black cocoa, and Sourdough Chocolate Peppermint Whoopie Pies.
• Espresso Powder (optional)
  • I love pairing a little espresso or coffee with chocolate, as it brings out the chocolate flavor even more.
  • Leave out if you want, or you could substitute with spices like cinnamon, cardamom, or allspice.
• Granulated Sugar
  • Crinkle cookies need the amount of sugar in this recipe to balance out the bittersweet cocoa and to create the signature fudgy, brownie-like texture.
  • Furthermore, coating the cookies in granulated sugar before powdered sugar helps create more fissures or cracks. It also helps to create a slightly crunchy exterior that sets the crust without melting the powdered sugar.
• Eggs and egg yolk
  • Like brownies, crinkle cookies have many eggs to bind the ingredients and create a fudgy, luxurious texture.
• Sourdough Discard
  • If you don’t have an active sourdough starter, learn how to make one in a week following my how-to guide. See my top sourdough starter tips and other sourdough discard recipes.
• Vanilla Extract
  • Use real vanilla extract or vanilla paste, not imitation.
• All-purpose flour
  • You can substitute with a gluten-free flour to make gluten-free shortbread cookies, such as cup-for-cup or measure-for-measure.
  • Add ½ cup of whole wheat flour or rye flour for a heartier, flavorful crinkle cookie.
• Baking powder, for leavening the cookies and creating a soft, chewy texture.
• Salt, helps bring out the flavors
• Powdered Sugar
  • The powdered sugar incorporates more easily into the butter, resulting in a crumblier cookie.

Crinkle Cookie Variations

• Substitute the espresso powder with cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, allspice for a warmly spiced cookie like my Sourdough Banana Bread with Chai Spices.
• Brown the butter for added caramel notes, like in my Sourdough Hot Cross Buns with Brown Butter or the frosting for my Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls.
• Add a teapsoon of cayenne for a Mexican Hot Chocolate crinkle cookie.
• You can mix-in nuts like toasted pecans or walnuts for crunch.
• Instead of vanilla extract, use peppermint extract for a chocolate peppermint crinkle cookie.
• Mix-in chocolate chips or chopped chocolate for a double chocolate crinkle cookie.

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👨‍🍳 How to Make Sourdough Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Follow this detailed recipe guide as you make the best Sourdough Chocolate Crinkle Cookies. No stand mixer is needed to make these easy classic holiday cookies!

1. Melt Butter and Bloom Cocoa

Melt a stick of unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Once completely melted, remove from the heat and immediately whisk in the cocoa powder and optional espresso powder until you have a rich, chocolate, lump-free paste. Cool slightly.

2. Whisk the Wet Ingredients

Scrape the bloomed cocoa into a large mixing bowl and whisk in the granulated sugar first, followed by the eggs and egg yolk, and finally the vanilla extract and sourdough discard. Whisk for at least a minute.

The wet mixture should be thick and leave trail marks from the whisk.

3. Add the Dry Ingredients and Chill

Mix the all-purpose flour, salt, and baking powder together in a small bowl.

Then, fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a spatula until no floury spots remain.

The sourdough crinkle cookie batter is thick and brownie-like.

Cover the bowl and chill the cookie dough for at least an hour before baking. It’s vital that the cookie dough be chilled to harden the batter for easier portioning, less sticking, and so the cookies don’t spread too much.

4. Portion and Roll the Cookies in Sugar

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC) and line large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Add granulated sugar to one small bowl and powdered sugar to another.

Use a 1 ½ TBS cookie scoop or a large spoon to roll the cookies into rounds between your palms. They should be about 30g each. If there is sticking, slightly mist your palms with water.

Then, roll the cookie balls in the granulated sugar bowl, followed by powdered sugar.

5. Bake

Space the sourdough crinkle cookies a couple of inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for 11-13 minutes or until the edges of the cookies just start to set. They will seem underbaked, but will continue to bake slightly as they cool, creating fudgy, chewy cookies.

Let the cookies cool on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

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How to Store

Sourdough chocolate crinkle cookies store extremely well at room temperature. They must be completely cool before storing or the moisture will melt the powdered sugar.

Place them in an airtight container and store at room temperature for up to 4-5 days. They’ll last even longer if stored with layers of parchment paper and kept in a cool, dry location.

I don’t recommend freezing these cookies, as the powdered sugar may lose its cracks during thawing. If you do, redust them before serving.

You can freeze unbaked cookies before rolling in sugar, in an airtight freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw and then roll in the sugars and bake as usual.

These are excellent cookies for your holiday cookie boxes! Maybe include my Soft Glazed Sourdough Gingerbread Cookies, Sourdough Oatmeal Cream Pies, or Sourdough Black and White Cookies!

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❓ Frequently Asked Questions