Giant Sharing Cookie Recipe

Let’s be real—calling this a “sharing” cookie is optimistic at best. Sure, you could share it with friends or family, but once you pull this golden, gooey masterpiece out of the oven, all bets are off. This Giant Sharing Cookie Recipe is the cookie equivalent of ordering nachos “for the table” and then eating 90% of them yourself. No judgment here.

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Why This Giant Sharing Cookie Recipe is Awesome

First of all, no portioning required. You know that annoying part of making cookies where you have to scoop out 24 individual dough balls and space them perfectly on a baking sheet? Yeah, none of that here. You literally press all the dough into one pan and walk away. It’s the lazy baker’s dream.

Second, the texture is unbeatable. You get crispy edges (the best part of any cookie, don’t @ me) combined with a soft, gooey center that stays warm for ages. It’s like someone took all the best bites from a batch of cookies and combined them into one glorious circle.

Third, this thing is ridiculously customizable. Chocolate chips, M&Ms, Reese’s pieces, white chocolate, nuts, pretzels—throw in whatever makes your heart happy. There’s enough dough to handle whatever chaos you want to create.

And let’s talk presentation. Slide this bad boy onto a cutting board, add some ice cream scoops on top, hand out some forks, and suddenly you’re the hero of game night. It looks impressive without requiring any actual skill. IMO, that’s the sweet spot of home baking.

Ingredients You’ll Need

For the cookie dough:

• ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups chocolate chips (semi-sweet, milk chocolate, or a mix—your call)
• ½ cup additional mix-ins (optional: M&Ms, chopped nuts, toffee bits, whatever)

For serving (optional but highly recommended):

• Vanilla ice cream
• Chocolate sauce or caramel sauce
• Whipped cream
• Extra chocolate chips or sprinkles for topping

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Preheat and prep. Set your oven to 350°F. Grease a 10-inch cast iron skillet or a 9-inch round cake pan with butter or cooking spray. You can also line it with parchment paper if you’re feeling fancy.

2. Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla, and whisk until everything’s combined and slightly fluffy. This should take about a minute of good whisking.

3. Add the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Dump the dry mixture into the wet ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until just combined. Don’t overmix—you want to see a few flour streaks still visible.

4. Fold in the good stuff. Add your chocolate chips and any other mix-ins. Fold them in gently until evenly distributed throughout the dough. Resist eating half the dough at this point (I know it’s hard).

5. Press into the pan. Dump all the dough into your prepared pan and press it down evenly with your hands or the back of a spoon. Make sure it reaches the edges and is relatively flat across the top. You can press a few extra chocolate chips on top if you want it to look extra professional.

6. Bake to golden perfection. Pop it in the oven for 25-30 minutes. The edges should be golden brown and set, while the center should still look slightly underdone and soft. This is key—you want that gooey center situation.

7. The hardest part—waiting. Let the cookie cool in the pan for at least 10-15 minutes. I know you want to dive in immediately, but trust me on this. It needs time to set up or you’ll just have hot cookie soup (which, okay, isn’t the worst thing, but still).

8. Serve and destroy. You can serve it right in the pan (rustic vibes) or slide it onto a cutting board. Top with ice cream, drizzle with sauce, add whipped cream—go absolutely wild. Hand out forks and spoons and let everyone dig in.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Overbaking the cookie. The single biggest mistake people make is leaving it in too long. When you pull it out, the center should still look soft and maybe even slightly underbaked. It’ll continue cooking in the hot pan. If it looks fully cooked in the oven, it’ll be dry and sad once it cools.

Using cold butter. The recipe calls for melted butter for a reason—it creates a chewier, denser texture. Cold butter would give you more of a cake-like cookie, which isn’t what we’re going for here.

Skipping the resting time. I get it, delayed gratification is hard. But if you try to serve this immediately, it’ll fall apart and you’ll burn your mouth. Nobody wins in that scenario.

Using a pan that’s too small or too big. A 10-inch skillet or 9-inch round pan is perfect. Too small and the cookie will be super thick and won’t cook through. Too big and you’ll have a giant, flat, crispy cookie with no gooey center.

Not greasing the pan well enough. Nothing sadder than your beautiful cookie stuck to the pan. Be generous with the butter or spray, or use parchment paper with some overhang so you can lift it out easily.

Alternatives & Substitutions

Pan options: Don’t have a cast iron skillet? Use a 9-inch round cake pan, a pie dish, or even a square 8×8 baking pan. Just adjust the baking time slightly—check it around 20 minutes for thinner pans.

Butter: You can use salted butter if that’s all you have, just reduce the added salt to ½ teaspoon. Melted coconut oil works in a pinch but will give you a slightly different flavor.

Sugar: All brown sugar makes it chewier and more caramel-y. All white sugar makes it crisper. The mix is the sweet spot, but play around with ratios if you want.

Flour: You can substitute up to half the flour with whole wheat for a slightly nuttier flavor, though it’ll be a bit denser. Gluten-free 1:1 baking flour works surprisingly well here too.

Mix-ins: The world is your oyster. Peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips, chopped Oreos, crushed pretzels, dried cranberries, chopped candy bars—whatever makes you happy. Just keep the total mix-ins to around 2-2½ cups so the dough isn’t overwhelmed.

Egg-free: Use two “flax eggs” (2 tablespoons ground flaxseed mixed with 6 tablespoons water, let sit 5 minutes). It won’t be quite as fluffy but still totally edible.

Final Thoughts

This Giant Sharing Cookie Recipe is one of those recipes that makes you look like you put in way more effort than you actually did. It’s impressive, it’s delicious, and it brings people together around warm, gooey chocolate chip goodness.

Whether you’re making it for a party, a cozy night in, or just because it’s Wednesday and you deserve something nice, this cookie delivers. And if you end up eating the whole thing yourself over the course of a weekend? Your secret’s safe with me.

Just do yourself a favor and make it with good quality chocolate chips. You’re already making a giant cookie—might as well go all in.

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

Q: Can I make this in advance? You can prep the dough and keep it refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Just press it into the pan and bake when you’re ready. You might need to add a few extra minutes if baking from cold. Personally, I think it’s best fresh, but leftover slices reheat beautifully in the microwave for 15-20 seconds.

Q: What if I don’t have a cast iron skillet? Literally any oven-safe pan works. Cake pans, pie dishes, even a well-greased oven-safe frying pan. The cast iron just holds heat well and creates those crispy edges, but it’s not essential. Just make sure whatever you use can handle 350°F.

Q: How do I know when it’s done? The edges should be golden brown and pulling away slightly from the pan. The center should still look soft and slightly glossy—it might even jiggle a tiny bit when you shake the pan. If you insert a toothpick in the center, it should come out with some moist crumbs, not completely clean.

Q: Can I halve this recipe for a smaller cookie? Sure! Use an 8-inch pan and halve all the ingredients. Start checking for doneness around 18-20 minutes. Or just make the full recipe and freeze half the dough for later. Future you will be thrilled to have emergency cookie dough in the freezer.