DoubleTree chocolate chip cookies are famous for a reason. They are thick, soft in the middle, loaded with chocolate chips, and have a texture that comes from ground oats in the dough. This version nails it at home.
The cookie dough chills for at least 4 hours. Do not skip that step. It is what gives the cookies their thick shape and keeps them from spreading flat in the oven. The lemon juice sounds strange in a cookie recipe, but it is in the original and it matters for the texture.
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Ingredients You'll Need
- old-fashioned oats, ground
- all-purpose flour
- baking soda
- salt
- ground cinnamon
- unsalted butter, melted
- light brown sugar, packed
- granulated sugar
- vanilla extract
- lemon juice
- eggs
- semi-sweet chocolate chips
- walnuts, optional but signature
How to Make DoubleTree Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Pour it into a mixing bowl and beat in the brown sugar and granulated sugar with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Add the vanilla and lemon juice and combine.
- Pulse the old-fashioned oats in a food processor until they turn into a fine powder. Add the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon to the food processor and pulse until blended.
- Slowly add the oat mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and fold in the walnuts if using.
- Scoop the dough using a #20 medium cookie scoop, about 3 tablespoons each. Place the scoops in a covered container and chill for at least 4 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the chilled dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared sheet. Bake one sheet at a time for 14 to 16 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the centers are still soft. Do not overbake.
- Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before moving them to a wire rack.
Tips for the Best Results
- Use a food processor to grind the oats for better texture. Ground oats are what set these apart from a regular chocolate chip cookie. Pulse them until they are a fine powder, almost like flour. Lumpy oats will change the texture.
- Do not pack too much flour into the measuring cup. Spoon and level for accuracy.
- The 4-hour chill is not optional. It hydrates the ground oats and firms up the butter so the cookies stay thick instead of spreading into puddles.
- Do not skip the lemon juice. You will not taste lemon in the finished cookie, but it reacts with the baking soda to give the cookies the right texture.
- A cookie scoop keeps the dough balls consistent in size.
- Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the oven. The cookies need even heat to bake through without the edges burning.
- The edges should be golden and the centers should look slightly underdone when you pull them. They will set as they cool.
Storing DoubleTree Cookies
Store baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days before baking. You can also freeze scooped dough balls on a sheet tray, then transfer to a freezer bag and freeze for up to 2 months. Bake straight from frozen, adding 1 to 2 minutes to the bake time.
More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes
Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars - Everything you want in a chocolate chip cookie, baked as bars.
Soft Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies - Thick, soft, and packed with chocolate chips.
Soft and Chewy Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies - A minty twist on the classic, chewy with mint flavor.
Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cookies - Brown butter, butterscotch chips, and semisweet chocolate together.
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Chip Cookies Copycat (DoubleTree Cookies)
Ingredients
- ½ cup old-fashioned oats - ground
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup unsalted butter - melted
- ¾ cup light brown sugar - packed
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 eggs
- 3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 ¾ cup walnuts - chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Melt the unsalted butter in a microwave-safe bowl.
- Pour the melted butter into a mixing bowl and stir in the brown sugar and the granulated sugar using a hand mixer.
- Add the eggs at a time and combine.
- Next, add the vanilla extract and the lemon juice
- Prepare the dry ingredients by adding the old-fashioned oats to a large food processor and pulsing them until they turn into ground oats.
- Add the all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda, and ground cinnamon to the food processor and blend the ingredients together
- Slowly add the oat mixture to the wet ingredients and mix well.
- Stir in the 3 cups of chocolate chips.
- Fold in the chopped walnuts if using.
- Scoop the cookie dough using a #20 medium cookie scoop (about 3 tbsps), place them in a covered container, and chill the cookie dough for at least 4 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the chilled balls of dough two inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake one sheet at a time.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Do not overbake, the edges should be golden brown and the centers should be soft.
- Allow the cookies to cool for about 5 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- The eggs can be replaced with plain yogurt - ¼ cup of yogurt equals 1 egg.
- Do not skip the lemon juice. You will not taste lemon in the finished cookie, but it matters for the texture.
- Chill the dough for at least 4 hours. This step is not optional - it hydrates the ground oats and firms up the butter so the cookies stay thick instead of spreading flat.
- Optional: Fold in 1 cup of chopped walnuts with the chocolate chips.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate based on third-party calculations. Actual values may vary due to ingredients, measurements, and serving sizes.
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Dana is the lead recipe developer and photographer for PopularRecipes.com. With her 10+ years of experience creating, testing, and photographing recipes, she has become an artist in developing wholesome, family-friendly meals that are a hit with both kids and parents.
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