These easy Kitchen Sink Cookies are soft, chewy and crunchy all at the same time! They have the perfect combination of salty-sweet and textures. This cookie requires no chilling before baking, so you can have cookies in under 25 minutes!

cookie broken open with melted chocolate pulling between the halves.

Simply put, kitchen sink cookies are like gooey chocolate chip cookies with everything but the kitchen sink folded in! You have all the salty-sweet heavy hitters: cornflake cereal, white chocolate chips, semi-sweet chocolate, pretzels and toffee bits. They are like Milk Bar’s Compost cookies and Panera’s Kitchen Sink Cookies but better!

Other than the knock-out flavor and texture, the best part is that the cookie dough doesn’t require any chilling much like my Snickerdoodle cookies and funfetti cookies.

Table of contents

Why You Will Love these Kitchen Sink Cookies

  • Outstanding crispy-chewy texture. Not only do you get the crispy cornflakes and pretzels but these cookies have crisp, golden-brown edges and chewy centers.
  • Quick & easy cookie recipe. A one-bowl dough with NO CHILL TIME for cookies that are ready in under 30 minutes!
  • Flavorful cookie dough before all the mix-ins. Like these chewy chocolate chip cookies, this cookie does has a rich, caramel flavor from the brown sugar and vanilla extract.
stacked everything cookies on white surface.

Professional Tips for Making Kitchen Sink Cookies

  • Use chopped chocolate bars and chocolate chips. Chopped chocolate bars give nice big pieces of chocolate in the cookies, which creates those pools of chocolate after baking.
  • Bake in batches but let the sheets cool. These make big cookies, so bake in batches. Letting the cookie sheets cool completely between each batch ensure well baked cookies that don’t spread too much.
  • Bang that cookie sheet. I bang the baked cookie sheet once on the counter to flatten the cookies. It also compresses the crumb, which makes them extra chewy. It isn’t essential.
  • For the prettiest tops, flatten the dough and top with extra mix-ins! For the flattest cookies, flatten the dough slightly before baking. I always press in extra mini pretzels and chocolate chips before baking.

Ingredients

  • Unsalted butter: The unsalted butter should be cool but pliable, because that will help create the chewy texture. If you are mixing by hand, use room temperature butter for ease.
  • Dark brown sugar: You can use dark or light brown sugar but dark brown sugar will yield a richer, more caramelized flavor.
  • Baking powder & baking soda
  • Kosher Salt
  • Large eggs
  • Vanilla extract: Use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor, but imitation will do.
  • All-purpose flour
  • Corn flake cereal: Choose plain cornflake cereal not the frosted kind. You can also use crushed chips instead of the cornflakes.
  • White chocolate chips: Use milk chocolate chips if you are going for a Panera copycat.
  • Semisweet chocolate baking bar: Chopping a full bar gives you big hunks of melty chocolate throughout, but you can also use semi-sweet chocolate chips.
  • Mini pretzels: Use mini pretzels or regular pretzels chopped.
  • Toffee bits: I use the pre-chopped bits from the baking aisle, but chopping up a Heath bar also works in a pinch.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Possible Variations & Substitutions

  • Make them gluten-free: Substitute the all-purpose flour with your favorite gluten-free all-purpose flour alternative. I like cup-4-cup, but you could also use this gluten free chocolate chip cookie recipe instead and just add all the mix-ins!
  • Make them thick and chewy:  Simply chill the dough balls for 1 hour before baking, don’t press them flat and don’t bang the cookie sheet after baking. This will make thicker, chewier kitchen sink cookies.
  • Have fun with the mix ins: You can add literally anything except the kitchen sink to these cookies! Some of my favorites are crush ruffle potato chips, M&M’s, chopped pecans or walnuts, old-fashioned oats, caramel candies, salted peanuts or butterscotch chips!
kitchen sink cookies on crumpled parchment.

How to Make Kitchen Sink Cookies

Use these instructions to make salty-sweet, addicting Everything Cookies! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350°F & line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl using an electric mixer, cream the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and kosher salt until light and fluffy.

Step 3: Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl in between each addition. Add the vanilla with the second egg. Stir in the flour, then the mix-ins. Sneak a bite (I won’t tell anyone).

Step 4: Scoop dough into balls using a 1/4 cup measure or cookie scoop, then place them on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Press down slightly, then top the cookies with extra mix-ins, if desired.

Step 5: Bake. Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 8 minutes. After 8 minutes, bang the pan down once (this gives the cookies a crisp, rippled edge that is so so good), then bake for another 8 to 9 minutes or until the cookies are just set in the centers and golden brown on the edges.

The banging is optional. It produces uniformly flat and chewy cookies. Banging deflates the cookies and compresses the crumb, creating a thin, chewy center.

Step 5: Cool and eat. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Commence devouring.

a cookie with a bite taken out of it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I Need to Chill the Dough?

You don’t need to chill the dough before baking, but chilling it will produce thicker, chewier cookies.

How to Store Kitchen Sink Cookies

You can store these cookies covered in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 to 4 days. After that, I recommend freezing the cookies in a resealable food storage bag for up to 1 month. You can also freeze the dough and bake from frozen. This will add an extra 5-8 minutes depending on the size of your dough balls.

How big will these cookies be?

If you make them as directed using about ¼ cup dough per cookie, they will be about 4 inch across.

Do Kitchen Sink Cookies have nuts?

These cookies do not typically have nuts but chopped pecans, walnuts or salted peanut would be an amazing addition. You could even go in a tropical direction and use macadamia nuts and coconut.

If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below! I love hearing from you and your comments make my day!

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
a cookie with a bite taken out of it on a surface

Kitchen Sink Cookies

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review
  • Author: Stephanie
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 24 cookies 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: American
Print Recipe

Description

These easy Kitchen Sink Cookies are soft, chewy and crunchy all at the same time! They have the perfect combination of salty-sweet and textures. This cookie requires no chilling before baking, so you can have cookies in under 30 minutes!

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 1/4 cups packed dark or light brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups corn flake cereal (not the frosted kind), plus more for topping (optional)
  • 1 cup white chocolate chips
  • 1 (4 oz) semisweet chocolate baking bar, coarsely chopped
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped mini pretzels, plus more for topping (optional)
  • 1/2 cup toffee bits (such as Heath)

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl using an electric hand mixer, beat butter, both sugars, baking powder, baking soda and salt on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract until just combined. Add flour; stir on low speed or with a spatula to combine. Stir in cereal, chocolate chips, chopped chocolate, pretzels and toffee bits until just combined.
  3. Scoop approximate 1/4-cup balls of dough; roll into a ball, then place on parchment paper-lined baking sheets, spaced at least 2 inches apart (you will only be able to fit 6-8 cookies on each baking sheet, so you’ll be baking in batches). Press down each dough ball slightly, then top with extra cereal and pretzels, as desired.
  4. Bake for 8 minutes, then briefly remove cookies from the oven and bang the baking sheet on a counter or stovetop. Return the cookies to the oven and bake another 7 to 9 minutes or until the cookies are just set in the centers and golden-brown along the edges. Cool the cookies for 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Notes

  • Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living magazine.
  • Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days; freeze in a resealable food storage bag for up to 1 month.
  • If you can’t find toffee bits in the baking aisle, you can finely chop a couple of Heath candy bars and use those instead.

Before You Go

I hope you enjoyed this fun cookie recipe. Check out our other easy cookie recipes or mix it up and make homemade fudgy brownies or strawberry brownies!