Back when I worked the line, dessert was someone else’s problem. You plated the main course, wiped the pass, and the pastry chef handled everything sweet. So when I found the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island chocolate chip cookie recipe printed on those little drawstring pouches the hotel gives guests, I treated it like a ticket: I was trying it, and I was bringing it home.
The good news: it’s real. The Ritz-Carlton actually shares cookie recipes from a few of its locations — Amelia Island, Half-Moon Bay, Marina del Rey, Washington D.C. — and this one comes from the original version printed on the guest pouches, not the updated one. I went straight to the original, and I’m not sorry.
Why these cookies work
They’re sweetened with nothing but brown sugar, and that’s the whole trick. All-brown-sugar dough stays soft and chewy in the middle while the edges turn crisp and toasty. Add a full pound of butter and plenty of chips, and you get that hotel-lobby cookie that tastes expensive without any fuss.
One honest heads-up before you mix: the recipe calls for 2 cups (1 pound) of butter against just 4 cups of flour. That’s a lot of butter. When I baked it exactly as written, the cookies spread a little more than I wanted. Two ways to fix it — pick your poison:
- No chill: add an extra ⅔ cup of flour. That’s the sweet spot I landed on. The cookies keep their shape and the centers stay soft and chewy.
- Chill instead: use the original flour amount, scoop the dough, and chill it for 1–2 hours before baking.
Ingredients
- 1 pound butter (4 sticks), salted or unsalted — both work, no adjustments needed
- 3 cups brown sugar — all brown sugar is what makes these soft and chewy
- 3 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder — yes, baking powder, not baking soda. That surprised me the first time too
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus an extra ⅔ cup if you’re skipping the chill
- 3 ¼ cups chocolate chips — I used semi-sweet; use whatever you like
Why this works: the brown sugar keeps the centers fudgy and caramel-deep, and the baking powder (not soda) gives the lift without any bitter aftertaste.
How to make them
25 minutes start to finish — 10 to mix, 12–15 in the oven, and I’m not even counting the cooling.
- Whip the butter until soft. Add the eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla, and beat until smooth.
- Mix in the salt, baking powder, flour, and chocolate chips until just combined.
- Scoop the dough onto parchment-paper-lined baking sheets. Six cookies per sheet. I use a 2 Tbsp scoop for regular-sized cookies and a 3 Tbsp scoop for the larger bakery-style ones.
- Bake at 350°F. Regular-sized (2 Tbsp) cookies take 12–13 minutes. Larger (3 Tbsp) cookies take 14–15 minutes.
- Let them cool completely on the baking sheets — the centers keep setting as they cool.
If a cookie comes out a little wonky, don’t panic. Press a small bowl or biscuit cutter around it while it’s still hot and it’ll snap back into shape. I learned this the hard way, and now I do it by reflex.
A few questions people keep asking
Are these the actual Ritz-Carlton cookies? They’re based on the original Amelia Island recipe the hotel printed for guests, with my no-chill flour adjustment added. The hotel has shared versions from several locations; this is the classic one.
Why add the extra flour? The original leans heavy on butter, so the dough spreads more than you’d expect. The extra ⅔ cup keeps the shape intact while the soft, chewy center stays exactly as it should. If you’d rather not change the recipe, chill the scooped dough for 1–2 hours instead.
What makes them different from regular chocolate chip cookies? The all-brown-sugar base. That’s what gives the deep caramel flavor and the fudgy middle with the crisp, buttery edges.
How big should the cookies be? 2 Tbsp of dough, 12–13 minutes at 350°F for regular. 3 Tbsp of dough, 14–15 minutes for the larger ones. This batch makes 54 regular-sized cookies or 36 larger ones, so feel free to halve it if you don’t need a tray.
Storing them
Cookies keep well individually wrapped in plastic or in an airtight container. I wrap each one as it cools and they’re gone by Thursday — between Tom and the kids, a batch never survives the weekend.
Trade-It Tip: No semi-sweet chips? Dark chocolate works beautifully here — the all-brown-sugar base tames the bitterness and the contrast actually shines. White chips are lovely too, if you’re feeling indulgent.
If it doesn’t fit a Tuesday night, it doesn’t get published.
— Grace