Mama Kelce's Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

These viral Donna Kelce’s cookies are seriously the best chocolate chip cookies that I have ever had! These cookies have that perfect soft, chewy texture with just a slight crisp around the edges. To make them even better, they're filled with two kinds of chocolate, and chopped pecans for the perfect balance of sweet and nutty flavors. Trust me, after you take just one bite, you'll never want to make any other cookies again! 

Why You'll Love This Viral Donna Kelce Cookie Recipe

Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift took the world by storm last year, and if you watched any Kansas City Chiefs football games, then you probably saw Taylor Swift and mama Kelce high-fiving in their suite.

After gaining popularity in the media, Mama Kelce shared her famous chocolate chip cookie recipe that she would make for her boys, Travis and Jason Kelce. The recipe went viral on TikTok, and seeing how delicious the cookies looked, I had to make them! 

Well, I'm so happy I did because these cookies are AMAZING! The blend of white and milk chocolate with pecans adds richness, while the touch of cinnamon gives a subtle warm flavor that ties everything together. They're perfectly soft and chewy too with slightly crisp edges, which I love. 

What I love most about this recipe is the versatility. You can easily swap out the nuts for something else, like walnuts or almonds, or mix up the types of chocolate depending on what you have in your pantry. Every time I make these cookies, they turn out perfectly soft and delicious, and they’ve quickly become a family favorite.

Ingredients

Something else I love about Donna Kelce's chocolate chip cookies is they're made with all the ingredients you'd use for normal chocolate chip cookies, with a few special ones that make them so good!

Here’s what you’ll need to make Donna Kelce’s cookies:

• 1 ½ cups unsalted butter (3 sticks)
• 1 ½ cups packed brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 tablespoon hot water
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cake or pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup white chocolate chips/chunks
• 1 cup milk chocolate
• 1 cup chopped pecans

How To Make Donna Kelce's Cookies

Step 1: Prepare the Wet Ingredients

To start, melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl in 20-second intervals. It will need to cool for 15-20 minutes, so I usually do this before getting out the rest of the ingredients.

Next, add both sugars to the cooled butter and beat with an electric hand mixer for 2-3 minutes until creamy.

Once smooth, add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract, and mix again until well combined.

Step 2: Mix the Dry Ingredients

In a separate bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, cake flour, cinnamon, and salt.

Then in a small bowl, dissolve the baking soda in two tablespoons of hot water and add it to the wet ingredients.

Now, gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, stirring until just combined. You should have a dough that looks like the picture below.

Step 3: Add Chocolate and Nuts

Now that the dough is ready, gently fold in the white chocolate, milk chocolate, and chopped pecans using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.

Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours. I always prepare the dough the day before I am going

Step 4: Bake the Cookies

When the dough is almost done chilling, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper. I suggest using a cookie scoop to portion out the dough, placing the scoops about an inch apart on the baking sheet.

Bake the cookies for 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 3-5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.

Expert Tips To Make The Best Donna Kelce Cookie Recipe

• Chill the cookie dough thoroughly before baking. Do not skip the chilling step. Letting the dough rest in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours – and ideally overnight – is a big part of what gives Mama Kelce’s cookies their thick, chewy texture. Chilling firms up the butter and allows the flour to fully hydrate, so the cookies spread less in the oven and bake up taller with soft centers and crisp edges.
• Melt the butter instead of using it softened. Most cookie recipes call for room-temperature butter, but Donna’s trick is to melt the butter first before mixing it with the sugars. Melted butter helps create a denser, chewier texture and, when combined with a long chill time, prevents the cookies from spreading too thin. Just let the melted butter cool slightly so it is warm, not scorching, before you whisk it with the sugars.
• Mix just until combined to avoid tough cookies. Once you add the dry ingredients to the butter, sugar, and eggs, stir or mix on low speed just until the flour is incorporated. Overmixing at this stage can develop too much gluten, which can make the cookies tougher and less tender. If you see a few streaks of flour, you can finish folding by hand with a spatula.
• Use a cookie scoop for even size and baking. For evenly sized Donna Kelce cookies that bake at the same rate, use a one or two tablespoon cookie scoop or a small ice cream scoop to portion the dough. This helps the cookies spread consistently and ensures you get that signature thick, bakery-style look without some being overbaked and others underdone.
• Do not overbake – let them finish on the pan. These cookies are meant to be soft and chewy inside with lightly crisp edges. Take them out of the oven when the edges are just turning golden and the centers still look slightly pale and a bit soft. They will continue to bake on the hot baking sheet as they cool. If you wait until the centers look fully set in the oven, they will end up drier once cooled.
• Line your baking sheets for better texture and easy cleanup. Bake the cookies on parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. This prevents sticking, encourages more even browning, and can help control spreading. It also makes it easier to slide the cookies off the pan onto a cooling rack without breaking them.
• Space the cookies properly on the tray. Even chilled dough will spread a bit, especially with melted butter in the mix. Leave about two inches between each ball of dough so the cookies have room to spread without baking into each other. If you want very round cookies, you can gently nudge the edges with a spatula right after baking while they are still soft.
• Let the cookies cool on the sheet before moving. Once the cookies come out of the oven, let them cool on the baking sheet for at least 5–10 minutes. This allows them to set up so they do not fall apart when you transfer them. After that, move them to a wire rack to finish cooling completely, which keeps the bottoms from getting too soft.
• Use good-quality chocolate and mix-ins. Because this is a simple cookie base, using good-quality chocolate chips or chunks really pays off. You can follow Mama Kelce’s original mix, or use a combination of semisweet, milk, and dark chocolate chips for more dimension. Just keep the total amount of mix-ins the same so you do not overwhelm the dough.

Mama Kelce's Cookie Recipe FAQS

Can I freeze the cookie dough?

Yes, you can absolutely freeze Donna Kelce’s cookie dough, and it’s a great way to always have “Mama Kelce cookies” ready to bake. Scoop the dough into balls, place them in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and freeze until solid. Once frozen, transfer the dough balls to a freezer bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake, place the frozen dough balls on a lined baking sheet and bake straight from frozen, adding 2–3 extra minutes to the baking time.

Can I use different types of chocolate?

Definitely. The beauty of this Donna Kelce cookie recipe is how flexible it is with mix-ins. You can swap the white and milk chocolate chips for semi-sweet, dark, or bittersweet chocolate chips, or use a mix of different chocolates for more depth. You can also use chocolate chunks instead of chips if you like those big, melty pockets of chocolate. For a fun twist, try adding caramel chips, butterscotch chips, or peanut butter chips in place of some of the chocolate.

How should I store baked Donna Kelce cookies?

Once the cookies have cooled completely, store them in an airtight container at room temperature. They’ll stay soft and chewy for about 4–5 days. If you want to keep them extra soft, you can place a small piece of sandwich bread or a brown sugar saver in the container; the cookies will absorb a bit of that moisture and stay tender longer.

Can I make the cookies smaller or larger?

Yes, you can adjust the size of the cookies, just keep an eye on the baking time. For smaller cookies (about 1 tablespoon of dough), start checking around 8–9 minutes. For larger bakery-style cookies (2–3 tablespoons or a golf ball–sized scoop), you may need 11–14 minutes. The same rules apply: look for lightly golden edges and soft centers that will finish setting as they cool on the baking sheet.

Do I have to chill the dough, or can I bake it right away?

Chilling is strongly recommended for this recipe. You can technically bake the cookies without chilling, but they will spread more and won’t be as thick and chewy. For the best “Mama Kelce” texture, chill the dough for at least 3 hours, and up to overnight. The longer chill time helps concentrate the flavors and keeps the cookies nice and thick.

Can I use salted butter instead of unsalted?

You can use salted butter if that’s what you have on hand, but you’ll want to reduce the added salt in the recipe slightly (usually by about ¼ teaspoon) to avoid overly salty cookies. If you can, using unsalted butter gives you more control over the salt level and is what Donna Kelce’s cookie recipe is based on.

Can I make these cookies gluten-free?

You can try making them gluten-free by using a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour blend in place of regular flour. The texture may be slightly different, but many readers have success with this adaptation. Make sure you still chill the dough thoroughly and avoid overbaking to keep the cookies soft and chewy.

Why did my cookies spread too much?

If your cookies spread more than you’d like, there are a few likely reasons: the butter may have been too warm, the dough may not have been chilled long enough, or there may have been a bit too much butter or too little flour. Make sure you chill the dough for several hours, measure flour accurately (ideally by spooning and leveling or using a scale), and don’t skip the chilling step. If needed, you can also pop scooped dough balls back in the fridge or freezer for 10–15 minutes before baking to help them hold their shape.

Why are my cookies dry or cakey instead of chewy?

Dry or cakey cookies are usually caused by too much flour or overbaking. Be sure to measure your flour carefully and pull the cookies from the oven when the edges are just turning golden and the centers still look slightly soft. Remember, they will continue to bake on the hot sheet as they cool, which is how you get that signature soft, chewy Donna Kelce cookie texture.

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