This Panera Kitchen Sink Cookie Recipe features a little bit of everything - milk chocolate chips, semi-sweet chocolate chunks, salty pretzel bits, caramel, and nuts. This crowd-pleaser is a copycat recipe like the one sold by Panera Bread. They didn't give me the "official recipe," but I think this version comes pretty close to the taste and texture of the large, bakery-style cookies.
Why You'll Love These Panera Copycat Kitchen Sink Cookies
Convenience - What's better than being able to make these delicious cookies at home? How about the fact that it is a one-bowl recipe? That's right! Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl for easy clean-up.
The perfect combination - I love cookies that combine sweet and salty flavors. The base of the recipe is very similar to one for chocolate chip cookies. The Panera Kitchen Sink Cookie Recipe incorporates salty pretzel pieces and chopped pecans for a perfect balance.
The "stuff" - All the add-ins folded into the dough is what makes these some of the best cookies. The total amount of add-ins is about 4 cups, plus more for the tops of the cookie. If you omit or add an ingredient, use that amount as a guide.
Equipment Needed
Baking sheets or cookie trays
Parchment paper
Electric hand mixer
Cookie scoop
Ingredient List
- Unsalted Butter
- Brown sugar - unlike white sugar, it traps moisture and creates chewy cookies
- Semi-sweet chocolate chunks
- Milk chocolate chips
- Coarsely crushed pretzels
- Chopped pecans
- Werther’s SOFT caramels
- Flaky sea salt (optional)
*Please scroll down to the recipe card for specific ingredient amounts.
Instructions
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
Step 2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars together, with an electric mixer, until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
Step 3. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add vanilla extract and combine.
Step 4. Add flour, baking soda, and salt and mix until just combined.
Step 5. Add in 1 cup each of the chocolate chunks, chocolate chips, pretzel pieces, and pecans, saving the extra ½ cup of each to add after baking. Fold in by hand until combined.
Step 6. Scoop about 2 Tablespoons for each cookie, and place about 2” apart on the cookie sheet.
Step 7. Place ½ of the SOFT caramel on the top of each cookie, and cover with about 1 teaspoon of dough.
Step 8. Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned and the middles are set.
Step 9. Immediately after removing the cookies from the oven, press additional add-ins into the tops of the cookies. Let cool on pans for at least 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to completely cool.
Pro Tip
- Be sure your butter is room temperature but is on the cooler side. If the butter is too warm the cookies will spread significantly more. I found that removing the butter from the refrigerator, cutting it into pieces, waiting about 5-10 minutes, and then mixing the sugars in was enough time for it to soften.
- Using good-quality butter is important in this recipe. The cookies in the first 3 batches were made with store-brand butter. Although this might have a good result in some recipes, these kinds of butter may contain more water than a more expensive name brand. Even with chilling the dough and adding cornstarch, the result was a cookie that looked like a puddle of dough. The more expensive butter produced a thicker cookie.
Storage and Freezing
Store baked cookies in an airtight container, at room temperature, for up to a week.
Baked cookies freeze very well in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months. Wrap the cookies individually and then placed them in a freezer bag to keep the from sticking together.
Want to freeze the dough before baking? Scoop the dough into balls and freeze, in a single layer, on a pan. Then place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to bake, place frozen dough balls on a baking sheet, and bake 1 minute longer than the original directions.
I love copycat recipes because I like the challenge of cracking the "secret" behind the sweet treats we all love so much. You could also try Starbuck's Cranberry Bliss Bars copycat recipe from Shugary Sweets. Another one of my favorites is the Costco Raspberry Crumble Cookies copycat recipe from Love From the Oven.
Substitutions
Can't find semi-sweet chocolate chunks? Semi-sweet chocolate chips are fine to use.
We used Werther’s brand SOFT caramels with good results. These are different from Werther’s hard candy or the Kraft caramels. Use the Kraft caramel bits as an alternative if you can't find the soft caramels.
Variations
Make it your own and add your favorite mix-ins. These could include potato chips, different kinds of chocolate chips, like white or dark, candies like m&m's or Reese's pieces, chopped walnuts, or even peanuts.
Want to skip the caramel? Switch it out for butterscotch chips or toffee chips.
Recipe Notes
- Chilling the dough in the Panera Kitchen Sink Cookie recipe for up to 24 hours didn’t seem to affect the spreading or texture of the cookie. You can make a batch, return to the dough the next day, and finish baking. Cover the dough with plastic wrap before placing it into the refrigerator.
- Shaping the cookies into balls of dough when placing them on the cookie sheet helps them not to spread as much. However, it isn’t required.
- We also tried placing the caramel on top of the cookies and skipping the additional teaspoon of dough to cover it. However, the caramel was more likely to melt and run to the edges of the cookie instead of peeking out from under the dough.
- Topping the cookie with flaky sea salt? Consider omitting the kosher salt that gets mixed into the dough to prevent the cookie from being over salty.
- Want a perfectly round cookie? Use a glass or the ring of a canning lid to “scooch” in the edges immediately after the cookies come out of the oven. This makes a rounder cookie and a more uniform-looking batch.
Panera Kitchen Sink Cookie Recipe
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Baking sheets
- parchment paper
- Electric Mixer
- Cookie scoop
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter room temperature but cool (* see note)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks divided
- 1 ½ cup milk chocolate chips divided
- 1 ½ cup coarsely crushed pretzels divided
- 1 ½ cup chopped pecans divided
- 1 cup Werther’s SOFT caramels cut in half
- Flaky sea salt optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars together, with an electric mixer, until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add vanilla and combine.
- Add flour, baking soda, and salt and mix until just combined.
- Add in 1 cup each of the chocolate chunks, chips, pretzels, and pecans, saving the extra ½ cup to add after baking. Fold in by hand until combined.
- Scoop about 2 Tablespoons for each cookie, and place about 2” apart on the cookie sheet.
- Place ½ of the SOFT caramel on the top of each cookie, and cover with about 1 teaspoon of dough.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are lightly browned.
- Immediately after removing the cookies from the oven, press additional chunks, chips, pretzels, and pecans into the tops of the cookies. Let cool on pans for at least 5 minutes. Transfer to a rack to completely cool.
Notes
- Chilling the dough in the Panera Kitchen Sink Cookie recipe for up to 24 hours didn’t seem to affect the spreading or texture of the cookie. You can make a batch, return to the dough the next day, and finish baking. Cover the dough with plastic wrap before placing it into the refrigerator.
- Shaping the cookies into balls of dough when placing them on the cookie sheet helps them not to spread as much. However, it isn’t required.
- We also tried placing the caramel on top of the cookies and skipping the additional teaspoon of dough to cover it. However, the caramel was more likely to melt and run to the edges of the cookie instead of peeking out from under the dough.
- Topping the cookie with flaky sea salt? Consider omitting the kosher salt that gets mixed into the dough to prevent the cookie from being over salty.
- Want a perfectly round cookie? Use a glass or the ring of a canning lid to “scooch” in the edges immediately after the cookies come out of the oven. This makes a rounder cookie and a more uniform-looking batch.
Jess says
Umm, excuse me while I wipe the drool off my chin. Chocolate chips, caramel, pecans, salt, pretzels...in a COOKIE? Yes. Just...so much yes. 👏