Half-Baked Single Serve Cookie Skillet (For Two)

This is the TikTok and Instagram viral BEST recipe for a half-baked single serve cookie skillet. Are you already drooling? Okay, to make this recipe even better, it actually serves two people (depending on how big your appetite is).

This half-baked single serve cookie skillet is one of my favorite recipes and most popular recipes I’ve ever developed.

The half-baked single serve cookie skillet was my first recipe to go viral on TikTok with almost 4 million views. And it’s so popular for a reason: it’s quick to make (20 minutes start to finish!), it’s the perfect size for 1-2 people, and it has the crispy outside and gooey inside of a half-baked chocolate chip cookie.

This half-baked single serve cookie skillet recipe is a variation on my salted brown butter chocolate chip cookies. We make a small batch of chocolate chip cookie dough, press it into a 6.5 inch skillet (mine is $9 from Amazon, see below for a hack if you don’t have one) and bake until the the skillet cookie has a golden brown edge and a half-baked gooey center. We top it with flaky sea salt and a scoop of vanilla ice cream and dive in!

This post is all about the BEST half-baked single serve cookie skillet.

Half-Baked Single Serve Cookie Skillet

What is a skillet cookie?

A skillet cookie is, well, a cookie that’s baked in a skillet instead of as individual cookies. And a half-baked single serve cookie skillet is a mini version! It’s perfect for a date night in, a movie night, a Wednesday night, you name it.

If you’re wondering why a skillet cookie is better than just eating a chocolate chip cookie, let. me. tell. you!

1. It amplifies all the best parts of regular cookies. Since it’s essentially a giant cookie that’s baked in its own vessel, you can half-bake the center and it won’t fall apart. So you get crispy edges but the middle stays a perfectly slightly under-baked gooey cookie.
2. It’s an experience. I know this sounds cheesy, but eating a skillet cookie is just more exciting than eating individual cookies. You top the skillet with ice cream and it feels like you’re at a restaurant. I will warn that whoever you’re eating it with might want to marry you (or something, ya know, similar) after, so prepare yourself.
3. It’s lower stress to make. I’m not saying that making cookies should ever be stressful, but you know when you slide a tray out of the oven and the cookies spread too much or not enough? It’s just a little disappointing. The beauty of a cookie skillet is that the cookie is all contained and it’ll be beautiful no matter what. It is simply the perfect dessert and an easy dessert.

Ingredients

This cookie skillet uses only 8 ingredients, and if I’m a betting girl (which I am), I’m gonna say you already have them in your pantry.

• Unsalted butter. If you only have salted butter, reduce the salt to 1/8 teaspoon.

• Brown sugar. Brown sugar makes the cookie skillet more tender and flavorful than granulated sugar thanks since it has molasses.

• Egg. You just need one (or really half of one — we’ll get to that in a sec), so no need to run to the store for more.

• Vanilla extract. Vanilla is what gives chocolate chip cookies their characteristic warm and cozy flavor, so we definitely want to include it.

• Kosher salt or another coarse salt. Salt is important in any dessert since it keeps sweets from being cloyingly sweet.

• Baking soda. Baking soda helps give the cookie a little lift in the skillet so it doesn’t turn out overly dense and shallow (something we avoid in both cookies and people!).

• All purpose flour. We need flour to bring the whole cookie skillet together, duh!

• Chocolate chips, chocolate chunks or chopped chocolate. I like to use some chopped up chocolate here since it melts better than chocolate chips and will give you delicious pools of melty chocolate. But you can use whatever kind of chocolate you like.

• Flaky sea salt (optional). We top this skillet with flaky sea salt or more coarse salt for a delicious sweet-salty experience.

• Ice cream. While this is technically optional, I think it’s a non-negotiable. If you’re not topping your cookie skillet with some scoops of vanilla ice cream, what other questionable decisions are you making??

How to make a half-baked single serve cookie skillet

This cookie skillet is really easy to make. You’ll start by mixing together melter butter and brown sugar until there’s no separation. Then you’ll whisk up an egg in a small bowl or cup and pour just half of it into the butter and sugar mixture (you can eyeball it – it doesn’t need to be exact!). Add the vanilla extract, and give it a mix.

Then you’ll stir in the baking soda and salt, followed by flour and chocolate chips or a chopped up chocolate bar. I like to reserve some of the chocolate to press on top of the skillet right before it bakes, so you can see the melty pools of chocolate.

Then we press the batter into a small 6.5 inch skillet, add our reserved pieces of chocolate on top, and bake it for 12-15 minutes until it has crispy edges but the middle is still a little underbaked. After letting the skillet cool slightly, top it with flaky sea salt and a scoop of vanilla ice cream and dive in!

How to make a single serve cookie skillet without a cast-iron skillet

If you don’t have a 6.5 inch cast-iron skillet, I highly recommend getting one. Mine is from Lodge and it’s only $9 on Amazon. Besides cookie skillets, I use it for a quick egg, melting a small amount of butter, and as plating for dinner parties (cast-iron is the coolest for serving dips and bread!).

If you need this half-baked single serve cookie skillet, like, yesterday and don’t have a small cast-iron, you can turn another pan into the right size. This is a genius hack I got from my mom. You’re going to take either an 8×8 pan or a loaf pan and create an artificial edge to it using aluminum foil. You’re going to fold a few layers of foil together and create a bottom and side of a pan, and then place that about halfway in a 8×8 pan.

If you’re more of a visual learner, I shared a video on TikTok explaining how to do this!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Looking for more amazing recipes?

• If you’re now on a cookie kick, check out salted brown butter chocolate chip cookies (this is the cookie recipe that the half-baked single serve cookie skillet is based off of!), dipped strawberry chocolate chip cookies or brown butter miso chocolate chip cookie bars.

• If you’re a chocolate fiend, you gotta try the best salty fudgy brownies and silky chocolate orange tart.

• Want more quick dessert recipes? Check out edible cookie dough for 2, edible peanut butter cookie dough for two, and campfire banana boats (the campfire is optional).