Small Batch Cookies

If a cookie craving hits and you don’t want dozens taking over your counter, these small batch cookie recipes are for you. Whether it’s a classic like small batch chocolate chip cookies, chewy oatmeal cookies, or bright lemon shortbread, there’s enough variety for every cookie mood. Each of these recipes has been scaled and tested for smaller households — whether you’re baking for two, for a few, or just yourself — this is a collection of small batch cookies you’ll want to bookmark.

Cookies are where most people start baking, and where I keep coming back. There’s something genuinely satisfying about a warm cookie straight from the oven. And I honestly can’t think of a better way to make cookies, than in a small batch.

Most cookie recipes yield at least a couple dozen cookies. And if you’re a smaller household, or you just have a hankering for a good chocolate chip cookie, that’s just impractical.

So, every recipe in this collection has been developed with you in mind. Each one goes through rounds of testing and scaled specifically for a smaller yield — not simply cut in half from a larger recipe.

You’ll find the classics here: peanut butter cookies, chewy oatmeal, and crispy-edged snickerdoodles. Then there’s the fudgy flourless chocolate cookies that have become one of the most-made recipes on the site. Plus a few that go a little beyond the basics, like edible cookie dough and blondies worth their weight in brown sugar that belong on any cookie table.

Tools Worth Having for Small Batch Cookie Baking

A small batch of cookies comes together quickly, and the right tools make it even easier. These are what I reach for every time:

• Small 3-quart mixing bowl — The right size for small batch doughs that would get lost in a full-size bowl. Works with a standard tilt-head mixer and keeps cleanup minimal.
• Hand mixer — Ideal for combining butter and sugar in small quantities without committing to the full stand mixer setup.
• Medium cookie scoop — The single most useful cookie tool in the kitchen. Consistent size, consistent bake, perfectly portioned every time.
• Half Baking Sheet — The most-used tool in my kitchen for cookie baking. The size is ideal for a small batch: roomy enough for six cookies to spread and bake evenly without crowding.
• Parchment Paper — Simple and non-negotiable. Cookies release cleanly, the pan stays clean, and you’re not scrubbing baked-on butter off a sheet pan at the end of the night.
• Mini Spatula — Essential for scraping every last bit of dough from the mixing bowl.