If you’re looking for the Panera Kitchen Sink Cookie recipe, you’ve found it! Full of chocolate, coconut, and walnuts with toffee bits and salt sprinkled on top, they are the most delectable cookie you’ll ever have!
Last year, I did a review on Panera Bread and their new clean menu (no artificial colors, preservatives, sweeteners, etc.). I was given some gift cards so my family and I could try all the menu items we liked. And we liked them all!
But the thing I liked the most was their Kitchen Sink Cookie. If you’ve never heard of a Kitchen Sink Cookie before, it’s basically a giant cookie you throw everything into, except the kitchen sink 🙂
Panera Bread Kitchen Sink Cookies have chocolate chips, caramel, and pretzels. I decided to make my own variation with some different add-ins.
First, I started out with my fantastic classic College Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. Then I add shredded coconut and chopped walnuts, and sprinkled toffee bits and kosher salt on top. The result was a thick, chewy cookie with the perfect combination of texture and amazing flavors.
You can of course use caramel and pretzels as well (or in place of the add-ins I used). Keep reading for my suggestion on the type of caramel to use in this delicious copycat recipe.
Today’s Freebie!
Ingredients for Panera Kitchen Sink Cookies
- butter
- granulated sugar
- brown sugar
- eggs
- pure vanilla extract
- baking soda
- salt
- flour
- chocolate chips
- shredded coconut
- walnuts
- toffee bits
Other add-ins for Panera Kitchen Sink Cookies
Feel free to substitute or add in as many of these ingredients as you like!
- Small crunchy pretzels or pretzel sticks (broken in pieces)
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips (or milk or dark chocolate chips)
- Chocolate chunks
- White chocolate chips
- Mint chocolate chips
- Pecans
- Potato chips (broken)
- Macadamia nuts
- Raisins
- Craisins
- Oatmeal
Equipment and Supplies for Panera Kitchen Sink Cookies
- cookie sheets
- silicone baking mats or parchment paper
- large cookie scoop
- stand mixer or large bowl
- wire rack
Tips for Making Panera Kitchen Sink Cookies
- Don’t add the toffee bits to the cookie dough. Save them and sprinkle them on top of the cookies right after they come out of the oven. If you mix them in the dough, they will melt and lose their delectable crunch! Also, save some kosher or flake salt for sprinkling on the top as soon as they come out of the oven.
2. If you want to make giant cookies, use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to measure the dough for each cookie, and then roll the dough between your hands to make them into balls. Then put just two of the balls of dough in a row on your baking sheet. Bake them at 325 degrees F. for 15 minutes until the edges are golden brown. The lower temperature and longer cooking time will help the dough cook more evenly.
3. If you decide to go with the traditional pretzel and caramel for add-ins, I suggest using Kraft Caramel Bits. It’s so much easier to use these than to try to cut those soft caramels squares into pieces.
4. Store in an airtight container for up to a week. Ha ha! Who am I kidding? They’ll never last that long!
Alternately, you can put the cookies in an airtight freezer bag and thaw them on the counter for a few hours before eating.
These are seriously some of the most gorgeous, mouthwatering, best cookies I have ever made. If you want a knock-out, home run cookie (not sure where all the sports references are coming from right now, but okay….) then you must make these Panera Kitchen Sink Cookies. You can thank me later 🙂
Today’s Freebie!
Yield: 60 regular-sized cookies or 30 large cookies
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
If you’re looking for the recipe for the Panera Kitchen Sink Cookie, you’ve found it! Full of chocolate, coconut, and walnuts with toffee bits and salt sprinkled on top, they are the most delectable cookie you’ll ever have!
Ingredients
- 4 cubes butter (2 cups), softened (use real butter!)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups brown sugar, packed
- 3 eggs
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 5-6 cups flour
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- 2 cups chocolate chips
- 1 cups shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup toffee bits
- sea salt or kosher salt, to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cream butter and sugars together.
- Add the eggs and vanilla. Mix well.
- Add two cups of the flour, along with the salt and baking soda. Mix well.
- Add the remaining three to four cups of flour and mix well. (You might want to start out with less flour and bake a couple "test" cookies to see if you need more flour).
- Add the chocolate chips, chopped walnuts, and shredded coconut, and blend.
- Using a cookie scoop, place balls of dough two inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. (I prefer to use stoneware , baking mats, or parchment paper).
- Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. You want the edges to just barely be browned, but the centers will still be soft. Note that it will take cookies longer to bake if you use stoneware--especially the first batch.
- As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, sprinkle with toffee bits. You can press them gently into the tops of the cookies to help them stick. Then sprinkle with sea salt or kosher salt if desired.
- Let rest on the baking sheets for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 60
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 188Total Fat: 9.8gSaturated Fat: 5.6gCholesterol: 26mgSodium: 94mgCarbohydrates: 23.1gFiber: .8gSugar: 12.8gProtein: 2.6g
For more great cookie recipes, like Peppermint Chocolate Slice and Bake Cookies, Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies, and Peanut Butter Cream Sandwich Cookies, visit The Cookie Jar.
Choose your favorite to pin!
