Mama Kelce's Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

If you’re a Swiftie like me, chances are you suddenly know a lot about Travis Kelce. 

But have you heard of Donna Kelce’s cookies? They’re kind of legendary. So, I figured I would find the recipe and test it out. 

And let me tell you, Travis Kelce’s mom’s chocolate chip cookies are as good as I’ve heard!

Why Donna Kelce’s Cookies Are Irresistibly Yummy

I know what you’re thinking: they’re just chocolate chip cookies. How good could they be?

And sure, most chocolate chip cookie recipes are pretty similar. You’ve got butter, sugar, eggs, and flour. All of which are present here. 

But if you’re a cookie lover, I know you’ve had one or two sad bites before. 

So, if you don’t have a go-to recipe, try this one because Donna Kelce’s chocolate chip cookies are about as good as it gets.

Ingredients

Several factors elevate these babies to a league of their own. 

First, you’ll use sweet cream butter, which adds a depth of rich flavor. Then, you’ll use a blend of light brown sugar and white sugar, ensuring a moist, tender crumb and a slightly caramelized exterior. 

• Sweet Cream Butter: Provides richness, moisture, and a creamy base, ensuring a tender crumb.
• Light Brown Sugar: Imparts a subtle molasses flavor and makes the cookies nice and chewy. 
• White Sugar: Helps to caramelize the edges of the cookies so they become slightly crisp.
• Egg + Egg Yolk: Binds the ingredients together, and the extra yolk adds richness and ensures a chewy center.
• Vanilla: For sweet warmth and a lovely aromatic flavor
• Baking Soda (dissolved in hot water): The leavening agent that helps the cookies to rise. 
• All-Purpose Flour and Cake Flour: Flour provides structure to the cookies, but adding cake flour makes them lighter and softer. 
• Baking Powder: Another leavening agent that helps the cookies rise and become fluffy.
• Cinnamon and Salt: For a touch of warm, spicy flavor and to balance the sweetness. 
• White and Milk Chocolate Chips: For a creamy, sweet contrast and deep cocoa flavor.
• Pecans (optional): If you like crunch, add them. If not, the cookies are still super yummy without them. 

What Is Sweet Cream Butter?

In the United States, sweet cream butter is found in pretty much every major grocery store and supermarket. But it’s not as common in other countries.

So, what is it?

Sweet cream is made from pasteurized fresh cream rather than cultured cream. 

It has a slightly lower fat content than European butter, and it’s churned for less time, making it paler yellow in color. 

Contrary to the name, it’s not sweeter, and there is no added sugar. 

Sweet Cream Butter Alternative

As long as you’re looking at real butter, not margarine or another type of butter spread, you can swap sweet cream butter out easily. 

Just check the ingredient list and make sure you only see cream and salt. 

My top choice for baking is always Kerrygold Pure Irish butter. 

How to Make Travis Kelce’s Mom’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe makes 24 cookies if you spoon the dough into 1.5-2 tablespoon portions. 

At that size, they should be ready in about 10 minutes. But if you want them bigger or smaller, you’ll need to adjust the cooking time. 

Here’s how to make them:

1. Melt the butter and let cool while preparing the other ingredients.
2. In a large bowl, combine the cooled butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat for 3 minutes using an electric mixer, then scrape the bowl and beat again for another minute.
3. Mix in the egg, then the yolk and vanilla until blended.
4. Dissolve baking soda in hot water and add to the mixture.
5. In a different bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
6. Gradually mix dry ingredients into the butter mixture, adding the chocolate chips and optional pecans with the last portion.
7. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours, preferably overnight.
8. Drop the dough on a parchment-lined tray using a cookie scoop or tablespoon. 
9. Bake at 350°F (176°C) for 10-15 minutes.

Bonus: to get picture perfect cookies, save a few chocolate chips back and place them on the hot cookies when they’re fresh out of the oven.

The heat will melt them to the top, and they’ll look flawless!

Recipe Tips and Tricks

Travis Kelce’s mom’s cookies are wonderfully simple. And other than the chilling time, they’re made like most other chocolate chip cookie recipes. 

That said, I have a few tips to ensure your cookies are flawless!

• Use quality ingredients: Fresh, high-quality ingredients can significantly affect the final flavor and texture of your cookies. So be sure the cinnamon isn’t old, and the leavening agents aren’t out of date. 
• Use room temperature ingredients: When the eggs and butter are at room temperature. This results in better-textured cookies.
• Measuring accurately: I always weigh ingredients when baking, but I wanted to keep this in cups since that’s how Momma Kecle does it. So, be careful when measuring since it’s easy to overdo it with cups. Spoon the flour into the cup measurement and level it off with a knife, and be sure to pack the brown sugar so you get enough. 
• Test your leavening agents: If your cookies come out flat, chances are your baking powder or soda has gone bad. Yes, that really happens. And if it does, they’re basically useless. To test, put a little in a bowl and add hot water to the baking powder and lemon juice to the baking soda. If they don’t bubble or fizz, they’re done for and you’ll need to buy more.
• Mix the dough by hand: It’s easiest to use a mixer for the butter and sugar since you need it to be well-blended and fluffy. But after that, stir the dry ingredients with a spatula so you don’t overmix it. 
• Chill the dough: Chilling the cookie dough solidifies the fat, so the cookies don’t spread too far. It also allows the flavors to develop, making them extra tasty. 
• Portion with cookie scoop: This makes the cookies all the same size, so they’ll cook evenly.
• Bake in batches: If you have multiple trays to bake, it’s important to rotate them in the oven so they cook evenly. That means turning the trays around and moving the bottom tray to the top and the top to the bottom. 

Seriously - CHILL THE DOUGH! I can’t overstate this one. If you bake these right away, you’ll see them come out flat and sad.

I like to portion the dough and then chill it overnight. But you can just pop the bowl in the fridge. Just remember that the dough should be pretty solid when scooping.

As in, you’ll need to dig into it to get portions. If the scoop slides in like butter, the dough isn’t chilled enough.

To get the cookies you see below, I actually portioned it on a tray and froze it. Then, I baked them right from frozen (adding 2-4 minutes to the baking time).

Taylor Swift Baking Playlist

I’m betting you’ve found this post and searched for this recipe because you’re a Swiftie. 

If I’m wrong, feel free to skip this section. But if I’m right, here’s a fun T-Swift playlist to listen to while you’re baking.

Oh, and why not make a Kansas City Old Fashioned to enjoy while you’re baking?

Begin Again: 

As you start your baking journey, this song sets the mood for new beginnings.

Blank Space:

While measuring out the flour, baking soda, and other dry ingredients, this catchy song gets you into the mixing rhythm.

Shake It Off:

The upbeat tempo here mirrors the vigorous action of creaming the butter and sugars together until they’re fluffy.

Delicate:

This softer tune resonates with carefully adding the eggs and vanilla, ensuring everything is mixed in without over-beating.

End Game (feat. Ed Sheeran & Future):

As you’re nearing the final additions, this collaborative tune seems fitting for mixing in the final touches.

You Need To Calm Down:

At this point, it feels like the cookies are almost done. But you need to calm down because they have to chill first!

Wildest Dreams:

They’re finally in the oven, and they’re going to taste better than you dreamed!

Gorgeous: 

Once you take that first bite, you’ll agree that these cookies are nothing short of gorgeous!