Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
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Chocolate chip cookies, but make them better. These Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are crispy on the edges and soft and chewy in the middle. With nutty, caramelized browned butter and pools of melty chocolate, they’re everything you could want in a cookie.
How To Make Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Making these Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies is easier than you’d think, and the results are so worth it. Here’s a quick step-by-step guide to help you make the perfect cookies every time:
- Brown the butter: Start by melting the unsalted butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring as it bubbles and turns golden brown. The delicious nutty aroma is your cue that it’s ready!
- Cool and set the brown butter: Let the browned butter cool until it resembles softened butter. This takes about 45 minutes in the fridge, stirring halfway through. If you’re short on time, pop it in the freezer and stir every 5 minutes until it’s soft but scoopable.
- Mix the wet ingredients: Cream the softened brown butter with dark brown sugar and granulated sugar for 3-4 minutes using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment—or use a whisk if you want to do it by hand. The mixture should lighten slightly in color.
- Add eggs and vanilla extract: Mix in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract for another minute or two, until nicely combined.
- Combine the dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and a touch of ground cinnamon and cardamom. The cardamom is subtle but adds a fantastic depth of flavor.
- Combine: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Then fold in chopped chocolate chunks. I’m using 70% dark baking chocolate, but you can use any high-quality baking chocolate you enjoy—whether that’s lighter or darker.
- Chill the cookie dough: Cover the dough and let it rest in the fridge for at least 60 minutes, or better yet, overnight for maximum flavor and an even better texture.
Scoop, Bake & Finishing Touches
Now that the cookie dough is chilled and ready to go, it’s time to bake!
- Preheat the oven: Preheat your oven to 320°F (160°C) fan-assisted (convection). If you use a conventional oven, set it to 350°F (175°C).
- Scoop the dough: Use a cookie scoop or spoon to portion out about 70 grams of dough per cookie. This should yield 10 large cookies. Roll the dough into rough balls.
- Add to the baking sheet: Place the dough balls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving plenty of room in between for spreading. I like to fit 5 cookies per tray.
- Bake: Bake for 12-14 minutes until the edges are golden but the centers are still soft.
- Finishing touches: After baking, sprinkle with flaky sea salt and let the cookies cool on the sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
And that’s it! You’ve got yourself some seriously delish Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies. Crispy edges, soft centers, and all the melty chocolate you could want. Don’t forget the flaky sea salt on top—it really makes them pop! Enjoy <3
Tips for Making Perfect Cookies
Chill the dough longer for more flavor. If you can, chill your dough overnight. The longer it sits, the better the flavor and texture gets.
Use high-quality chocolate. The chocolate is the star of this cookie, so make sure to use a high-quality one. I recommend 70% dark baking chocolate, but if you’re not a dark chocolate girly like me, feel free to mix in milk or white chocolate. Chop it into chunks of various sizes for those big, melty pockets of chocolate throughout the cookies.
Don’t skip the flaky sea salt. A sprinkle of flaky sea salt takes these cookies to the next level and pairs perfectly with the chocolate.
Undercook a little for chewy centers. Take the cookies out of the oven when the edges are crispy, but the centers are still soft. They’ll firm up as they cool but stay chewy inside.
Let them cool. I know, this is the hardest part—let the cookies sit on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before moving them to a cooling rack. As they cool, they firm up, making it way easier to transfer them to a cooling rack without them falling apart.
Perfect round shape. No worries if your cookies turned out a little wonky. While they’re still warm, grab a large round cookie cutter or even a big mug and gently swirl it around the edges of the cookie in a circular motion to reshape them. This is an easy trick to get those picture-perfect, round cookies.
Similar Recipes
If you’re looking for more delicious recipes like this one, here are a few I’d like to recommend!
Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
- Saucepan
- Stand mixer fitted w/ paddle attachment, optional
- Cookie scoop/tablespoon
- baking sheet
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
- 185 g unsalted butter
- 140 g dark brown sugar
- 60 g granulated sugar
- 1 whole large egg + 1 egg yolk room temp
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 220 g all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp ground cardamom optional, but recommended
- 150 g 70% dark baking chocolate or your preferred chocolate
Topping
- flaky sea salt
Instructions
Brown the butter and cool
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly as it bubbles and turns golden brown. When it smells nutty, it’s done!185 g unsalted butter
- Remove from the heat and transfer the browned butter to a bowl. Let it cool until it’s soft but firm enough to scoop—this usually takes around 45 minutes in the fridge (give it a stir after 20 minutes), or you can speed things up in the freezer by stirring every 5 minutes.
Mix the wet ingredients
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or if you'd like to do it by hand, in a large mixing bowl with a whisk, beat the softened cooled brown butter with the sugars for 3-4 minutes until slightly lighter in color.140 g dark brown sugar, 60 g granulated sugar
- Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and mix for a couple of minutes until thoroughly combined.1 whole large egg + 1 egg yolk, 1 tsp vanilla extract
Combine the dry ingredients
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.220 g all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/8 tsp ground cardamom
Combine the wet and dry
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix with a silicone spatula until just combined. Be careful not to overmix.
- Chop the baking chocolate into uneven chunks for a mix of big, melty pockets and smaller bits. Gently fold them into the cookie dough, ensuring they're evenly distributed.150 g 70% dark baking chocolate
Chill the dough
- Cover the dough and chill in the fridge for at least 60 minutes, or preferably overnight.
Bake
- Preheat the oven to 320℉ (160℃) fan-assisted (or 350℉/175℃ if using a conventional oven). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Scoop about 70 g of cookie dough for each cookie and roll them into rough balls. Place the dough balls on the baking sheets, spacing them out for spreading (about 5 cookies per tray).
- Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the centers are still soft.
Finishing touches
- After baking, sprinkle with flaky sea salt and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Then, use a spatula to transfer them to a cooling rack. Enjoy!flaky sea salt
