Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
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Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are just like the classic chocolate chip cookie with a buttery, rich, caramel-like flavor. They are so easy to make and don’t even require a mixer. These are truly remarkable and will be a new family favorite cookie recipe!
PIN Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe to try later!
brown butter chocolate chip cookies
If you thought these classic Chocolate Chip Cookies were good, wait until you try these buttery, soft, and chewy Brown Butter Chocolate Chip cookies loaded with so much flavor. Soft and gooey centers with a chewy texture and perfectly crisp edges. The brown butter is the magical ingredient and gives the cookie dough a decadent, rich caramel-like flavor that takes these to a whole other level of deliciousness.
These Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies will be a new favorite to anyone who tries them. I made these for my husband’s work party and they were a huge hit. They got devoured quickly and everyone commented on how rich, buttery and delicious they were (thanks to the brown butter) ;).
Browning the butter is a game changer and intensifies the flavors in a dreamy way making the best chocolate chip cookies ever.The browning process is quick and requires a little chill time that is worth waiting for.
These are one my top 3 favorite cookies I’ve made and I’ve made a LOT of cookies! Other delicious chocolate chip cookies to try are my Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies, Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars, Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies, and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles.
Why You’ll Love These cookies
key ingredients
- Butter: I used salted butter so you don’t have to add salt but you can also use unsalted butter, just add 1/4 teaspoon of salt in the recipe.
- All-purpose flour: Spoon and level the flour when measuring it. Be sure not to scoop it out of the bag using the measuring cup. This way, you won’t accidentally measure out too much.
- Sugar: We use both granulated white sugar and dark brown sugar or light brown sugar. This combination will increase the chewiness of these cookies.
- Large eggs and egg yolk: Make sure the eggs and extra egg yolk are at room temperature so they incorporate into the dough better.
- Baking soda: Used as a leavening agent.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances the flavors and adds a warm flavor. I always recommend using vanilla bean paste to add even more rich vanilla flavor.
- Chocolate chips: The star ingredient! We use both mini chocolate chips and semi-sweet chocolate chips but you can use your favorite kind of chocolate chips. I find that you get more chocolate in each bite when you add in mini chocolate chips. I always recommend using high quality chocolate for this recipe.
HOW TO make BROWN BUTTER chocolate chip cookies
Make brown butter: Melt 2 sticks of butter over medium heat in a pot or medium saucepan, then bring to a boil. Once butter melts and starts boiling, swirl the pan constantly until the butter becomes somewhat foamy and becomes amber brown color.
You should see little golden brown bits on the bottom of the pan and have a nutty aroma. Remove from heat and pour into a separate small bowl allowing the butter to cool and stop cooking. Cool for 20-30 minutes in the refrigerator.
Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda. Set aside.
Add wet ingredients to browned butter: Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, egg yolk and vanilla to the cooled butter and stir to combine.
Pour the butter mixture into the flour mixture: Stir using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until the dough comes together and the ingredients are evenly incorporated.
Add in chocolate chips: Stir in the chocolate chips, use 1 1/2 cups to 2 cups depending on how much chocolate you desire.
Scoop into cookie dough balls and chill: Using a medium (2-tablespoon) cookie scoop or mini ice cream scoop, and drop the cookie dough ball onto lined cookie sheets. I always add extra chocolate chips on top to make it look extra pretty and bakery-like. Chill in the refrigerator like this for 40-60 minutes.
Bake cookies: Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Once they are done chilling, place the cookies 2 inches apart from each other on the cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until edges are lightly golden (or 8-9 minutes for extra gooey and rich).
best tips
- Make these into ice cream sandwiches: Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream to the center of one cookie and press another cookie on top.
- Chocolate chips: You can use semi-sweet chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, or chopped chocolate to get large chunks. It’s completely up to you!
- Add crunch: Add a handful of nuts to add a crunch. Any type of chopped nuts will work such as almonds, peanuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, and macadamia nuts.
- Room temperature ingredients: It’s important that your eggs are at room temperature. They incorporate with the other ingredients so much better and will help your cookies stay tender and soft.
- Don’t skip the chilling step. It is crucial with this recipe as it helps the ingredients marry together to develop a rich caramel-like flavor, making these the best chocolate chip cookies.
- Bake time: Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes to get crispy edges with soft centers. Bake for 8-9 minutes to make extra rich and gooey cookies.
variations
- Smaller Cookies: Roll only 1 or a 1/2 tablespoon of cookie dough to make them mini size.
- Birthday cookies: Add a handful of rainbow sprinkles to the cookie dough and tops of the cookie dough balls for a fun and colorful twist.
- Crunchy Cookies: Bake cookies according to recipe and then reduce the heat to 300 degrees F and bake for 5 minutes longer. Be sure they don’t burn! Let the cookies cool on cooling rack right away to get crispy.
- Chocolate chipless cookies: Although these wouldn’t be the same, but they would be still be delicious…omit the chocolate chips from the recipe.
- Chocolate dipped cookies: Dip half of each cookie in melted white, milk or dark chocolate. You could also do a combination of chocolates for an extra rich chocolate flavor.
- Sea salt: Top the cookies with flaky sea salt to intensify the flavors even more.
leftovers & storage
Make-ahead: Place the balls of dough into the freezer and freeze for 1 hour so the cookies are firm. Transfer the cookies to a freezer-safe zip lock bag (gallon size works great) and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
When you are ready to bake your frozen cookies, place the cookies on a baking sheet and bake as directed, adding about 3-4 minutes to the baking time.
To-Store: Once the cookies are baked, place them in an airtight container or place them on a plate and wrap with plastic wrap. Store the cookies for up to 1 week on a cool counter area.
Freeze: Simply place the baked cookies in a freezer-safe zip lock bag and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to defrost, remove the cookies from the freezer and let them thaw for a few hours.
other favorite cookie recipes
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Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter salted
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup brown sugar; packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 whole eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 1 1/2-2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks
Instructions
To brown the butter
- Melt the sticks of butter over medium heat in a pot or saucepan, then bring to a boil. Once it starts boiling, swirl the pan constantly until the butter becomes somewhat foamy and becomes amber brown color. The butter will start to smell nutty, and brown bits will form in the bottom. Remove from the heat, pour into a separate bowl allowing the butter to cool and stop cooking. Let the brown butter cool for 20-30 minutes in the refrigerator.
To make the cookies
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda. Set aside. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, egg yolk and vanilla to the cooled butter and stir to combine.
- Pour the butter mixture into the flour mixture bowl. Stir using a wooden spoon until the dough comes together and the ingredients are evenly incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips, use 1 1/2 cups to 2 cups depending on how much chocolate you desire.
- Using a medium (2-tablespoon) cookie scoop, and drop the cookie dough ball onto lined cookie sheets. I always add extra chocolate chips on top to make it look extra pretty and bakery-like. You can place them right next to each other because they will chill in the refrigerator like this for 40-60 minutes.
- Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Once they are done chilling, place the cookies 2 inches apart from each other on the cookie sheets.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until edges are lightly golden (or 8-9 minutes for extra gooey and rich). Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
This recipe was last updated July 10, 2024 to include additional photos and information. Originally posted February 15, 2020 By Kathryn Donangelo.
I do agree, brown butter adds so much flavour to cookies. These are so delicious. Better than the local bakery.
Browned butter adds a great depth of flavor to cookies. The nuttiness is unmistakable. This was such a great cookie and perfect for that summer road trip! These were the hit of the snack boxes in the car!
The brown butter chocolate cookie is my first-ever favorite cookie to make. Brown butter is more flavorful and easy to make. Yummy!
Browning the butter adds so much flavor. These chocolate chip cookies turned out perfect. They were gone in minutes.
These cookies combine just the right amount of chewy in the middle and crunchy around the edges. I thought brown butter added a really nice depth of flavor to the cookies, these taste sophisticated!
These cookies were some of the best that I’ve tried yet! I love the flavor the brown butter added and the texture was just perfect!
The brown butter made these cookies extra rich and delicious. We made ice cream sandwiches with half of the batch and they were the perfect summer treat!
These cookies are definitely irresistible and decadent. I love the brown butter elevation, and by the look of these cookies, gooey, and soft. Just the way I like them. Hey where’s my milk! Lol! 😃 ❤️ 😍
These cookies look really rich and tasty and like they have the perfect amount of chocolate chips in them.