Brown Butter Sugar Cookies
These bakery-style Brown Butter Sugar Cookies are perfect for the holidays or any time of year. They’re thick with soft, chewy centers, crisp edges, and a swirl of classic vanilla buttercream. The browned butter takes them to the next level with warm, nutty, caramel-like flavor everyone will go crazy for!
Servings: 15 cookies
Ingredients
Brown Butter Sugar Cookie Dough
- 1 cup salted butter
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup dark or light brow sugar
- 2 whole large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract
Frosting
- 1/2 cup salted butter softened at room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
- 2-3 tablespoons milk
Instructions
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. Add to large bowl and let sit for about 10 minutes.
Make Cookie Dough
- Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar to the brown butter and whisk.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and whisk again until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients to the brown butter mixture and stir with a wooden spoon or electric hand mixture until cookie dough forms.
- With a regular ice cream scooper (or scoop 4 tablespoon portions of dough) and place the dough balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Chill cookie dough balls in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and adjust cookies on baking sheet so they are at least 1 1/2 inches apart. Gently press the back of a tablespoon or regular spoon on top of the dough ball to flatten it slightly. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the tops are a light golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.
- In the meantime, in a medium bowl beat together the butter until creamy. Then add in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, almond extract and milk. Add milk to thin and thin (start with 2 tablespoons), then beat again until smooth. Add more milk if the frosting seems too thick. Frost the tops of each cooled cookie and add Christmas sprinkles (optional). Enjoy!