Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies are good. Browned butter is good. So why not combine the two?!

Don’t get me wrong, traditional chocolate chip cookies are delicious on their own (check out my other chocolate chip cookie recipe here), but if you have the chance to potentially make a cookie better, shouldn’t you take it?

While it is an extra step, browning the butter adds a deliciously nutty element to the these already thick, chewy and gooey cookies that is too good to pass up. And I know it’s hard to chill the dough when you want to bake and eat the cookies ASAP, but longer time in the refrigerator means your cookies will have a better texture (think chewy edges with a soft and gooey center) and more developed butterscotchy flavors. YUM!

I hope you enjoy these Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies! Let me know in the comments below how they turned out or share a photo on Instagram and tag me @homecourtbakes! 

XO,
Coco

Prep time: 40 minutes
Chill time: 4-24 hours (Chill for at least 4 hours, but 12-24 hours is preferred)
Cook time: 19 minutes (per batch)
Yields: ~20 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
• 2 Tbsps. whole milk or heavy cream
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (scooped and leveled)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp kosher salt 
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 5 ounces bittersweet or dark chocolate chunks or wafers, roughly chopped
• 5 ounces milk chocolate chunks or wafers, roughly chopped

Instructions:

• Measure out 4 ounces (1 stick) of butter and set aside in a large bowl. In a small saucepan, cook the remaining 4 ounces of butter over medium-low heat, making sure to stir frequently until the butter starts to boil. Cook the butter for another 5-7 minutes, scraping the bottom and the sides of the pan constantly until the butter sputters, foams and you start seeing browned bits floating. Remove from heat and add to the large bowl (including all of the browned bits) with the rest of the butter. Add the heavy cream or milk and set aside to cool a bit.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salts. Set aside.
• Add the brown and granulated sugars to the bowl with the butter mixture (it’s OK if it’s still warm) and whisk until smooth (about 45 seconds to 1 minute). Add the egg and vanilla and whisk for another 45 seconds until combined.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet all at once and mix until well combined. Then add both chocolates and mix to combine.
• Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop the dough and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet (or whatever will fit in your refrigerator). Wrap the sheet tightly with plastic wrap and chill for at least 4 hours, but preferably 12-24 hours to fully develop the flavors and improve the cookies’ texture.
  • You can place the dough close together to save space as you will be able to space them out before baking.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place 5-6 pieces of dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet a few inches apart (these cookies are large so make sure to not overcrowd the baking sheet) and bake for 18-22 minutes (or until the sides start to brown and center is no longer gooey). Depending on how your oven cooks, you may want to rotate the cookie sheet 180 degrees halfway through to ensure your cookies are evenly cooked. For reference, my cookies cooked for 19 minutes.
• Cool the cookies on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. 
• Enjoy!