Description
Transform ordinary chocolate chip cookies into something extraordinary with rich, nutty brown butter. These bakery-style cookies have the perfect crispy edges and soft, chewy centers that everyone craves.
Ingredients
The Cookie Base:
- 1¼ cups butter (before browning) – I always use salted Kerrygold when I can find it
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar – dark brown gives deeper flavor
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract – real vanilla, not imitation
The Dry Team:
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour – I use King Arthur
- ½ teaspoon salt (bump to ¾ teaspoon if your butter’s unsalted)
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
The Star Player:
- 2 – 2½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips – Ghirardelli are my favorite
Instructions
Put your butter in the saucepan over medium-high heat. Start stirring immediately and don’t stop. I learned this the hard way when I burned my first batch while answering the phone.
First it melts. Then it foams up like crazy. Keep stirring. The foam dies down, and that’s when the magic starts. You’ll hear this gentle sizzling, then your kitchen starts smelling incredible.
Watch for the color change – it goes from yellow to golden to this gorgeous amber. You’ll see brown bits forming on the bottom. Those bits are pure gold, don’t lose them! Whole process takes maybe six minutes, but feels like forever when you’re watching.
Dump everything – butter and all those precious brown bits – into your mixing bowl. This part requires patience, which I’m terrible at. Stick it in the fridge for about fifteen minutes, or freezer for five. You want it solid but still soft enough to mix.
I usually prep my baking sheets while I wait. Parchment paper on everything.
Oven to 375°F. Yes, that’s hot for cookies, but it’s what makes these work. Line your baking sheets with parchment. I tried silicone mats once – they work fine, but parchment is easier.
Mix the cooled brown butter with both sugars for about a minute. Your mixture should look creamy but maybe a little grainy from the brown sugar. That’s normal.
Crack in your eggs and vanilla. Now beat this for a full three minutes. I know it seems long, but this is where the texture happens. The mixture gets lighter, fluffier, almost mousse-like. Don’t skip this step.
Add flour, baking soda, and salt all at once. Mix just until you can’t see dry flour anymore. Seriously, stop mixing the second it comes together. Overmixed dough makes tough cookies.
Fold in chocolate chips by hand. I always do this part with a wooden spoon so I don’t overwork the dough. Go heavy on the chips – life’s too short for skimpy chocolate.
I use a ¼ cup measure, but cookie scoops work great too. These make big bakery-style cookies. Space them out – they spread quite a bit.
Eight to ten minutes max. They look underdone when you pull them out. The edges should be golden, centers still soft and pale. They finish cooking on the hot pan.
Hardest part of the whole recipe. Let them sit on the baking sheet for exactly three minutes. Not two, not five. Three. Then move to cooling racks.
Notes
Room temperature ingredients matter, but not obsessively. Eggs can sit out for thirty minutes while you brown the butter.
That cookie scoop investment is worth it. Uniform size means even baking. No giant cookies next to tiny ones.
If your cookies come out wonky-shaped, use a spatula to gently push the edges into circles while they’re still hot and soft. Works every time.
Slightly underbaked beats overbaked every time. These continue cooking on the hot pan even after you pull them out.
Don’t crowd your baking sheets. Six big cookies max per sheet, or they’ll grow into each other.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American