Brown Butter Sugar Cookies

These brown butter sugar cookies will make you question why you haven’t been using brown butter in all your cookie recipes. These cookies are always the first to go at parties and gatherings—when you take your first bite, you’ll see why.

Browning butter is a vastly underused technique that can upgrade so many dishes, including these brown butter sugar cookies.

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If you’ve never browned butter before, the process might seem daunting. Rest assured, it is actually quite simple, and the results will taste (and sound) impressive.

If you’ve read my chocolate chip cookie recipe, you’ll know that neither I, nor anyone in my family, had never tasted a chocolate chip cookie before coming to the US.

You must think, HOW can this be?! That’s the exact reaction you’ll have after tasting these brown butter sugar cookies.

To clarify… I wasn’t a sugar-deprived kid. Growing up in the UK, cookies were known as “biscuits,” and more often than not, the biscuits were shortbread, custard creams, party rings, and Bourbon creams, etc. Now we know where my notorious sweet tooth comes from.

 

What Does Brown Butter Do to Cookies?

Brown butter won’t necessarily change the texture of your cookies, but it does completely enhance the flavor profile. These brown butter sugar cookies have a well-rounded, slightly toasted, toffee-like, or nutty flavor. 

Does the Brown Butter Dough Really Need to Chill Overnight?

Short answer is yes.

Chilling the dough for any amount of time, even 30 minutes, will help with the baking process. When chilled, the fats in the butter cool, helping to maintain the shape and texture of the cookie while baking. If you don’t have any time to spare, try popping your dough in the freezer. Check out the science behind chilling cookie dough.

However, letting the cookies chill overnight (or even for 36 hours!) is the best option. It allows the flavors to fully incorporate themselves into the dough. The result: extremely flavorful, well-textured cookies. 

Brown Butter Sugar Cookies

Recipe by Christina Conte             Serves 36

FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW

Ingredients

• bread flour
• cake flour
• baking powder
• cream of tartar
• Kosher salt
• baking soda
• unsalted butter
• brown sugar
• granulated sugar
• large eggs
• natural vanilla extract

Directions

Make the Brown Butter Cookie Dough

Place the butter in a saucepan with a light bottom (so you can see the color of the butter) on the stove.

Melt the butter until browned. Be patient – this will take a few minutes. The butter will start to bubble early in the process, then foam quickly.

When just browned, remove from the stove. The butter will continue browning in the hot pan even off the heat. Be careful not to burn the butter. It should be a light-medium brown color.

IMPORTANT: Set aside the butter to cool slightly.

Sift first 6 dry ingredients together into a bowl. Set aside.

Using a separate mixing bowl (with a paddle), combine the sugars loosely. Pour in the (room temperature) browned butter, and mix together until thoroughly combined, about 5 minutes.

Make sure to add in all components of the browned butter – don’t strain the “burned” bits, that’s where the flavor is!

MAKE SURE THE BUTTER AND SUGAR MIXTURE IS NOT HOT, as it will cook the eggs when added. Add eggs and mix.

Stir in vanilla.

On low speed, add the dry ingredients, a little at a time, and mix until just combined.

Press plastic wrap against dough, or cover with a lid, and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. You can bake the dough right away if you wish, but they are significantly better with time (the texture and flavor). You can also freeze the dough after the 24-36 hours.

Bake the Brown Butter Sugar Cookies

Preheat oven to 350°F/175° C.

Scoop the dough into approximately 2 1/2-ounce balls. I like to use this scooper (INSERT affiliate LINK) to keep the cookies even.

Press them down slightly, and dip the top half of the cookie in sugar.

Place the cookies, evenly spread, on a silicone sheet lined cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown but still soft, 9 minutes. The brown butter sugar cookies should start to turn golden at the bottom.

Remove and place on a cooling rack. Enjoy!

Serve the Brown Butter Sugar Cookies!

If you feel like jazzing up the cookies a bit to impress a crowd further, or if you’re a chocoholic, try dipping part of the cookie in melted chocolate. 

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