Brown butter chocolate chip cookies

Flour: For chewy cookies with crisp edges, use bread flour. If you don’t have bread flour, all-purpose flour works well for this Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.

Baking soda: Helps the cookies spread and promotes browning, creating a chewy interior and crispy exterior.

Salt and Vanilla extract: Both enhance the overall flavor—don’t skip them!

Butter: Use unsalted butter for browning.

Sugar: I use a 50/50 mix of white and brown sugar.

Egg: One large egg, at room temperature, helps bind the ingredients together.

Chocolate chips: I use semi-sweet chocolate chips, but you can also use a chopped chocolate bar or milk chocolate if preferred.

Use bread flour: This flour gives the cookies a dense, chewy texture, perfect for that bakery-style finish.

Don’t burn the butter: Browning butter requires attention. Melt it over medium-low heat in a light-colored pan to see the color change clearly. Stir often, and as soon as you notice a nutty aroma and golden-brown color, remove it from the heat to prevent burning.

Don’t overbake: For a soft, gooey center, remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are set but the centers still look slightly underbaked.

Prep your oven and baking sheets: Preheat the oven to 355F (180C) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Combine the sugars: Place the white and brown sugars in a mixing bowl and set aside. This will be where you’ll mix the brown butter once it’s ready.

Brown the butter: In a light-colored pan (to see the color change), melt the butter over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally, allowing the butter to turn a golden brown and release a nutty aroma. This step may take 5-8 minutes, but keep a close eye on it—brown butter can quickly turn to burnt butter if overheated.

Mix in the sugars: Immediately pour the browned butter over the sugars in your mixing bowl. Whisk until well combined.

Add the egg and vanilla: Add the vanilla extract and egg to the sugar mixture, whisking until everything is emulsified. This will ensure that the ingredients blend well together and the mixture is pale brown in color.

Incorporate dry ingredients: Sift in the bread flour, salt, and baking soda. Gently fold the mixture until just combined—avoid over-mixing, as this can lead to tougher cookies.

Add the chocolate chips: Fold in the semisweet chocolate chips, ensuring they are evenly distributed throughout the dough.

Form and Bake: Scoop out 14 even dough balls and place them on the prepared baking sheets. Bake one batch at a time for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookies have spread and the edges are set. The centers should look slightly underbaked for the perfect chewy texture.

Cool and Enjoy: Remove the cookies from the oven, sprinkle with flaky sea salt if desired, and let them cool on the baking sheet for a couple of minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.

Store completely cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week, or freeze them for up to two months.

The cookie dough can be refrigerated for up to four days. For longer storage, freeze the dough for up to two months and thaw it in the fridge overnight before baking.