Brown butter makes everything better including these thick and chewy sugar cookies! The nutty brown butter packs these cookies with flavor. Two types of sugar help keep these brown butter cookies chewy and soft with crispy edges. The browned butter is made ahead of time to allow it time to chill and for those nutty flavors to come through in the baked cookie. Brown butter sugar cookies are perfect for any occasion and they freeze really well, too! Yields 24 cookies.
Looking for more brown butter recipes? Try my popular Brown Butter Cookie Company recipe and Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies.
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How to make the perfect sugar cookie
What makes the perfect sugar cookie?
- Soft and chewy texture: to achieve this, we use half all-purpose flour and half cake flour. Cake flour is finer than all-purpose and contains less protein, helping to produce a more delicate texture. Substituting all the flour for cake flour would have resulted in too soft a texture, though.
- Chewy center with crisp edges: we use mostly granulated sugar like a traditional sugar cookie recipe and add a small amount of brown sugar to produce a chewy cookie. Brown sugar has more moisture in it than granulated sugar which helps to produce a chewier cookie. The brown sugar also helps give these cookies a subtle caramely flavor. The molasses in brown sugar is also acidic which reacts with the baking soda to help leaven the cookies. In other words, the cookies are puffier than if only granulated sugar were in the dough.
- Brown butter: The nutty aroma is reason enough to make this recipe. The depth of nutty flavor this magical ingredient adds to these cookies is simply incredible. The brown butter must be chilled at least 4 hours before using in the recipe, so keep that in mind before you begin.
Ingredients needed to make this Brown Butter Sugar Cookie recipe
- Brown butter: browning butter adds the most delicious nuttiness and depth of flavor to this recipe! It takes just a few minutes to prepare, too. Use unsalted butter that has been cut into small pieces for even melting and browning. If using salted butter, cut in half the added salt in the recipe or omit altogether. Because salted butters vary in terms of their salt content, I recommend using unsalted butter and adding your own salt so you can control the level of salt in the recipe. Get all the details on how to make brown butter here.
- All-purpose flour: Use the scoop and level technique to measure your flour. Scoop the flour into the measuring cup then level the top with the back of the spoon or knife. This will assure you get the correct amount and the best texture. Alternatively, it's always a good idea to measure your flour with a kitchen scale. I provide my recipes by default in US customary measurements (cups), however, you can toggle the Metric button in the recipe card below to see the weight measurements (grams, milliliters) for all the ingredients. This method will ensure the proper measurement of flour for your recipe which will enable you to achieve the soft and chewy texture we're after with these sugar cookies
- Cake flour: If you do not have cake flour in your pantry, you can easily whip some up by mixing together all-purpose flour and a little bit of cornstarch for similar results. Measure out 1 cup of all-purpose flour, remove 2 tablespoons of the flour and add in 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Sift the two ingredients together to ensure they are thoroughly combined.
- Baking soda: Be sure to check the expiration date on your baking soda and baking powder before using these ingredients in your baking recipes. Expired leavening agents such as baking soda and baking powder may not allow your baked recipes to rise the way they should.
- Baking powder: same as above
- Salt: Feel free to adjust the amount of salt based on your preference. Note, although it seems counterintuitive, salt is a necessary ingredient in baking recipes. It helps to balance the sweetness without making your recipe taste salty (unless that's the desired effect based on the recipe!)
- Granulated sugar: regular white sugar should be used for this recipe. I would not recommend substituting with a sugar alternative.
- Brown sugar: Adding a small amount of brown sugar to these cookies helps maintain moisture and make them chewy. Dark brown sugar has more molasses in it than does light brown sugar, giving more flavor and depth. If you only have light brown sugar, that will also work, although the flavor may be a touch less caramely.
- Egg: Use a large egg for this recipe. Be sure to remove the egg from the fridge at least 30 minutes prior to baking to ensure it has come to room temperature. Cold eggs will try to stay together when mixing into other ingredients, whereas room temperature eggs will incorporate much more evenly into the other ingredients when mixing. The goal is to have a mixture where all ingredients are evenly combined so the cake bakes up correctly.
- Vanilla extract: I prefer to use real vanilla extract versus imitation vanilla. I think it makes a difference in the flavor of the baked cake. Use the highest quality vanilla you can afford.
Instructions for making chewy brown butter sugar cookies
Step 1
Prepare brown butter by melting pats of butter in a medium saucepan or skillet over medium heat or medium-low heat until foamy, milk solids begin to sink to the bottom, and butter smells nutty.
Pour into heatproof measuring cup making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to capture all those brown butter bits (you should have one cup of brown butter) and chill in the fridge at least 4 hours or overnight.
Get all the details on how to make brown butter here.
Step 2
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside
Step 3
In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose and cake flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Set the flour mixture aside.
Step 4
In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment affixed or using a hand mixer, cream together the chilled brown butter (making sure to scrape out all of those milk solids that likely fell to the bottom of the measuring cup), granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed to medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.
The mixture should smell delightfully nutty!
Step 5
Add in the egg and vanilla and mix until well combined, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed.
Step 6
With the mixer on low, stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients on low speed just until the dough is well combined. Do not over mix.
Step 7
Use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough into 1½ tablespoon sized balls (about the size of a golf ball). Gently roll the cookie dough between your palms into a smooth ball and roll in sugar to coat. Set on prepared cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.
Step 8
Bake the cookies in preheated oven for 11-12 minutes or until they are just starting to turn golden brown on the edges. Do not overbake. You want to bake these cookies just long enough that they're only starting to slightly brown. That's the perfect time to pull them out of the oven.
These sugar cookies may be puffy when you first remove them from the oven. Once they start to cool, they'll deflate a little bit. This is normal.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
FOR ALL MY FAVORITE BAKING TOOLS INCLUDING THOSE USED TO MAKE THIS RECIPE, CHECK OUT MY BAKING RESOURCES PAGE!
How to store classic sugar cookies with brown butter
Store the cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature up to 5 days. Store in the fridge for up to 1 week.
To freeze cookie dough, place cookie dough balls that have been rolled in sugar on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for at least one hour. Transfer frozen cookie dough balls to a freezer safe bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To bake, place frozen cookie dough balls on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake 2-3 minutes longer than called for in the recipe.
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Ingredients
- 1 cup brown butter room temperature (made from 1 cup + 2 tablespoons butter)
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ cups cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar packed
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup granulated sugar for rolling
Instructions
- Prepare brown butter by melting pats of butter in a skillet over medium-low heat until foamy, milk solids begin to sink to the bottom, and butter smells nutty. Pour into heatproof measuring cup (you should have one cup) and chill in the fridge at least 4 hours or overnight.1 cup brown butter
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside
- In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose and cake flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 ¼ cups cake flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the brown butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.1 cup brown butter, 1 cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- Add in the egg and vanilla and mix until well combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.1 large egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- With the mixer on low, stir in the dry ingredients just until the dough is well combined. Do not over mix.
- Scoop dough into 1 ½ tablespoon sized balls. Gently roll between your palms into a smooth ball and roll in sugar to coat. Set on prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart.¼ cup granulated sugar
- Bake the cookies in preheated oven for 11-12 minutes or until they are just starting to turn golden brown on the edges. Do not overbake.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature up to 5 days.
- Store in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- To freeze cookie dough, place cookie dough balls that have been rolled in sugar on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for at least one hour. Transfer frozen cookie dough balls to a freezer safe bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To bake, place frozen cookie dough balls on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake 2-3 minutes longer than called for in the recipe.