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    Home » Cookie » Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

    March 24, 2021 by Catherine Zhang 16 Comments

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

    Who can resist the sweet and salty combination?! This salted brown butter chocolate chip cookie takes the humble chocolate chip cookie to a whole new level. Extra nuttiness from the brown butter and the perfect soft chewy texture.

    Chocolate chip cookies. I don't think I know a single person that doesn't love a good chocolate chip cookie. Chocolate chip cookies are the epitome of baking and the inarguable god of baked goods. That being said, I've had a lot of cookies in my lifetime and not all of them have been the best experience...

    I am a picky cookie eater. They have to be soft and chewy with a crisp exterior. The perfect balance of sweetness with a depth of flavour. And have just the right amount of chocolate to dough. My journey with cookies hasn't been easy, but the final product won't disappoint. These cookies are my go to, the love of my life and the perfect cookie to me ❤️

    These salted brown butter chocolate chip cookies have a depth of flavour from the browned butter, an extra richness and chew from an added egg yolk, balance of flavour through the use of salted butter and the perfect distribution of bitter-sweet chocolate puddles. I hope you love these cookies as much as I love them!

    Soft and chewy salted brown butter cookies with flakey salt

    Tips on browning butter perfectly

    My previous cookie recipe Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies uses as similar brown butter dough base. Head to the recipe for tips on how to brown butter to perfection.

    Why salted butter?

    A lot of you will be familiar with the 'unsalted butter' that pops up in 99% of all baking recipes. This is because the salt content in salted butter can be too much in regular baking. However, in this case the extra salt in the butter adds to the flavour of the cookie, creating the perfect balance. Chocolate chip cookies are made from a sugary dough, and then studded with sweet chocolate, and at times it can be over powering. By adding that extra kick it mellows out the sweetness without compensating things like texture and browning, creating a delicious cookie!

    Soft and chewy salted brown butter cookies with flakey salt

    Chocolate Chunks or Chocolate Chips?

    When it comes to a chocolate chip cookie, they may be called "chocolate chip", but chunks are always the way to go. Chocolate chips are made in a way which allows them to keep their shape when baked. They often contain extra thickeners and oils to help them retain that 'drop' like shape, and as a result are usually made from a lower quality chocolate. Of course this isn't the case with all chocolate chips, but nonetheless baking with chocolate chunks will allow you to achieve those gooey puddles of chocolate in your chocolate chip cookies.

    On top of that you have a choice over the kind of chocolate you use, whether that be your favourite chocolate bar, or a chocolate bar that has been sitting in your pantry for a while. Chop it up into your preferred chunk size and mix it in!

    Soft and chewy salted brown butter cookies with flakey salt

    Achieving the perfect looking cookie

    These days the perfect chocolate chip cookie have a golden crust, distinct cracks and grooves with puddles of chocolate. Not to mention a good sprinkling of flakey salt.

    It isn't hard to achieve those trademark cookie characteristics.

    1. Make sure your dough is chilled before baking, this will help keep your cookies from spreading too thin and allowing you to get a good thickness
      • On that note there have been some comments about cookies not flattening as much. This cookie recipe does tend to bake up nicely, so when you roll the balls flatten them a little before placing them in the oven.
    2. Giving your tray a bang after baking
      • This is a take on Sarah Kieffers from the Vanilla Bean Blog's pan-banging cookies, however not to achieve the same ripples as her famous cookies, but rather a few wrinkles and grooves- this creates a stunning cookie
    3. Giving your cookies a 'scoot'
      • The 'cookie scoot' named by Erin from Cloudy Kitchen uses a technique where she takes a cookie cutter slightly larger than the cookie and wiggles it around the cookie while it is still warm. This pushes in any imperfections and rounds the edges of the cookie giving it the perfect round shape.
    Soft and chewy salted brown butter cookies with flakey salt

    The importance of flakey salt

    These days all cookies are finished with a sprinkling of flakey salt. It not only adds that extra sparkle to the top of your cookie, but it is SO important for flavour. I find that the flakey salt makes the cookie. It rounds off any extra sweetness while adding another dimension to the cookie. Flakey salt may not be a staple in everyones household, but trust me when you try it you won't be able to go back...

    Let's Get Baking

    I know that this is the second cookie recipe in a short period of time, but who can resist a good cookie?! And I thought my blog was in need of a good staple cookie recipe so why not. If you liked this recipe make sure to leave me a comment and rating below. I love getting your feedback and will only work harder to take it all onboard!

    Don't forget to tag me on instagram @catherine.justdessertsau and #cattycakes so I can find and share your recipes. Thank you so much for stopping by again and until next time... happy baking!!

    Print

    Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Soft and chewy salted brown butter cookies with flakey salt
    Print Recipe

    ★★★★★

    5 from 4 reviews

    Who can resist the sweet and salty combination?! This salted brown butter chocolate chip cookie takes the humble chocolate chip cookie to a whole new level. Extra nuttiness from the brown butter and the perfect soft chewy texture.

    • Prep Time: 20 minutes
    • Cook Time: 15 minutes
    • Total Time: 35 minutes
    • Yield: 9 1x

    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 110 g Salted butter (½ cup)
    • 100 g Brown sugar (½ cup)
    • 70 g White sugar (⅓ cup)
    • 200 g Plain flour (1 ⅔ cup)
    • ½ tsp Baking powder
    • ½ tsp Baking soda
    • 1 Large egg
    • 1 Egg yolk
    • 200 g Dark chocolate (3.5oz)
    • Flakey salt

    Instructions

    1. In a small saucepan heat the butter over medium heat until dark golden brown (there should be specks of brown milk solids at the bottom of the pan)
    2. Remove from heat and cool for 5 minutes
    3. In another bowl whisk together the plain flour, baking powder and baking soda
    4. Add white and brown sugars into the cooled brown butter, along with the egg and egg yolk, mix until well combined
    5. Add the dry ingredients into the wet mixture and stir until just combined
    6. Fold in the chopped dark chocolate
    7. Divide the dough into 9 even balls, flatten slightly and place in the freezer to chill for 30 minutes (or fridge for an hour)
    8. Bake at 180C/ 355F for 15 minutes
    9. Remove and cool

    Did you make this recipe?

    Share a photo, tag me @catherine.justdessertsau and hashtag #cattycakes

    I cannot wait to see what you make!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Lisa

      March 24, 2021 at 10:53 pm

      I don’t want to buy salted butter. Do you have a recommendation of how much salt to add instead?

      Reply
      • Catherine

        March 29, 2021 at 5:46 am

        A teaspoon of salt would work!

        Reply
    2. Regina

      April 06, 2021 at 8:55 pm

      Just made these today and they were GREAT!! I used unsalted butter and added the tsp salt in with the dry ingredients. Turned out perfectly. Thanks for the great recipe, Catherine!!

      Reply
      • Catherine

        April 09, 2021 at 11:48 am

        Yay! So glad you liked the recipe Regina 🥰

        Reply
    3. Vanessa

      April 11, 2021 at 8:27 pm

      Best cookie i've ever tried! It just tasty so good and the soft texture is amazing! Loved it!

      Reply
      • Catherine

        April 12, 2021 at 10:07 pm

        Hi Vanessa! Aren't they amazing 😍 I love these cookies and so glad you do too!

        Reply
    4. Uvette

      May 10, 2021 at 5:02 am

      Made these for mother's day and my mom and boyfriend absolutely love them.

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Catherine

        May 10, 2021 at 7:07 am

        Hi Uvette! So glad 😍

        Reply
    5. Michelle

      August 22, 2021 at 11:53 pm

      Um. This is THE BEST RECIPE EVER. I haven’t gone back to the cookie shop because I’d rather put in the work to make these beauties. I have to force myself to give them away or else I’ll eat them all! Thank you thank you thank you for sharing this recipe. Can’t wait to try your other recipes!!!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        August 24, 2021 at 9:21 am

        Hi Michelle! Aww I'm so glad, hope you like my other recipes just as much!

        Reply
    6. Katie

      January 04, 2022 at 11:30 pm

      My son and I just finished making these. Absolutely delicious especially with the sprinkling of salt at the end. Have to play around with our bake time a bit as our oven is an inferno and likes to burn the bottom of everything.

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        February 22, 2022 at 5:36 am

        Hi Katie, So happy you and your son loved these 🙂

        Reply
    7. Yurie

      January 07, 2022 at 8:26 pm

      This is my new favorite brown butter chocolate chip cookie recipe! I used to make the ambitious kitchen recipe, but I found this recipe made more crispy, crumbly/soft cookies which I really enjoyed! Also bc there's no vanilla extract, the brown butter flavor was really able to shine. I used about 1/4 cup of brown sugar and 1/4 cup of white sugar because I like my desserts not too sweet and I ended up using a 1/4 cup less flour because my dough was already too thick. The end result was delicious! I'll definitely make these again.

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        January 16, 2022 at 3:26 am

        Hi Yurie, So glad you loved my recipe ❤️

        Reply
    8. Inés

      April 26, 2022 at 9:07 pm

      I absolutely adored them! They are easy and quick to make, and they turn out delicious. I froze the balls of dough, so I can cook them whenever I want!

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        May 16, 2022 at 1:18 pm

        Love having cookie dough on demand!

        Reply

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    About me!

    Hi, I'm Catherine!

    My name is Catherine, a food blogger and dessert lover. If I look familiar you may have seen me on NETFLIX's Zumbo’s Just Desserts S2!

    As an Australian-Chinese pastry chef and recipe developer I share recipes and tips on desserts inspired by amazing flavours, fresh produce and of course my Asian background.

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