Brown Butter Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies
Brown butter sourdough chocolate chip cookies are soft and chewy, with notes of nutty brown butter, hints of caramel, and lots of chocolate chips loaded into each and every bite!
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I love all kinds of cookies but nothing can really compare to the simplicity, familiarity, and deliciousness of chocolate chip cookies. These cookies are soft, chewy, and have just the right amount of sweet. They are perfect for dipping in milk or serving with tea or coffee and make a great simple dessert or special afternoon snack.
These are made extra special by the notes of caramel flavor from browned butter which adds so much flavor to these cookies! Brown butter is made by melting butter (great for me because I am always forgetting to set butter out to thaw) and cooking on your stovetop until it turns lightly brown in color and has a nutty aroma. It is super easy and only takes a few minutes! That lovely taste, along with the flavor and texture from sourdough combined with chocolate chip or chunks make these cookies a recipe you’ll be reaching for over and over again!
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
Absolutely delicious! – the brown butter really sets these apart from normal chocolate chip cookies.
Easy – these cookies are super easy and fun to make!
Sourdough! – this is a great recipe to use up some of your sourdough discard! It is solely for taste and texture and doesn’t have to rise at all so these are wonderful if you are new to sourdough or if your starter is new and isn’t very strong yet.
Ingredients
Flour – I like to use organic all-purpose flour for these cookies. You may substitute half or all whole grain or freshly milled flour but it will affect the taste and texture. It is still delicious though!
Brown sugar – gives that lovely caramel flavor!
Cane sugar – I use organic sugar or coconut sugar.
Butter – salted or unsalted works!
Sourdough starer – either active or discard. You use a whole 1/2 cup for these.
Egg – just one. Farm fresh is best!
Baking soda – makes the cookies soft.
Salt – I like to use pink himalayan salt.
Vanilla extract – use pure vanilla extract if at all possible. It is so much better than imitation vanilla. I it at Costco for a pretty decent price.
Chocolate chips – you may also use chocolate chunks if you prefer! I love to use dark chocolate for these cookies but semi-sweet is also good!
Step-by-step instructions (with pictures!) can be found below, followed by a recipe card with exact measurements.
Tools You May Need
Large mixing bowl or stand mixer
How to Make Brown Butter Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies
Step 1: Brown the butter. In a small saucepan melt the butter (1/2 cup) over medium heat. Once it is melted it will have a creamy top. This will disappear as it continues cooking and the butter will become more of a clear yellow color. Continue cooking over low/medium heat stirring often to prevent burning. You will begin to notice small brown specks that will multiply very quickly. When the butter has a lovely golden brown color all throughout it and smells slightly nutty it is done. Remove it from the heat and set aside to cool slightly.
Step 2: In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the brown sugar (1/2 cup) and cane sugar (1/4 cup). Pour the browned butter over the sugar and whisk to combine.
Step 3: Add the sourdough starter (1/2 cup), egg (1), and vanilla extract (1tsp). Whisk until the egg and starter are completely incorporated into the butter/sugar mixture.
Step 4: In a small bowl combine the flour (1 1/2 cups), baking soda (1 tsp), and salt (1/2 tsp). Stir with a small spoon to combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Using a whisk or large spoon, stir until the flour is completely incorporated and there are no dry spots remaining.
Step 5: Add the chocolate chips or chunks (1 cup). Using a rubber spatula, fold in the chocolate. until it is evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Step 6: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to chill for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. The chilling time gives the butter time to set up a little and the flavors to meld. Also, it help the cookies not to spread so much when baked.
After the cookie dough has chilled:
Step 7: When ready to bake preheat your oven to 325°. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Remove the bowl of cookie dough from the fridge and using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, scoop the cookies onto the pan. I usually can fit about 12 on mine. Make sure they are not too close because they will spread slightly when baked.
Step 8: Place the cookies in the oven and bake for 12-14 minutes until the edges are just slightly browned. You don’t want to over bake or else they will be crunchy instead of soft and chewy. Remove the pan from the oven. Using a small spatula move the cookies to a cooling rack. Serve warm (I love fresh cookies straight from the oven!) or cool completely before serving.
How to Store Brown Butter Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies
Make sure the cookies have come to room temperature before storing. Store in an airtight bag or plastic container with a lid. They will store at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Recipe FAQs
Yes you absolutely can! They freeze very well! Place the cookies in a single layer in a ziplock freezer bag, squeeze out any excess air and seal tightly. Place in the freezer and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
Yes! I love doing this so I have cookies ready to bake at a moments notice. Frozen cookie dough balls are also a much loved treat in our home! To do this, scoop the cookie dough out as you normally would onto a parchment paper lined sheet. The balls can be very close to each other, even touching if you are needing to fit a lot on your pan. Place the pan in the freezer to harden. Once the cookie dough balls have frozen completely (this takes between 2-4 hours) remove the pan from the pan from the freezer and place the frozen cookie dough balls into a plastic ziplock bag. Seal and store in the freezer until ready to use. You can bake directly from frozen, as the recipe says, at 325°, but add on a couple more minutes of baking time.
Frozen butter works wonderfully in this recipe because you will be melting it anyway!
Yes, you can use either active sourdough starter or sourdough discard for this recipe.
More Delicious Recipes from Our Kitchen
If you’ve made these brown butter sourdough chocolate chip cookies I would love if you left a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below 🙂 Thank you for visiting!
Brown Butter Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies
Brown butter sourdough chocolate chip cookies are soft and chewy, with notes of nutty brown butter, hints of caramel, and lots of chocolate chips loaded into each and every bite!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter (salted or unsalted)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup cane sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup sourdough starter (active or discard)
- 1 tsp vanila extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
Instructions
Step 1: Brown the butter. In a small saucepan melt the butter (1/2 cup) over medium heat. Once it is melted it will have a creamy top. This will disappear as it continues cooking and the butter will become more of a clear yellow color. Continue cooking over low/medium heat stirring often to prevent burning. You will begin to notice small brown specks that will multiply very quickly. When the butter has a lovely golden brown color all throughout it and smells slightly nutty it is done. Remove it from the heat and set aside to cool slightly.
Step 2: In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the brown sugar (1/2 cup) and cane sugar (1/4 cup). Pour the browned butter over the sugar and whisk to combine.
Step 3: Add the sourdough starter (1/2 cup), egg (1), and vanilla extract (1 tsp). Whisk until the egg and starter are completely incorporated into the butter/sugar mixture.
Step 4: In a small bowl combine the flour (1 1/2 cups), baking soda (1 tsp), and salt (1/2 tsp). Stir with a small spoon to combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Using a whisk or large spoon, stir until the flour is completely incorporated and there are no dry spots remaining.
Step 5: Add the chocolate chips or chunks (1 cup). Using a rubber spatula, fold in the chocolate. until it is evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Step 6: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to chill for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. The chilling time gives the butter time to set up a little and the flavors to meld. Also, it help the cookies not to spread so much when baked.
After the cookie dough has chilled:
Step 7: When ready to bake preheat your oven to 325°. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Remove the bowl of cookie dough from the fridge and using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, scoop the cookies onto the pan. I usually can fit about 12 on mine. Make sure they are not too close because they will spread slightly when baked.
Step 8: Place the cookies in the oven and bake for 12-14 minutes until the edges are just slightly browned. You don't want to over bake or else they will be crunchy instead of soft and chewy. Remove the pan from the oven. Using a small spatula move the cookies to a cooling rack. Serve warm (I love fresh cookies straight from the oven!) or cool completely before serving.
Notes
- Make sure the cookies have come to room temperature before storing. Store in an airtight bag or plastic container with a lid. They will store at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Frozen butter works wonderfully in this recipe because you will be melting it anyway!
- Place the cookies in a single layer in a ziplock freezer bag, squeeze out any excess air and seal tightly. Place in the freezer and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
- Scoop the cookie dough out as you normally would onto a parchment paper lined sheet. The balls can be very close to each other, even touching if you are needing to fit a lot on your pan. Place the pan in the freezer to harden. Once the cookie dough balls have frozen completely (this takes between 2-4 hours) remove the pan from the pan from the freezer and place the frozen cookie dough balls into a plastic ziplock bag. Seal and store in the freezer until ready to use. You can bake directly from frozen, as the recipe says, at 325°, but add on a couple more minutes of baking time.
To freeze baked cookies:
To freeze cookie dough balls to bake later:
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
18Serving Size:
1 cookieAmount Per Serving: Calories: 253Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 6gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 225mgCarbohydrates: 39gFiber: 2gSugar: 18gProtein: 4g
