Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have made a lot of chocolate chip cookies. This is the one. Brown butter for depth, an extra egg yolk for chew, and a rest in the fridge that's genuinely worth the wait.

If you can resist eating them the moment they come out of the oven (you can't), they're even better an hour later when the chocolate has set slightly.

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a light-coloured pan over medium heat. Keep cooking, swirling often, until it smells nutty and the milk solids are deep golden brown, about 5 minutes. Pour into a large bowl and cool for 10 minutes.
2. Whisk the brown and white sugars into the cooled butter, then beat in the egg, extra yolk and vanilla until smooth and glossy.
3. Add the flour, baking soda and salt. Stir just until combined, then fold in the chocolate.
4. Cover the dough and chill for at least 30 minutes, ideally a few hours — the dough hydrates and the flavour deepens.
5. Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and line two trays with baking paper. Scoop generous tablespoons of dough (about 50g each) onto the trays, spaced well apart.
6. Bake for 11–13 minutes until the edges are set and the centres look just slightly underdone. Sprinkle with flaky salt and let them cool on the tray for 10 minutes — they finish setting as they cool.

Cooking tips

• Don't skip cooling the brown butter. Hot butter melts the sugar instead of creaming with it, and you'll get greasy cookies.
• Tap the tray on the counter once after baking for those crinkly, bakery-style ripples.
• Cookie dough freezes brilliantly — portion, freeze, and bake straight from frozen, adding 2 minutes.

More like this

If you enjoyed this recipe, you'll find more of my favourite desserts recipes in the archive, or browse the full collection.