brown sugar cookies
Chewy brown sugar cookies that stay soft for a week! Soft on the inside with golden crisp edges, these brown sugar cookies are made from simple staples you already have in your pantry!
Dark brown sugar and just the right amount of vanilla give these soft cookies the very best chewy texture and rich flavor. These classic cookies are like a cross between a chewy sugar cookie and a blondie! My only warning is be careful: I’ve been perfecting them for years, and now they’ve become impossible to resist.
Since these cookies stay chewy for a week, they’re the ideal baked good for gift-giving. (Make a double batch so you have enough to eat and also give away!) Pair these with some cream cheese coffee cake, chocolate orange shortbread cookies, and banana bread muffins and you have an incredible gift basket on your hands!
Table of contents
Why you will love this recipe:
- Crunchy edges and chewy centers. They spread just enough to have crunchy edges, and the dark brown sugar adds extra moisture so they have incredible chewy centers without being underbaked.
- Simple ingredients, impressive results. You very likely have all these ingredients already ready in your pantry! And that’s a relief because this recipe is such a surefire hit you’ll be making them again and again.
- Perfect for anytime of year. No complicated spice mixes or tell-tale mix-ins, these cookies are a classic all year round.
Professional Tips
- Freeze the cookie dough before baking. To get the fattest, chewiest cookies possible, you really must take the extra step and freeze the dough before baking. I freeze them directly on a baking sheet in a single layer. This is a trick that helps them freeze in under 30 minutes! Make extra and store them in your freezer so you can have freshly baked cookies anytime you want.
- Don’t over cream your butter and sugar. Under-creaming the butter and the sugar will prevent too much air from being trapped in between the particles, thus creating a thicker, chewier cookie. Beat just until a paste forms and use cold but pliable butter for the best texture.
- Rotate your baking sheet. Ovens don’t often have perfectly even heat. Rotating your baking sheet halfway through will help you keep your cookies evenly baking.
Ingredients
- Dark Brown Sugar: What does brown sugar do to cookies? Using dark brown sugar adds sweetness along with a nice, rich molasses flavor. There is more moisture from dark brown sugar than there would be from granulated sugar, which keeps the cookies soft and chewy.
- Unsalted Butter
- Whole Egg: The large egg is here to add fat, moisture and leavening. The fat from the egg yolk adds richness and helps keep the cookies chewy. Beating in the egg just enough will add a little or a lot of leavening. Egg also emulsifies the batter and keeps everything texturally perfect.
- Vanilla Extract
- All-purpose flour: All-purpose flour has just the right amount of gluten to make soft chewy cookies. Too much flour will make cakey cookies, and too little will cause excessive spreading. For example, snickerdoodle cookies have more flour in proportion to the other ingredients than these cookies, which makes them thicker, a little cakier but still chewy.
- Baking Powder: Double acting baking powder will react instantly when it is mixed with an acid and then again when it is heated. I do not use baking soda in order to keep them thick and chewy!
- Kosher Salt
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Are cookies better with dark or light brown sugar?
Dark brown sugar adds a richer, deeper molasses flavor, which is why it’s what I use in my brown sugar cookies and my everything cookies recipe. It also helps make the cookies extra chewy! Light brown sugar is better for a milder flavor, which is why I use it in my stained glass window cookies and skillet cookie. At the end of the day, it comes down to preference. You can always substitute light brown sugar for dark brown sugar if you’re in a bind!
Variations
- Make them maple. Use maple extract instead of vanilla extract for the cozy months. Once you fall in love, make my maple cream cookies or maple donuts next!
- Swirl on some frosting. Try sprinkling on some cinnamon or nutmeg atop a cream cheese frosting, the frosting from my frosted sugar cookies, or even the brown sugar buttercream from these brown butter funfetti cupcakes!
- Add some toasted nuts. Add up to a ½ cup of toasted walnuts or pecans for added texture. Save any extra pecans for a batch of overnight caramel pecan sticky buns!
How to Serve
- Bring on the cookie platters! These brown sugar cookies are so charming, they’d be excellent with a huge selection of other cookies. I’d suggest olive oil chocolate chip cookies for flavor contrast, giant oatmeal raisin cookies for earthy sweetness, and chewy peanut butter cookies to get some nuttiness on the board.
- The perfect base for an ice cream sundae. I’d definitely pair these cookies with some homemade peach ice cream for a simple, lovely flavor profile. They would also be very fun with some scotcheroo ice cream or saffron ice cream!
How to Make Brown Sugar Cookies
Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below!
Step 1: Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside the flour mixture.
Step 2: Cream butter and dark brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer (or electric mixer) on medium speed until a paste forms. Add egg and vanilla extract, and beat well to combine.
Make sure your butter is softened and pliable. This helps you avoid over-creaming your ingredients!
Step 3: Reduce the mixer to low and add dry ingredients in three additions, waiting until almost all the flour has been incorporated before adding the next.
Step 4: Scoop with a large cookie scoop or roll into balls about ¼ cup in size. Chill dough before baking. Bonus points for freezing!
Many bloggers say that “bigger is better” or that “more dough leads to chewier cookies,” and I am here to tell you that with the right recipe this is not true. Smaller cookies can still be quite chewy!
Step 5: Preheat the oven to 325°F convection (with fan) or 350°F conventional (no fan).
Step 6: Place the cookie dough balls 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Bake in a preheated oven for 17-20 minutes (from frozen for a 13 cookie yield) until the edges are a nice golden brown, the centers have puffed and the surface looks matte not shiny. Cool completely. You can cool them on a wire rack or on the baking pan.
These cookies spread a lot when baked, so place them a full 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets. Rotate the trays halfway through baking.
Frequently Asked Questions
The biggest secret to thick, chewy cookies like these is cold yet pliable butter! It should be softened to the point where you can press your finger into it, but it is still cold. Then, once you add your sugars, mix until it is just combined into a paste.
If you mix 1 cup of white sugar with 2-3 tablespoons of molasses, it will be very similar to dark brown sugar. However, keep in mind, it will impact the flavor and texture a bit because it will have a slightly different moisture and richness than store-bought.
I store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 10 days or frozen for up to 3 months. When they are stored in an airtight container, they will lose a bit of the crispness around the edge. You could leave a corner cracked but they will dry out faster.
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below! I love hearing from you and your comments make my day!
Print
brown sugar cookies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Chill: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 17 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 13 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Chewy brown sugar cookies that stay soft for a week! Soft on the inside with golden crisp edges, these brown sugar cookies are made from simple staples you already have in your pantry!
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar (282g)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (113g)
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (250g)
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside the flour mixture.
- Cream butter and dark brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer (or electric mixer) on medium speed until a paste forms. Add egg and vanilla extract, and beat well to combine.
- Reduce the mixer to low and add dry ingredients in three additions, waiting until almost all the flour has been incorporated before adding the next.
- Scoop with a large cookie scoop or roll into balls about ¼ cup in size. Chill dough before baking. Bonus points for freezing!
- Preheat the oven to 325°F convection (with fan) or 350°F conventional (no fan).
- Place the cookie dough balls 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Bake in a preheated oven for 17-20 minutes (from frozen for a 13 cookie yield) until the edges are a nice golden brown, the centers have puffed and the surface looks matte not shiny. Cool completely. You can cool them on a wire rack or on the baking pan.
Notes
Yield – 13 cookies
Variations – Add up to ½ cup of toasted nuts to this recipe.
Technique – The butter should be soft but cool to the touch for the chewiest cookies.
Storage – These brown sugar cookies will keep up to 10 days at room temperature or several months frozen. I prefer to store the dough frozen and bake them fresh.
Before You Go
I hope you enjoyed this professional chef tested recipe. Check out all our cookie recipes!
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Hi there! Glad this post was useful to you! ~gvd team