Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Time2 Hours
Yield18 Cookies
Recipe of Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies by William Gerads

Ingredients

  • 1 C unsalted butter
  • 1 C brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 C sugar
  • 2 Tbsp turbinado sugar
  • 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 1/2 C all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp sea salt or kosher salt
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 6 oz high quality semisweet or dark chocolate (chocolate wafers pref.)
  • Finishing salt (fleur de sel)

Steps

  1. In a saucepan on medium heat, add in the 1 cup of butter and melt. As it melts, the butter will start making crackling noises. As the crackling slows, brown specks will start to form on the bottom of the pan. When the brown specks have developed and the aroma of your butter is toasty and nutty, take the pan off the heat. Transfer the butter to a heatproof dish and let cool for 30 minutes.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Transfer the browned butter to a large bowl fitted for a stand mixer with a cookie paddle attachment. Beat in the packed brown sugar, white sugar, and turbinado until smooth. Add the eggs & egg yolk, and vanilla, and combine again until smooth.
  3. Add the flour, salt, and baking soda to the wet ingredients all at once, and mix until just combined (it's okay if you still see a few streaks of flour). Using a spatula, fold in the chocolate last, mixing until just combined and scraping the bottom of the bowl to ensure all of the ingredients have been incorporated.
  4. Scoop cookie dough out with a #16 cookie scoop, or roll into 1/4 cup dough balls by hand, and place onto a baking sheet lined with a nonstick mat or parchment paper. Refrigerate the dough for one hour. When ready to bake, space the balls about 2-3 inches apart (about 6 dough balls per standard half sheet pan). Bake for 10-12 minutes, until very light golden brown in color and still soft in the center. Sprinkle the tops of each cookie with a pinch of finishing salt, and allow to cool for a minimum of 10 minutes before enjoying warm.