Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
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My Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies are big and soft, with lots of chocolate and homemade toffee chips inside. If you're on the hunt for an incredible chocolate chip cookie recipe, this one is top-notch!
This recipe has two parts: a quick batch of toffee chips and a brown butter cookie dough. You mix the dough in one bowl by hand, and there's no need to chill it.
I've baked many chocolate chip cookies, but these are my go-to when I want something a little different. Browned butter adds a nutty, toasty flavor, and the homemade toffee has so much buttery, caramel flavor. You're going to love it!
Here's Why You'll Love This Recipe
- They have a deep flavor. Brown butter gives them a toasty, nutty taste you don't get from regular butter.
- The toffee is homemade, so the chips are crisp and buttery. They're even better than store-bought bits.
- They're chewy, with edges that are set and centers that stay moist. Cornstarch helps keep them tender.
- You only need one bowl for the dough. Just stir everything together by hand. No mixer needed.
- They look like bakery cookies. Use a cookie cutter to shape them, then add toffee and sea salt on top.
- You'll get 12 big cookies, using 3 tablespoons of dough for each.
Ingredients You'll Need
The recipe card at the bottom of the post contains the full list with all of the amounts. Refer to that when you're cooking.
For the toffee chips
- Unsalted butter: The base of the toffee.
- Granulated sugar: Cooks into the caramelized toffee.
- Water: Helps the sugar dissolve evenly at the start.
- Kosher salt: Balances the sweetness. Use a scant amount.
- Vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract: Add this at the end. Paste gives you vanilla flecks, but extract works just as well.
For the cookies
- Unsalted butter: Browned to give the cookies their nutty flavor.
- Light brown sugar: Adds moisture and a caramel taste. Pack it lightly.
- Granulated sugar: Adds sweetness and helps the edges crisp.
- Large egg and large egg yolk: The yolk adds richness and keeps the cookies chewy.
- Vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract: Rounds out the flavor.
- All-purpose flour: The structure of the cookie.
- Cornstarch: Makes the cookies soft and tender.
- Baking soda: Helps the cookies spread and rise. Use a scant ½ teaspoon.
- Kosher salt: Brings out the butter and chocolate.
- Chocolate chips: I prefer bittersweet, but any kind works.
- Flaky sea salt (optional): Sprinkle some on top to highlight the toffee and chocolate.
In Photos: How To Make Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
Step 1: Make the toffee chips
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
In a medium, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, combine the butter, sugar, water, and salt.
Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pot.
Let the mixture come to a boil and start to turn brown.
Keep cooking and stirring until the thermometer reads 300°F.
Take the pot off the heat, stir in the vanilla, and pour the hot toffee onto the prepared pan.
Let the toffee cool and harden, then break it into pieces. (Here's more on how to make toffee.)
Step 2: Brown the butter
Preheat the oven to 375°F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Melt the butter in a large, light-colored skillet over medium-low heat until it bubbles. The light pan helps you see the color change.
Once the bubbling slows, cook the butter gently until it turns toasty brown and smells fragrant. Swirl the pan occasionally so it heats evenly. (See how to brown butter for more detail.)
Step 3: Mix the dough
Pour the brown butter into a large, heat-safe bowl. Stir in the brown sugar and granulated sugar.
Stir in the egg until it's fully combined.
Add the egg yolk.
Add the vanilla and stir until combined.
Stir in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.
Fold in the chocolate chips and about two-thirds of the toffee chips.
Step 4: Bake
Use a trigger scoop to portion 3 tablespoons of dough for each cookie onto the prepared baking sheets. Leave an inch or two between them so they have room to spread.
Bake for 6 to 10 minutes, until the edges are set but the centers are still very moist.
While the cookies are still warm, use a large round cookie cutter or a small bowl to gently shape them into circles.
Top the cookies with the rest of the toffee chips and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt, if you like.
Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheets.
Helpful Tips and Tricks
- Use a light-colored skillet so you can see the butter change from yellow to golden brown and avoid burning it.
- Watch the butter closely. Remove it from the heat when it smells nutty and toasty, and pour it out right away so it doesn't keep cooking.
- Use a candy thermometer and cook the toffee to 300°F for a crisp, snappy texture.
- Pour the toffee onto parchment paper. It hardens quickly and is easy to lift and break.
- Set aside about one-third of the toffee chips to use on top of the cookies.
- Don't overbake the cookies. Take them out when the edges are set, but the centers are still moist. They'll finish setting on the pan.
- Shape the cookies while they're still warm, since the cutter trick only works when they're soft.
- Leave an inch or two between each dough ball so the cookies have room to spread.
- Let the brown butter cool for a few minutes before adding the egg, so the egg doesn't cook in the bowl.
- Use any chocolate you like. Bittersweet balances the toffee, but milk or semisweet chocolate works too.
Recipe FAQ
Homemade toffee is what makes these cookies special, but you can use store-bought toffee bits if you need to. The recipe uses homemade toffee.
Yes, you need one for the toffee. It has to reach 300°F, and a thermometer is the best way to check.
Cornstarch helps make the cookies softer and more tender.
The extra yolk adds richness and makes the cookies chewier.
Brown butter tastes toasty and nutty, a bit like caramel.
A light-colored pan helps you see the milk solids turn golden brown, so you can stop before the butter burns.
You don't need to chill the dough. Just scoop and bake it right away.
Scoop size and spacing are important. Use 3 tablespoons of dough for each cookie and leave an inch or two between them.
While the cookies are still warm, use a large round cutter or a small bowl to gently shape the edges into a circle.
Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
For the Toffee Chips
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon water
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, (scant)
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract
For the Cookies
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg, large
- 1 egg yolk, large
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon baking soda, (scant)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 ounces chocolate chips, (I prefer bittersweet but any kind will work)
- ½ teaspoon flaky sea salt, (optional garnish)
Instructions
To Make the Toffee Chips
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Place the butter, sugar, water, and salt in a medium, heavy bottomed pot over medium heat.
- Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pot.
- Allow the mixture to come to a boil and begin to turn brown.
- Continue to cook, stirring, until the candy thermometer registers 300 degrees F.
- Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the vanilla, then pour the hot mixture onto the prepared pan.
- Allow the toffee to cool and harden, then break into pieces.
To Make the Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Melt the butter in a large, light-colored skillet over medium-low heat until bubbling.
- After the bubbling subsides, gently cook the butter until toasty brown and fragrant, swirling the pan occasionally to promote even heating.
- Pour the brown butter into a large, heat-safe mixing bowl, and stir in the brown sugar and granulated sugar.
- Stir in the egg until fully incorporated.
- Stir in the egg yolk and vanilla until smooth.
- Stir in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and about ⅔ of the toffee chips.
- Use a trigger scoop to measure 3 tablespoons of dough at a time, placing the dough balls on the prepared baking sheets with about an inch or two in between for spreading.
- Bake until set around the edges but still very moist in the centers (approx. 6 to 10 minutes).
- Use a large, round cookie cutter or small bowl to coax the cookies into a more circular shape while still warm.
- Garnish with the remaining toffee chips and sprinkle with sea salt (if desired).
- Cool completely on the baking sheets.
Notes
Author
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