These are the best cookies you will ever make. With crunchy edges and a chewy middle, these Brown Butter Brown Sugar Cookies are the most perfect cookie. Dip the tops in a maple glaze and you will not be disappointed. These brown sugar cookies not only taste great, they also look amazing with their shiny, glazed tops. A perfect treat for your holiday dessert table!
If you want to make a sugar cookie that comes out as a perfectly round, delicious little treat every time, these are it! My first couple recipe tests for these guys did not produce uniform cookies, but with a few tweaks, I think this recipe is now perfect! You could make these cookies and skip the maple glaze, but I'm not sure I would advise that! The glaze adds the perfect touch of maple sweetness, making these brown sugar cookies hard to resist!
I always have my husband and three boys try my recipes before anyone else. These cookies get, by far, they best rating to date. Sometimes, for fun, we rate things on a scale. My husband rated these a 99.5/100 because I didn't glaze the bottoms. The 8-year-olds rated these a 20/10 and proceeded to have an argument about whose cooke was better. The 2-year old rated these "good". I'm pleased with all these marks, but it appears we may need a standard scale for rating, because this was kind of all over the place! I'm not complaining though!
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Ingredients Needed
- Unsalted butter
- Brown sugar
- Egg yolks
- Vanilla
- Flour
- Baking powder
- Cinnamon
- Salt
- Sugar
- Powdered sugar
- Maple syrup-My husband is a bit of a maple syrup connoisseur so we usually have some specialty maple syrup that he has been gifted or picked up somewhere. I am also lucky to have a step-brother who taps and makes his own maple syrup each year with his family. Sometimes we have some of that, but it doesn't last long when we do get a jar! When we don't have those syrups, our go-to is this maple syrup in a large jug so we always have some on hand! You will want to be sure you are using real maple syrup.
- Heavy whipping cream
How to Make Brown Butter Brown Sugar Maple Glazed Cookies
Prepare the Brown Butter
The first thing you will do is brown the butter. To do this, place the butter in a small saucepan and heat on medium heat until melted. Once it is melted, continue to cook on medium heat for 10-15 more minutes, swirling pan occasionally. The butter will begin to get foamy and start to turn a golden brown. If you have a pan with a light colored bottom, it would be best to use that so you can more easily see the color of the butter. Be careful not to burn it! Once it is a beautiful golden color and it smells like a Werther's Original candy, remove it from the heat and set it aside to cool. I like to transfer it to the bowl my mixer to cool, making sure to scrape all the roasty, toasty bits of butter from the saucepan into the bowl. I wait about an hour for the butter to cool completely and start to solidify again before I begin to make the dough.
Prepare the Oven and Pans
You will need to preheat the oven to 350°F. You will also want to line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set these aside until you are ready to use them.
Prepare the Dough
If your brown butter is cooling somewhere besides the bowl of your mixer, add the brown butter (including all the roasty, toasty bits) and brown sugar to the bowl of your mixer and beat on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Next, add the egg yolks and vanilla and mix until they are fully combined, scraping the sides with a rubber spatula as needed.
In a separate medium sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir with a whisk until combined. Then add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix just until combined.
Using a small cookie scoop, place scooped cookie on prepared cookie sheets, about 2 inches apart. (I like to scoop all the dough and then go back and roll all the scooped dough in the sugar.)
Roll each scooped dough portion in sugar and place back on cookie sheet.
Bake in the 350°F oven for 11-13 minutes or until edges just begin to brown. Remove from the oven and let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to cooling rack to cool completely. About 30 minutes.
Prepare the Maple Glaze
In a small bowl, combine the sifted powdered sugar, maple syrup, vanilla and 2 tablespoons of the whipping cream. Using a whisk, stir the ingredients together until fully combined. If it is too thick, add 1 more tablespoon of whipping cream (or more!) until you've reached your desired consistency. You don't want it too thick because then it won't cover as nicely, and if it's too thin, it will run down the sides.
Take each cooled cookie and dip the tops in the glaze. Place the cookies back on the cooling rack until the glaze is set, about two hours.
FAQ
- Do I have to brown the butter? No, you don't, but I highly recommend it! Browned butter smells good, tastes good, and is pretty much the greatest ingredient on the planet. The cookies will be equally delicious though if you choose not to brown the butter, because honestly, butter is good however you choose to consume it! Browning the butter does take a little bit of extra time and involves a bit of planning because you have to let it cool. I do recommend taking the time though, because browned butter is just so good!
- I don't like maple syrup, do I have to glaze the cookies? No. These sugar cookies are delicious without the maple glaze. Go ahead and make a naked cookie, they'll be great!
- Can I freeze these cookies? Sure! I have been known to freeze these both before they are baked and after they are baked and glazed. If you want to have some dough on hand so you can bake a cookie (or two!) whenever you get a hankering, place the dough balls rolled in sugar on a baking sheet and put them in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Once they are good and cold, place them in a zip top bag and into the freezer. When you are ready to bake them, remove from the freezer, put them on a lined baking sheet and bake for 11-13 minutes at 350°. If you want to freeze baked and glazed cookies, I'd also put them on a baking sheet in the freezer for about 30 minutes and then transfer to a zip top bag. Be sure to let them come to room temperature before serving!
Using Leftover Ingredients
If you have leftover heavy whipping cream after making these Brown Butter Brown Sugar Maple Glazed Cookies, use it up with one of these recipes:
Recipe
Brown Butter Brown Sugar Maple Glazed Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies:
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 ¼ cups packed brown sugar
- 3 egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 ¼ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup sugar, for rolling
For the Glaze:
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- 2-3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
For the Cookies:
- In a small saucepan, heat the butter on medium heat until melted. Continue to cook over medium heat until it is golden brown in color and smells like caramel, swirling pan occasionally to avoid burning; about 10 minutes. Watch the butter closely so it doesn't burn. Remove from heat and let cool, about 45 minutes to an hour.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In the bowl of your mixer, combine the cooled browned butter and brown sugar. Mix on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add vanilla and egg yolks and mix until combined, scraping sides of bowl with rubber spatula as needed.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir with a whisk to combine. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix just until combined.
- Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a small cookie scoop, place scooped dough on cookie sheets, about 2 inches apart. Roll each scooped portion of dough in sugar and place back on cookie sheet.
- Bake in 350° oven for 11-13 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to cooling rack to cool completely.
For the Glaze:
- In a medium sized bowl, combine the sifted powdered sugar, maple syrup, 2 tablespoons whipping cream, and vanilla. Stir with a whisk until fully combined. Add the extra tablespoon of whipping cream if it is too thick.
- Dip the top of each cookie in the glaze. Place on cooling rack until fully set.
Allie
Oh my god I ran to the cupboards yesterday and made these and can’t. Stop. Eating. Them. Like, I’m ashamed by how many cookies I’ve consumed while no one else has been home today. It makes 36 and I’ve probably eaten at least half. I’ve been told by my family that I have to make them for Thanksgiving Dinner.
Note: I didn’t have any maple syrup, so I used corn syrup and maple flavoring instead. Not the healthiest option, but it worked! Also, I might cut back on the salt juuuust a smidge. But these are seriously good.
Ashlyn Meredith
Yay! I'm so glad you enjoyed them!!
Chery
Has anyone tried these with maple extract instead of vanilla? Just wondering if it would work.
Ashlyn Meredith
I have not recipe tested it with maple extract. I think it would work okay, but I really haven't used maple extract in much so I'm not sure how strong it is. If you try it, let me know how it is!
Chris
These look great. Can’t wait to try them. Can you tell me if these are shell stable? I see the maple glaze has whipping cream ? Thank you
Ashlyn Meredith
Good question! I've always left mine out on the counter in an airtight container and they have been just fine. From some quick research, I see that the small amount of whipping cream in the glaze is preserved by the sugar, allowing these safe for up to a week at room temperature in an airtight container. I hope that helps!
Alison
We love the flavor of these cookies but I'm wondering if I'm doing something wrong as the dough comes out really crumbly. Is it too much flour? I do a scoop and level with my cup measurement. Any tips? Is that just how it is supposed to be? When I make the balls, the dough does mostly stick together.
Ashlyn Meredith
It sounds like too much flour. I would be sure you are spooning the flour into your measuring cups and leveling with a knife instead of scooping it directly into the measuring cup. When you spoon the flour into the cup, lightly shake the spoon above the measuring cup to allow the flour to lightly fall in. Then level with a knife. Another culprit for the crumbly dough might be over mixing. Once you add in that flour mixture, only mix until you no longer see the dry ingredients. I hope this helps!
Alison
Thank you! I figured as much with the flour but will actually measure it out by the gram next time. I really don't over-mix once I put the flour in but I also might under mix when creaming the butter and sugar - not sure. I also had the thought that when browning butter, since some of the moisture evaporates, does that need to be accounted for? Is it 1 cup of brown butter or 1 cup of butter browned?
Ashlyn Meredith
I was thinking that could definitely be it too. I would brown 1 1/4 cups butter. Measure out 1 cup to use for the recipe and I think that should do the trick. I am realizing I need to have some more standard measurements here. Thanks for bringing this to my attention!
Alison
All good! Thank you for the tips! I'm always looking to improve my baking/cooking and this recipe is a fav in my family! They love the flavors!
TammyLynn
I have always wondered that as well.
Whitney M
These are...beyond incredible.
I brown a lot of butter (too much? no), so I always add a bit more because some will evaporate. So I did 1 cup + 3 tbs. The dough was dreamy! And the glaze was gorgeous and just perfect flavor. I took a few to work, and they were well praised. The smell that came from the oven while they were baking was like nothing else!
I will definitely be making more after I eat all the ones in the freezer!
Ashlyn Meredith
There is definitely no such thing as too much brown butter! I am so glad you (and your coworkers) enjoyed these cookies, Whitney! Thank you!