These Bourbon Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft, chewy, and packed with rich, nutty flavor. Made with browned butter, bourbon, maple syrup, and plenty of dark chocolate chips, they're a delicious twist on classic chocolate chip cookies. The edges are lightly golden, the centers stay soft and gooey, and the combination of bourbon and brown butter takes these cookies to the next level.
As a professional recipe developer and cookbook author, I love putting a unique twist on classic recipes. These cookies were actually inspired by making fat-washed bourbon for cocktails with my husband. We discovered that the bourbon-infused brown butter was too good to waste, and it turns out it's even better in chocolate chip cookies!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Rich, nutty flavor: Browning the butter adds a delicious toasted flavor, while bourbon and maple syrup bring a little extra depth to these chocolate chip cookies.
- Soft and gooey centers: These cookies have lightly golden edges, soft centers, and plenty of melty dark chocolate chips in every bite.
- Perfect for making ahead: The dough needs to chill before baking, so it's a great recipe to prepare ahead of time. You can even freeze portions of cookie dough to bake whenever you're craving something sweet!
The Fat Washing Method
If you've never tried fat washing bourbon before, it's a simple technique that infuses bourbon with the rich, nutty flavor of browned butter. You combine the bourbon with melted brown butter, let the flavors infuse, and then freeze the mixture until the butter solidifies. The butter can then be separated from the bourbon, leaving you with two delicious ingredients to use!
We originally started experimenting with fat washing bourbon for my Fig Manhattan cocktail recipe. After making the cocktail, we realized the leftover bourbon-infused butter was way too good to throw away, and that's actually how these cookies came about.
For this recipe, we're using a shortcut inspired by that method. Instead of going through the entire fat washing process, you'll combine the bourbon directly with browned butter.
To make the bourbon brown butter, melt two sticks of unsalted butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently. Continue cooking until the butter turns golden brown and develops a nutty aroma, then immediately remove it from the heat. Once the butter has cooled slightly, carefully stir in 2 ounces of bourbon off the heat and away from any flame. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature before adding it to your cookie dough.
The result is a rich, nutty bourbon brown butter that adds so much flavor to these chocolate chip cookies without the extra steps of traditional fat washing.
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make these bourbon brown butter chocolate chip cookies:
- Unsalted butter: Browning the butter gives these cookies their signature rich, nutty flavor. Use unsalted butter so you can control how much salt goes into the dough.
- Bourbon: Adds warm vanilla, caramel, and oak notes that pair perfectly with brown butter and dark chocolate.
- Brown sugar: Helps keep the cookies soft and chewy while adding a delicious caramel flavor.
- Granulated sugar: Balances the brown sugar and helps create lightly crisp edges.
- Maple syrup: Adds sweetness and a subtle maple flavor that complements the bourbon.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances the flavor of the chocolate and brown butter.
- Egg and egg yolk: The extra egg yolk adds richness and helps create soft, chewy cookies.
- All-purpose flour: Gives the cookies their structure. Make sure to measure the flour correctly so they don't turn out dry.
- Baking soda: Helps the cookies rise and spread as they bake.
- Salt: Balances the sweetness and brings out the flavor of the chocolate.
- Dark chocolate chips: I love using dark chocolate because it balances the sweetness of the dough. You can also use chopped dark chocolate for larger pools of melted chocolate.
Instructions
Step 1: Brown the butter. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently. Continue cooking until the butter turns golden brown and develops a nutty aroma. Remove from the heat immediately to prevent burning. Let the butter cool slightly, then carefully stir in the bourbon. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.
Step 2: Mix the wet ingredients. In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine the cooled bourbon brown butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, maple syrup, vanilla extract, egg, and egg yolk. Mix until smooth and well combined.
Step 3: Add the dry ingredients. Gradually add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt, mixing until just combined. Fold in the dark chocolate chips until evenly distributed throughout the dough.
Step 4: Chill the dough. Scoop the cookie dough into large balls and arrange them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or longer if needed. Chilling helps prevent the cookies from spreading too much in the oven.
Step 5: Bake the cookies. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Bake the cookies for approximately 12 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden and the centers are still soft. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Tina's Tips and Tricks
- Watch the butter closely. Brown butter can go from perfectly golden to burnt very quickly. Stir frequently and remove it from the heat as soon as you see golden brown bits forming at the bottom of the pan and smell a nutty aroma.
- Let the butter cool before mixing. Adding hot butter to the cookie dough can affect the texture and cause the chocolate chips to melt. Make sure the bourbon brown butter has cooled to room temperature before combining it with the other ingredients.
- Don't skip chilling the dough. Refrigerate the dough for at least an hour before baking. This helps the cookies hold their shape and prevents them from spreading too much.
- Measure the flour correctly. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off with a knife. Adding too much flour can make the cookies dry instead of soft and chewy.
- Don't overbake. The cookies should be lightly golden around the edges but still soft in the center when you remove them from the oven. They'll continue to firm up as they cool.
- Use good-quality chocolate. Since chocolate is one of the main flavors in these cookies, I recommend using a good-quality dark chocolate. You can also mix chocolate chips with chopped chocolate for different textures.
Substitutions and Variations
- Without bourbon: You can omit the bourbon for a more traditional brown butter chocolate chip cookie. The cookies will still have plenty of flavor from the browned butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. Keep in mind that removing the bourbon changes the amount of liquid in the dough, so the texture may be slightly different.
- Different chocolate: Swap the dark chocolate chips for semisweet chocolate chips, milk chocolate, or chopped chocolate. A combination of dark and white chocolate would also be delicious.
- Without maple syrup: If you don't like maple syrup, you can replace it with additional granulated sugar, although the cookies may have a slightly different texture.
- Add flaky sea salt: Sprinkle a little flaky sea salt over the cookies right after baking. The salt pairs especially well with the chocolate and caramel notes from the brown butter.
- Add nuts: Mix chopped toasted pecans or walnuts into the dough for extra crunch and a nutty flavor that complements the bourbon.
Storage and Freezing
- Room Temperature: Store baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. Make sure they've cooled completely before storing to prevent excess moisture from building up in the container.
- Freezing Baked Cookies: Let the cookies cool completely, then transfer them to a freezer-safe container or bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
- Freezing Cookie Dough: Scoop the dough into balls and arrange them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Freeze until solid, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container for up to 3 months. You can bake the dough directly from frozen, adding a few extra minutes to the baking time as needed.
- Reheating: For warm, gooey cookies, microwave an individual cookie for about 10 seconds or until just warmed through.
Gooey Bourbon Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup 2 sticks unsalted butter
- 2 ounces bourbon
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups dark chocolate chips or up to 3 cups for extra chocolate
Instructions
- Brown the butter. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, stirring frequently. Continue cooking until the butter turns golden brown, with toasted brown bits at the bottom of the pan and a nutty aroma. Immediately remove from the heat and transfer to a heatproof bowl to prevent burning. Let cool until no longer hot, then slowly stir in the bourbon, away from any open flame. Allow the bourbon brown butter mixture to cool to room temperature.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine the cooled bourbon brown butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, maple syrup, vanilla extract, egg, and egg yolk. Beat until smooth and well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined. Fold in the dark chocolate chips.
- Chill the cookie dough. Scoop the dough into large balls and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or until the dough is firm. You can also refrigerate the dough longer or freeze it to bake later.
- Bake the cookies. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Arrange the chilled cookie dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie. Bake for approximately 12 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden and the centers are still slightly soft. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Did You Make This Recipe?
Leave a comment below or tag us @tasting.with.tina on Instagram!
- Watch the butter closely. Brown butter can go from perfectly golden to burnt very quickly. Stir frequently and remove it from the heat as soon as you see golden brown bits forming at the bottom of the pan and smell a nutty aroma.
- Let the butter cool before mixing. Adding hot butter to the cookie dough can affect the texture and cause the chocolate chips to melt. Make sure the bourbon brown butter has cooled to room temperature before combining it with the other ingredients.
- Don't skip chilling the dough. Refrigerate the dough for at least an hour before baking. This helps the cookies hold their shape and prevents them from spreading too much.
- Measure the flour correctly. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off with a knife. Adding too much flour can make the cookies dry instead of soft and chewy.
- Don't overbake. The cookies should be lightly golden around the edges but still soft in the center when you remove them from the oven. They'll continue to firm up as they cool.
- Use good-quality chocolate. Since chocolate is one of the main flavors in these cookies, I recommend using a good-quality dark chocolate. You can also mix chocolate chips with chopped chocolate for different textures.
Sandee says
Any chance I can use something besides maple syrup? I am the only person around who doesn’t like it. How much can you taste in the cookie? I really want to try this in the morning.
Tasting With Tina says
Absolutely, you could sub white sugar for maple syrup, and they'll still be great! 🙂 You can taste some of the maple syrup, so if you don't like it, definitely replace it with white sugar.
Emily says
These are great “grown up” chocolate chip cookies! Easy to make with a complex flavor!
Christina Musgrave says
Thank you so much, so happy you enjoyed them! We love them!
Emily says
I made these again yesterday, and added a bar of white chocolate instead of just dark chocolate! It was a great twist on a traditional chocolate chip cookie!
Christina Musgrave says
Omg what a good idea! I bet they were amazing!
Elizabeth says
Is there a substitute or a way to make kids friendly without the bourbon?
Christina Musgrave says
The alcohol in the bourbon will cook off as it cooks with the butter and then will definitely cook off when baking - but you can easily just omit it! Or, use an alcohol free bourbon if you're more comfortable with that. 🙂
Sarah says
When you say two shots, does that mean two shot glasses?
I’m asking because there are a couple different meanings to two shots when it comes to alcohol. It could be two shot glasses or two shots in a mixed drink which is not exactly a shot but more of a quick pour from the bottle twice. :0/
Christina Musgrave says
2 shots = 2 standard oz of alcohol!
Virginia says
Made these today and they are delicious. Brown butter and bourbon are a winning combo.
Christina Musgrave says
They are one of our favorites!
Christina Vasquez-Castillo says
I'm going to make these for thanksgiving. Do you have a preference of bourbon? I think I only have Jameson, not sure if that would affect the flavor?
Christina Musgrave says
Jameson will be just fine!