You know we love soft and chewy cookies around here, but these brown sugar cookies might just be the softest and chewiest I’ve shared yet (and we have some tough contenders, including my peanut butter blossoms and chocolate chip cookies)! Made with all brown sugar for a rich flavor and added moisture, these cookies are great all year around but I’ll definitely be saving a spot for them on my Christmas cookie platter.
Recipe includes a brief how-to video at the bottom of the post!
Do you have a soft spot for soft cookies? Or do you prefer them crispy?
If you’re of the crispy persuasion you mayyyy want to skip today’s post and come back later (I do have a thin & crispy recipe coming up next month!), because these Brown Sugar Cookies are one of my softest and chewiest yet.
Today’s recipe is a close cousin to my super soft Molasses Cookies, only with a much, much lighter molasses flavor from the brown sugar. They’re simple to make (no mixer required) and are rolled through a sparkling sugar coating.
Now let’s talk sugar.
Tips for Making Brown Sugar Cookies
Use coarse or regular granulated sugar for rolling
We’re making our Brown Sugar Cookies entirely with brown sugar, but when it comes to rolling them I found that the brown sugar doesn’t really cut it. It sticks to the cookie dough in awkward patches and looks less than stellar after your cookies finish baking.
Instead, grab regular white granulated sugar or a coarse granulated sugar (my grocery store sells an organic cane sugar that has big crystals that I use exclusively for rolling) for pretty, sparkly looking cookies.
What kind of brown sugar is best?
The difference between brown sugar and white sugar is that brown sugar is made with molasses. The difference between light and dark brown sugar is simply that dark brown sugar has approximately twice the molasses in it that light brown sugar does.
Generally I default to using light brown sugar in most of my recipes (in pretty much everything except for my Gingerbread). Using all light brown sugar will yield cookies with a lighter flavor (that’s not a bad thing!). They’ll be buttery with accents of vanilla and a soft interior, but a lighter molasses flavor. Opting for all dark brown sugar will give you a richer flavor and ever-so-slightly softer centers. The choice is really yours.
Personal preference: I like using a 50/50 split of light and dark brown sugar. Honestly, though, you can’t go wrong!
Enjoy!
Other Soft Cookie Recipes You May Enjoy!
Treat yourself to a FREE E-BOOK!
Be sure to check out my Brown Sugar Cookie VIDEO just below the recipe! If you enjoy these videos, please consider subscribing to my YouTube Channel so you can be the first to see all of my cooking videos!
Brown Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled at least 10 minutes or until nearly back to room temperature, about 10 minutes (226g)
- 1 ¾ cup brown sugar* tightly packed (350g)
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk room temperature preferred
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (350g)
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- Granulated sugar for rolling
Instructions
- Combine your melted (and cooled) butter and sugar in a large bowl and stir until well-combined.
- Add egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir well.
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Gradually add dry ingredients to wet and mix until combined.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (if you don't have parchment paper, bake directly on an ungreased cookie sheet).
- Once oven has preheated, remove your chilled cookie dough from the refrigerator and roll dough into approximately 2-Tablespoon-sized scoops. Roll gently to form a ball and roll through granulated sugar until completely coated with sugar.
- Place on prepared cookie sheet (space cookies at least 2" apart).
- Bake on 350F (175C) for 11-12 minutes. The centers of the cookies may still seem slightly underbaked -- allow cookies to cool completely on cookie sheet to finish cooking there, cookies will be too fragile to move while hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Janelle A.
Hi, I’m just about to make these cookies (they look so good!) and I was wondering if it’s neccesary to roll the cookies in the white sugar, since I don’t have any, I also don’t have baking powder or cornstarch. I’ll post an update when I finish!
Sam
Hi Janelle! You can leave the sugar off the outside, but the baking powder is important here. Your cookies probably won’t spread the way they should.
Janelle A.
Thank you Sam! I just did a pantry raid, and turns out I actually do have baking powder. Also, would you say that these cookies are very sweet? I’m looking forward to baking them!
Sam
I would say they are a pretty sweet cookie. 🙂
Cyrie
Hello! For flour do you recommend spooning in?
Sam
Hi Cyrie! You can see how I do it in the video. I add just a little bit at a time shaking it from the flour mixture bowl. 🙂
Kendra Zimmerman
if I use salted butter should I cut out the salt completely or just cut back on it?
Sam
Hi Kendra! Reduce your salt by 1/2 teaspoon. 🙂
Kendra Zimmerman
Ok thank you ! I have them in the oven now. I double the batch and had it in the refrigerator for45 minutes but they are spreading quite a bit so maybe I’ll refrigerate it for a little longer. They look delicious though excited to try them! they probably just need more fridge time for a double batch
Kendra Zimmerman
Ok Sam so it must have been something I did wrong mixing up the batter 🙂 they were all really flat . Very chewy but hard so I shall have to try again:) I made your pecan sandies and thumbprints for Christmas and they were AMAZING!! I use your recipes quite often for your muffins as well:)
Sam
Make sure you let your butter cool enough after melting it so it doesn’t melt your sugars. 🙂
Levatica
I have made these cookies several times now and we LOVE them!!
Are there any alterations if I double or triple the batch??
Sam
You don’t have to make any changes, just make sure to double or triple all of the ingredients. 🙂
Pam
I have NEVER left a review for ANYTHING, but I made these today and they are AMAZING! I made them a little smaller, so I got about 3 dozen from this recipe. I MAY have a dozen left, we all loved them !!! Probably going to have to stock up on dark brown sugar lol!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Pam! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment! 🙂
Connie
I’ve made these many times and the family loves them! We’re going to a ranch next week at higher altitude. What alterations would you make? More flour and add water?
Sam
Hi Connie! Honestly I’m not familiar with any alterations needed for high altitude. I’m glad you enjoy them so much. 🙂
Gen
Can butterscotch chips be added to these without any ingredient variations? If so, would one cup work?
Sam
You can add a cup of butterscotch chips without any alterations being made. 🙂
Nicole Scheiner
I’m a bit confused on the correct measurement of packed brown sugar!
A few websites I’ve used say 1 cup of packed brown sugar is around 198 grams, which would make 1 3/4 cup equal 346.5g. But your weight lists 250g. So how much should I actually be using?
Sam
Sorry about the confusion, Nicole! you are correct, 1 3/4 cup of brown sugar is 350g. I am sorry about the typo!
Nicole Scheiner
Great, thank you so much for clarifying!
Julie Culbertson
Have probably made there 5 times now! Everyone LOVES them.
Sam
I am so glad you have enjoyed them so much, Julie! 🙂
Destiny
Can I use regular sugar ? If so,how much?
Sam
You could use an equal amount of granulated sugar but they’ll be different in taste and color and not quite as chewy.
Sarah
Could you leave out the cornstarch?
Sam
You can but the cookies won’t be as soft and chewy. You will need to add a little bit more flour as well. 🙂
Quel
My daughters new favorite cookie😋 Simple goodness! It helped that the recipe was easy to follow. I’m going to try and make your Nutella cookies next. My son loves Nutella🤗 Thank you for sharing your recipes!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoys the cookies so much! 🙂
Sasha
Delicious!! My family loves them!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed them so much, Sasha! 🙂