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!
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
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Maureen
Just pulled these out of the oven… My husband couldn’t wait to try them! They’re a huge hit so far! I used a 1 Tbsp scoop and baked about 10 minutes. Made 45 slightly smaller cookies. Perfect for taking to a party. Thanks for another great recipe, Sam!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy they were such a hit for you, Maureen! Thanks for giving our recipe a try 😊
Melissa
The texture of these cookies is perfect!!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you like them, Melissa! Thanks for your review 🙂
Bridgette
Can I use this recipe for roll out cookies?
Sam
Hi Bridgette! Unfortunately this recipe is not ideal for cut-out cookies.
Rachel
Stumbled on these while searching for a Fall cookie recipe and I’m wondering if cinnamon and nutmeg would be a possible add in? If so, do you have any recommendations on how much of each to put in?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Rachel! Absolutely! You could start with 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of each and go from there. It really depends on how much spice you like 🙂