Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Possibly the most flavorful chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever tasted. The combination of the nutty brown butter, the rich sweetness of the dark brown sugar, and the caramel-y toffee is INSANELY good.
Texture: These cookies are big, thick, chewy, ooey, and gooey. Seriously perfect.
Ease: More involved than your standard chocolate chip cookie recipe. There’s the browning of the butter and letting the dough chill for at least 24 hours.
Pros: Fantastic chocolate chip cookies that your family and friends will adore.
Cons: A little extra work involved, but I promise it’s completely worthwhile.
Would I make this again? Oh yes. I always keep a steady supply of these cookies in my freezer!
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These Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies are about to be the BEST cookies you’ve ever tried.
This Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe has gone completely viral. It’s been featured on Good Morning America, and TikTok videos of people making this recipe have gotten millions of views.
I originally published this recipe in 2014 but just had to update it with recipe improvements and new photos. These cookies deserved it!
What Makes Cookies Chewy, Crisp, or Cakey?
My free guide reveals the ingredients and tweaks that matter.
In fact, my recipe photographer Ashley, who shot all 50 recipes in my cookie cookbook, said this may just be my BEST COOKIE RECIPE yet. People have been known to fight over these cookies. Yes, they’re that good.
This Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe is kind of a mouthful to say. But when you actually have a mouthful of one of these cookies, I think you’re going to love me.
These are one of the most flavorful chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever tasted, and the texture is absolutely perfect. You NEED to try this recipe. If your friends and family are anything like mine, they plead and beg you to make it again and again.
Yes, this recipe is a little extra work. But the best things in life usually are.
You may even want to make a double batch so you have plenty of dough to freeze when the craving hits. Trust me… it WILL hit!
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
How to Brown Butter:
- Use a stainless steel sauté pan for best results.
- Nonstick prevents the butter from browning completely and prevents you from being able to visually see how browned it’s getting. Same with the dark color of cast iron.
- Something with a wider surface area, like a sauté pan over a saucepan, encourages browning more quickly.
- Don’t step away from butter that’s browning after it’s melted. It can go from browned to burnt quickly.
- At the same time, don’t be afraid of letting that color develop. It should become a rich and fragrant amber.
- Scrape all the brown bits into the mixing bowl – that’s where the flavor lives!
- I highly recommend using unsalted butter – learn why here.
- Learn all my tips and tricks for browning butter in my How to Brown Butter article here.
Do I Really Need to Use Bread Flour?
You don’t absolutely have to use bread flour, but it adds a ton of chewy texture to these Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies that’s worth the extra trip to the store. If you don’t have bread flour, then use a total of 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour in the recipe. Make sure to weigh your flour accurately. If you add too much flour, your cookies may end up dry, dense, or crumbly cookies that barely spread.
Granulated Sugar + Dark Brown Sugar
- To make these Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies extra delicious, we’re using a combination of granulated white sugar and dark brown sugar.
- This combination brings sweetness, a fantastic texture, and a butterscotch flavor that’s so rich and delicious.
- The extra molasses in the dark brown sugar draws in more moisture, making the cookies thicker, softer, and chewier.
- You can use light brown sugar instead, but you may lose some of the additional flavor.
- Whatever you do, don’t lower the sugar in this recipe. Sugar does SO much more than simply sweetening your baked goods. Learn more about sugar’s role in baking here.
Eggs + an Extra Yolk
Eggs are essential to forming a beautifully pliable dough and cookies that stay soft for days – and we’re adding an extra yolk for extra richness and added chewiness. Eggs should be at room temperature when beginning your dough, but separate the one yolk from its white while cold for best results (yolks are more fragile and tend to break more easily when warmer).
Why is There Espresso Powder in This Cookie Recipe?
I really like the way the bitter espresso plays off the sweetness of the toffee and the nuttiness of the browned butter. It’s totally optional, so if you don’t have it or don’t want to use it, feel free to simply omit it.
What Kind of Chocolate for Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies?
I like to use semi-sweet Ghirardelli baking bars and chop them up coarsely for these Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies. Feel free to use chocolate chips, but note that you won’t have the same delicious marbled result you get from chopping your own chocolate.
Where to Find Toffee Bits?
You can find Heath brand toffee chips at many grocery stores, typically located with chocolate chips in the baking aisle. If you can’t find them, I have a super easy recipe to DIY Homemade Toffee Bits which I used for these cookies here. It takes just 15 minutes and they taste SO much better than store-bought!
Do I Really Have to Chill the Cookie Dough?
I know, it’s annoying, but I promise you it’s SO worth it, especially for this recipe which uses melted browned butter. Both the taste and texture of the cookie improve during this time. Think of it as a marinating time where everything just gets better and better!! Freezing does not work the same as chilling, so there are no shortcuts here. Learn more about chilling cookie dough in this article here.
Can I Make Smaller Cookies?
Yes, though I much prefer the crisp edges, chewy texture, and soft center 3-tablespoon-sized Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies. If you want to bake smaller cookies, scoop into 1 1/2 tablespoon-sized balls and bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
Portioning the Cookie Dough Before vs. After Chilling
- I recommend following the directions in the recipe for chilling the dough in one big mass, and then portioning the dough, because it prevents the dough from drying out while chilling.
- However, if you’re finding it too challenging to scoop the Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie dough at this point, feel free to scoop before chilling.
- There’s a bit more risk that your dough will dry out in the fridge this way, so just to be safe, store the cookie dough balls in an airtight container or good quality ziptop bag, to prevent them from drying out.
- Then simply bake the pre-portioned Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies straight from the fridge after the 24-72 hour chill time!
Can I Freeze This Cookie Dough?
Yes! Freeze the portioned Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie dough balls after letting the dough marinate in the fridge for at least 24 hours. Place dough balls on a baking sheet and freeze until solid. Remove frozen balls of dough to an airtight container and store for up to 6 weeks. Click here for my full guide on how to freeze and bake frozen dough.
Tessa’s Favorite Tools for This Recipe:
- Large 3-tablespoon size cookie scoop for that bakery-style texture
- Or use a medium 1.5-tablespoon size cookie scoop and bake only for about 10-12 minutes instead
- Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Baker’s Half Sheet won our side-by-side comparison of the best baking pans
- 12″x16″ non-stick parchment paper for the best bake and easiest cleanup!
- The Ultimate Cookie Handbook: Your Guide to Baking Perfect Cookies Every Time by Tessa Arias (me!)
More Recipes You’ll Love:
- Toffee Brownies
- Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Brown Butter Dulce de Leche Cookie Cups
- Peanut Butter Toffee Chocolate Chunk Bars
- Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Visit my full Cookie Recipes index for more recipes, tips, and insights into the science of cookie baking!
Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
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Ingredients
- 2 sticks (227 grams) unsalted butter
- 1/2 (100 grams) cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup (200 grams) lightly packed dark brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (127 grams) bread flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder, optional
- 2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 10 ounces (283 grams) semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 cup
homemade toffee bits , or Heath brand - Flaky sea salt, for finishing
Instructions
- In a medium stainless steel sauté pan set over medium heat, melt the butter. Swirling the pan occasionally, continue to cook the butter. It should become foamy with audible cracking and popping noises. Once the crackling becomes quieter, continue to swirl the pan or stir until the butter develops a nutty aroma and brown bits start to form at the bottom. Once the bits are amber in color, remove from heat and pour into a mixing bowl. Be sure to keep the brown bits at the bottom of the pan as well, they hold so much flavor!
- Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar to the hot butter, stirring to combine. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder.
- To the cooled butter mixture, whisk in the eggs, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Gradually stir in the flour mixture with a rubber spatula. Stir in the chocolate chunks and toffee bits. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours but no more than 72 hours.
- Let dough sit at room temperature just until it is soft enough to scoop, about 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Divide the dough into 3-tablespoon sized balls using a large cookie scoop and drop onto prepared baking sheets. Dough may be slightly challenging to scoop.
- At this point, you can portion the dough, place it on a baking sheet, and freeze just until solid. Remove frozen balls of dough to an airtight container and store for up to 6 weeks.
- Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and sprinkle flaky sea salt on top of the cookies, if desired. Let cookies cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
The Ultimate Cookie Handbook
Learn the sweet SCIENCE of cookie baking in a fun, visual way to customize your own recipes frustration-free. Plus, my best 50+ homemade cookies!
This post was originally published in 2014 and updated with recipe improvements, more tips, and new photos. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Pinned your recipe months ago and have just tried it. Great results! Just wanted to mention I only used the recipe after stumbling on packages of Nestle Espresso Morsels at the grocery store! Bought several packages! Who’d a guessed, right? Thanks for sharing your recipe. Much appreciated.
So happy you enjoyed these cookies! And I may have bought a package of those espresso morsels too, yum! Thanks for the comment 🙂
OMG-these sound AMAZING…and given someone just gifted me three 5.5lb bags of Callebaut dark chocolate calets (yes-a total 10 16.5 lbs that she accidentally ordered and didn’t feel like returning♀️) I MUST MAKE THEM! Quick question…I see that you call for “marinating them” and then scooping them….and include directions that allow for freezing the dough balls after those steps…is there any reason one can’t scoop them first and then marinate them? Would be easier to scoop in my mind and no need to then leave on counter and risk it being too warm. Thanks so much! Can’t wait to try them!
Hi Sheila! WOW, what an amazing gift!! You are going to LOVE these cookies, I can’t wait for you to try them! Check out more details about the importance of marinating your dough in a mass ball rather than scooping before marinating here: https://handletheheat.com/the-1-reason-why-you-should-chill-your-cookie-dough/. Let us know what you think of this recipe!
I made the dough on Sunday and couldn’t help myself and baked 6 “test” cookies. They were fantastic! Stuck the rest of that batch along with a second batch of dough in the fridge until Tuesday. I mean,, seriously, the flavor development by letting it sit and get happy…don’t be tempted to skip this step. Or the flaky finishing salt. Wonderful recipe, absolutely delicious!
Hooray!! So glad you enjoyed this recipe, Dawn! You’re not the only one who has to bake up a few right away haha, it’s too tempting to eat the dough straight from the fridge otherwise! Thanks for the rave review 🙂
Haha I did that last night too.
Thanks so much! That was an interested group link….think I willl do a bit of testing when I try these…scoop off just a few and chill and chill the rest as big ball…that way I can see if I taste enough difference to make it worth the more difficult scooping :-). I will try and remember to report back! Thanks again for your quick reply-much appreciated!
No problem, happy to help 🙂
I’ve been looking for a toffee chocolate chip cookie recipe and I can stop looking!! The recipe is fantastic!
Hooray!! So happy you love this recipe!
Hi! These are amazing, even without dark brown sugar which is not available where I live, so I can only imagine they are even better with! Can I add some molasses together with granulated sugar or is it important to make the brown sugar first and then use it? Thanks!
Hi Milena! So glad you enjoyed this recipe 🙂 We haven’t tried substituting with molasses/granulated sugar before, so I can’t say for sure how they’d turn out! If you give it a try, please let us know how it goes!
So, so, so delicious. Crisp but tender, kept their shape (although I did some cookie scooting while they were hot to achieve maximum uniformity, and not too sweet. I put the dough balls on top of the Maldon salt sprinkle – highly recommend that alteration.
Great idea! So happy you loved this recipe, Marji! Thanks for sharing 🙂
I am so looking forward to making these! I’ve had my eye on them ever since I discovered HTH and every time I see them my mouth waters!!! Unfortunately, I’ve had to wait a few weeks now because our country (New Zealand) is out of brown sugar for possible lead traces so it’s all been recalled! Oh well, guess I’ll have to wait it out! Might have to make some of your other cookies in the meantime!!
Abby xx
Oh, my heart hurts for you! Hopefully there will be brown sugar in time for the holidays! I can’t wait for you to enjoy these cookies (especially with the homemade toffee!), they’re an absolute favorite of mine 🙂
Thanks! Still waiting for the brown sugar and still staring at the pictures drooling!
If you are using all-purpose flour, do you need 1 1/2 or 2 1/2 cups. This is confusing.
Hi Ginny! The only time you’d use 2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour is if you don’t have bread flour on hand, just keep in mind that will affect the texture of these cookies. As stated in the recipe, you need 1 1/2 cups (190 grams) of all-purpose flour and 1 cup (127 grams) of bread flour. I hope that helps! Can’t wait for you to enjoy these cookies!
These are easily the best cookies I’ve ever had, absolutely amazing!! I’m curious if we’re supposed to scrape the browned butter that’s stuck to the bottom of the pan or do we only use what we can pour out? Also, if we froze some of the batter, do we need to let it defrost at all before baking? Thanks!
Just saw your additional question on this comment! Check out the pink tip box above the recipe for more details regarding baking frozen dough 🙂
I really wanted to love these but somehow, even after following directions exactly they were super flat and did not hold their shape at all. I am not new to baking so I was surprised. I might try them again.
Hi Trina! I’m sorry to hear your cookies didn’t turn out right! Do you use a digital scale to measure your ingredients? It sounds like something may have been off if the cookie aren’t holding their shape. Flat cookies tend to happen when butter is too warm. You want to make sure that the browned butter/sugar mixture is cooled completely to room temperature before adding to the recipe. Even though the cookie dough is chilled before baking, the temperature of the butter in the beginning is crucial to the outcome of the cookies. Check out our article on How to Bake THICK Cookies, hopefully that will help solve what happened. We definitely hope you try these again, please let us know how it goes!
These are absolutely amazing! Hands down one of the best cookies I’ve ever had. Quick question tho, are we supposed to just pour out the browned butter or scrape up all the browned pieces of butter at the bottom of the sauce pan as well?
Hi Drew! You definitely want to keep all the brown bits at the bottom of the pan as they hold the majority of the browned butter flavor. I just updated the recipe to be a bit more specific in that section, thanks for the feedback!
Thanks for the recipe! How far apart do you space the cookies on the tray?
We typically leave at least 2 inches between each ball of dough. When using a half-sheet pan, we make a total of 8 cookies, three in one row, two in the next, then three again. Hope that helps!