“Chocolate chipless cookies? But like, what even is the point?” asked more than one befuddled colleague when I told them I was developing a chocolate chip cookie recipe minus the chocolate chips. “I don’t know, just the perfect distillation of buttery, butterscotch-y cookie essence?” I replied, wild-eyed, deep in the midst of my 11th batch. They’re not chocolate chip cookies and they’re not sugar cookies either—they’re an elusive middle ground, a gravity-defying bridge between two worlds, a crack in the space-time continuum.
Without the chocolate for melty-gooey texture and bittersweet flavor (or any other add-ins), cookie dough has nowhere to hide. Every ingredient has to work hard, hitting its full potential, especially the big three: sugar, butter, and flour. This means dark brown sugar in lieu of light brown or white sugar for maximum molasses notes. Instead of simply being creamed or melted, butter is browned, bringing a host of nutty, toasty overtones. It’s with the flour that things take an unusual turn. How does one make plain all-purpose flour—bland and starchy but essential for structure—more flavorful? By toasting, it turns out. Think about the brown crust on bread, the deepness of a New Orleans gumbo, or the golden bottom of a cookie. All of these are extremely delicious because the flour has experienced a Maillard reaction. Toasting a portion of the flour in butter on the stovetop, before working it into the dough, is a cheaty way of boosting these flavor compounds, saturating the cookies with a toffee-like goodness. Don’t be afraid to take it far; you’re looking for the color of milky coffee—if the mixture begins to smoke, get it off the heat.
Even with all the tricks up its sleeve, these chewy cookies come together in under an hour, no stand mixer needed. But be warned: They are inherently divisive. You’ll either face impassioned disbelief that the chocolate is absent or relieved delight. Presenting them to someone in the former camp? Call them “brown sugar cookies” and move on with your day. But for those of us in the latter camp, here is the ultimate version of a chocolate chipless cookie, with soft buttery centers good enough to make even the chippers of the world turn on their tribe.
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What you’ll need
Whisk
$10 At Amazon
Large Saucepan
$60 At Amazon
Rubber Spatula
$13 At Amazon
Large (#16) Cookie Scoop
$17 At Amazon
Rimmed Baking Sheet
$30 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
40 minutes
Yield
Makes about 1 dozen
Ingredients
2
2¼
¾
¼
14
1¼
1
1
2
Preparation
Step 1
Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°. Whisk 1¾ cups (219 g) all-purpose flour, 2¼ tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt, ¾ tsp. baking soda, and ¼ tsp. baking powder in a small bowl to combine; set dry ingredients aside.
Step 2
Cook 14 Tbsp. (1¾ sticks) unsalted butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, swirling often and scraping bottom of pan with a heatproof rubber spatula, until butter foams, then turns dark brown, 6–8 minutes. Add remaining ¼ cup (31 g) all-purpose flour (butter will foam immediately, but don’t worry; just keep stirring) and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is deep golden brown (the shade of a chai latte), about 2 minutes. Scrape butter mixture, including any browned bits at the bottom of pan, into a medium heatproof mixing bowl.
Step 3
Add 1¼ cups (packed; 250 g) dark brown sugar to butter mixture and whisk until no large lumps remain. Add 1 large egg, 1 large egg yolk, and 2 tsp. vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract and whisk vigorously until sugar is dissolved and mixture is smooth and paler in color, about 1 minute. Using a rubber spatula, add reserved dry ingredients and fold in until no dry spots remain (dough will be thick and maybe even a touch greasy). Cover and let rest at room temperature 10–20 minutes (this ensures thicker cookies).
Step 4
If making medium cookies, using a #16 cookie scoop (about ¼ cup), portion out 12 balls of dough (about 56 g each).
Step 5
If making large cookies, using a #10 cookie scoop (about 6 heaping Tbsp.), portion out 8 balls of dough (about 85 g each).
Step 6
Divide dough balls between 2 parchment-paper-lined baking sheets. Working in 2 batches, bake cookies until firm and golden brown around the edges, 9–11 minutes for medium, 10–12 minutes for large. Let cookies cool on baking sheets.
Do Ahead: Cookies can be baked 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
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