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Stack of golden brown butter oatmeal cookies with melted chocolate chips on a rustic wooden board in warm light

Chewy Brown Butter Oatmeal Cookies with Crisp Edges

Nutty browned butter and old-fashioned oats combine in a chilled dough that bakes into thick, chewy cookies with golden edges.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 24 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 14 minutes
Servings: 26 cookies
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 209

Ingredients
  

Wet Ingredients
  • 170 g unsalted butter for browning
  • 200 g light brown sugar packed
  • 100 g granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs large; room temperature
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
  • 190 g all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon optional
Mix-ins
  • 270 g old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 200 g semisweet chocolate chips

Method
 

Brown the Butter
  1. Melt the butter in a 2-quart / 1.9 L saucepan over medium heat, swirling often. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes until it turns amber with small brown flecks on the bottom and smells nutty.
  2. Pour the browned butter into a large heatproof bowl and let it cool for 15 minutes before mixing anything into it.
Mix the Dough
  1. Whisk the brown sugar and granulated sugar into the cooled browned butter until glossy and fully combined.
  2. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking well after each, then whisk in the vanilla extract until the mixture lightens in color.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
  4. Fold the dry ingredients into the butter mixture with a spatula just until no dry streaks remain.
  5. Fold in the oats and chocolate chips until they're evenly distributed through the dough.
Chill and Bake
  1. Cover the bowl and chill the dough for at least 30 minutes, up to 24 hours. Browned butter is more liquid than softened butter, so this step keeps the cookies from spreading thin.
  2. Heat the oven to 175 C / 350 F and line a 33 x 46 cm / 13 x 18 inch sheet pan with parchment.
  3. Scoop the dough into 48 g balls (about 2 tablespoons each) and space them 5 cm apart, roughly 12 to 14 per pan. Bake in two batches so the pan isn't crowded.
  4. Bake for 11 to 13 minutes until the edges are deep golden brown and the centers still look slightly underbaked.
  5. Cool the cookies on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.

Notes

  • Brown the butter in a light-colored saucepan so you can actually see the color change.
  • Chill dough 30 minutes minimum, up to 24 hours for deeper flavor.
  • Weigh the butter and flour on a kitchen scale for consistent results batch to batch.
  • Rotate the sheet pan halfway through baking for even color on all sides.