Brown butter chocolate chip cookie bars are rich, chewy and nutty. Browned butter adds another layer of flavor to this deliciously sweet classic. They bake up with crisp edges, a soft center and pockets of chocolate in every bite. Perfect for any occasion.
My current favorite, most versatile blond bar is my white chocolate macadamia nut bar. It's an easy blond bar with countless flavor combinations and options. But what it doesn't have is brown butter. Brown butter is melted and cooked butter that adds a deep, nutty flavor that takes your bars to the next level. It just adds another layer of flavor depth to an already amazing bar.
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Ingredients
- Butter, salted or unsalted
- Brown sugar
- White sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Chocolate chips or chunks
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions for browning butter
Step 1: Cut the butter into smaller pieces and melt over medium to medium low heat. As butter starts to melt, stir occasionally to help butter melt evenly.
Step 2: Once melted, the butter will start to foam and the milk solids will separate and sink to the bottom. Stir more frequently once the butter starts to bubble and foam.
Step 3: Continue stirring until the milk solids have browned and give off a nutty scent. It may take 5-8 minutes in total. Remove from the heat and carefully pour the brown butter into the mixing bowl to stop the cooking process. Allow the brown butter to cool before continuing with the recipe.
Variations
- Add-ins - you can substitute your favorite dried fruit or nuts for some (or all) of the chocolate chips on a volume basis. For example, sometimes I'll make these with dried cherries. So, in that case, I'll use 1 cup of chocolate chips and ¾ cup of dried tart cherries. Or nuts. Some nuts, like walnuts, work great because they are softer. But, I've also made these with crunchy nuts like hazelnuts. Really though, almost any nut works well with chocolate, so use what you like and have on hand!
Brown Butter Blondie
Ok, so you might be wondering what the difference is between a brown butter chocolate chip cookie bar and a brown butter blondie? It seems like nowadays, anything that doesn't have cocoa powder or melted chocolate is called a blondie. Does that make it a blondie? Not really. Blondies are a bit more fudgy and don't always have chocolate chips. So, in that case, this recipe is a more of a cookie bar. Yet, other people claim a bar is a blondie when the recipe uses more brown sugar than white sugar. And this recipe definitely uses more brown sugar than white sugar. So this bar might be considered both. Either way, they are yummy and that's the most important part.
Storage
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days or in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
Next Level Tips
- Brown butter adds another layer of depth to almost anything you add it to, so it's perfect for cookies and cookie bars. We add a little extra butter when we use brown butter because once the butter liquifies, some of it does evaporate in the cooking process.
- If you want to control how the top looks, you can always reserve a few of the chocolate chips (try not to eat them all!) or chunks and strategically place them into the batter before baking.
- You can also add a little flaked salt to the finished cookie bars for texture and flavor.
FAQ
Brown butter is regular butter that's been melted and cooked until the milk solids separate and brown. As the brown butter Cookes, the milk solids separate. The milk solids will then sink to the bottom and some of the liquid will evaporate. Once the milk solids are on the bottom, they toast until they turn golden brown. You'll know the brown butter is done when it's golden brown (not dark brown) in color and it gives off a nutty aroma. The smell of nutty, brown butter is unique and unmistakably. It truly smells like warm nuts and also a bit caramel-y. So good!
I almost always prefer salted butter for cooking and baking. Brown butter is probably the one time I would say use either. Both will brown, but unsalted butter browns a little easier. There's a bit less stirring. Is it worth buying unsalted butter specifically to make brown butter? No. But if you have unsalted butter, use it. This time. Just add another ½ teaspoon of salt to the recipe or top with salt flakes.
Chocolate chips or chunks that are 50-60 percent chocolate work best in chocolate chip bars. They soften but don't melt completely. 60 percent chocolate is sometimes labelled as semi-sweet and sometimes labelled as dark chocolate. You don't have to use chocolate chips and chunks from the baking aisle. Check out the candy aisle and sometimes, there are some deals on chocolate bars as well. Just look for the same roughly 50-60 percent chocolate.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Equipment
- 1 Stand or hand mixer optional
Ingredients
- 18 tablespoons butter (2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons) browned
- 1 ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour (300 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 10 ounces chocolate chips or chunks
Instructions
- Brown the butter. Cut the butter into smaller pieces and heat over medium to medium low heat for 5-8 minutes. As the butter starts to melt, stir occasionally so that it melts evenly. After the butter has melted, it will start to foam. Once it starts foaming, the milk solid will separate. Stir more frequently so that you can see the color of the milk solids. Once the solids start to brown, stir even more frequently, almost constantly, until the solids are a golden brown. When the milk solids are a golden brown, it will also give off a nutty aroma. Once the milk solids are golden brown, remove the pan from the heat and carefully add the brown butter to a mixing bowl and allow to cool to room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 325℉. Line a 9x13 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Add the all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt to a small bowl and set aside.
- Once the brown butter has cooled in the mixing bowl, add the brown sugar and white sugar and mix on low to medium until integrated and smooth.
- Add the vanilla and eggs and mix until they are fully incorporated.
- Add half of the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. Scrape down the sides and add the other half of the flour mixture. Mix until incorporated.
- Fold in the chocolate chips with a spatula.
- Add the batter to the baking pan and smooth out with a spatula.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the edges are golden brown. Check at 30 minutes.
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