Brown Butter Caramel Chocolate Cookies (Print Version)
Chewy brown butter cookies with salted caramel, pretzels, honey, and melted chocolate chunks.
# List of Ingredients:
→ Cookie Dough
01 - 1 cup (2 sticks / 227 g) unsalted butter
02 - 1 cup packed (200 g) light brown sugar
03 - 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
04 - 1/4 cup (85 g) honey
05 - 2 large eggs, brought to room temperature
06 - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
07 - 2 3/4 cups (345 g) all-purpose flour
08 - 1 teaspoon baking soda
09 - 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
10 - 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
11 - 1 cup (170 g) semisweet chocolate chips
12 - 1/2 cup (90 g) dark chocolate chunks
→ Mix-Ins and Finishing
13 - 1 cup (50 g) mini salted pretzels, roughly chopped
14 - 1/2 cup (120 g) soft caramel candies, chopped
15 - Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
# Step-by-step Instructions:
01 - Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking, swirling the pan frequently, until the butter foams and turns a golden amber color with a fragrant nutty aroma, approximately 4–5 minutes. Immediately transfer to a large mixing bowl and let cool for 10 minutes.
02 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
03 - Whisk the packed brown sugar, granulated sugar, and honey into the cooled brown butter until smooth and well blended. Add the eggs and vanilla extract, then beat vigorously until the mixture is creamy and fully incorporated.
04 - In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and fine sea salt. Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients, folding gently just until no flour streaks remain. Do not overmix.
05 - Gently fold the semisweet chocolate chips, dark chocolate chunks, chopped pretzels, and chopped caramel candies into the dough until evenly distributed.
06 - Scoop approximately 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing each mound about 2 inches apart to allow for spreading. Sprinkle each portion with a pinch of flaky sea salt.
07 - Bake for 11 to 13 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the centers appear just barely set. Allow the cookies to rest on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- Brown butter adds a nutty depth that makes people close their eyes when they take the first bite and ask what is different about these.
- The sweet and salty crunch from pretzels and flaky salt balanced against gooey caramel pockets makes these impossible to eat just one.
02 -
- Watch the butter like a hawk because it goes from perfectly brown to burnt in about thirty seconds, and burnt butter will ruin the entire batch with bitterness.
- Underbaking by one minute gives you that bakery style gooey center that stays soft even after cooling.
- Chopping the caramel candies into uneven pieces creates some bites that are more caramel forward than others, which keeps every cookie surprising.
03 -
- Let the brown butter cool completely before adding eggs because even slightly warm butter will give you weird textured cookies with scrambled egg bits.
- Chilling the dough for 30 minutes before baking deepens the flavor and prevents the cookies from spreading too thin in the oven.