These chewy brown sugar cookies are as simple as drop-style cookies come (no mixer required!), yet they deliver the kind of deep, caramelized flavor you usually only find in the richest chocolate chip cookies. No chips here, thoughโthis recipe lets brown sugar shine all by itself!
I originally published this recipe in 2013 and have since added new photos and helpful success tips. After gathering feedback from readers over the years, we have also tweaked the recipe to add a little more flour, to keep the cookies from over-spreading.
I love cookies packed with add-insโchocolate chunks, caramel, sprinkles, all of itโbut sometimes you just want something simple, sweet, and chewy. These cookies let brown sugar shine in every soft-baked, molasses-kissed bite.
But donโt call them plain! Theyโre full of warm flavor and have such a delightfully chewy texture that they donโt need any extras.
Unfussy and cozy, these chewy brown sugar cookies are the kind you donโt expect to fall in love withโฆ until one bite makes them the only cookie you want to bake all month. And the best part? Theyโre completely beginner-friendly and perfect for both holiday trays and everyday cravings.
Here’s Why You’ll Love These Cookies:
- Chewy, soft centers + lightly crisp edges
- Simple ingredients you likely already have on hand
- Sweet, buttery, and cozy
- No special equipment or knowledge of how to decorate sugar cookies required here!
One reader, Michelle, commented: “I always considered sugar cookies as the candy corn of the cookie world: a waste of butter and sugar. This recipe changed my mind. These cookies are so delicious all of my dinner guests preferred the sugar cookies over chocolate chip cookies. Let me say that again: people actively chose something that didnโt have chocolate. Sally, youโre truly a magician. Thank you for opening a whole new world of cookies! โ โ โ โ โ “
The Secret Isโฆ Brown Sugar
Using all brown sugar in the cookie dough gives these cookies their signature flavor and texture. Brown sugar doesnโt just sweeten; its molasses content adds moisture and chew that lasts for days. It also encourages more caramelization in the oven, which translates to deeper flavor and those pretty golden edges.
Light or dark brown sugar both work here. Use dark if youโre after an extra deep flavor. If I have both on hand, I use half light and half dark.
If you love brown sugar treats, try my cut-out brown sugar cookies with icing next, or my extra-tender brown sugar shortbread for a crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth variation.
Other Ingredients You Need
The ingredients for these cookies may seem familiar if you’ve ever made my recipe for chewy chocolate chip cookies. I used a few of the same ingredient ratios and recipe techniques in today’s chewy brown sugar cookies.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is best for cookies.
- Baking Soda: This leavener will cause the cookies to puff up while baking, then fall and crinkle a bit as they cool.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch gives the cookies that ultra-soft consistency we all love. Plus, it helps keep the cookies beautifully thick.
- Cinnamon: 1/2 teaspoon adds a subtle kiss of spice. If you love cinnamon-sugar-flavored treats, use 1 whole teaspoon. If you’re a brown sugar cookie purist, leave it out. Baker’s choice!
- Salt: To balance the sweetness of the brown sugar.
- Melted Butter: Melted butter produces the chewiest cookies. It can, however, make your baked cookies greasy, so I made sure there is enough flour to counteract that. And using melted butter is also the reason you donโt need a mixer to make these cookies, just like these M&M cookie bars.
- Brown Sugar: The moisture in brown sugar promises an extra soft and chewy baked cookie. You can use light or dark brown sugar in these cookies, and actually, I usually make them with half light and half dark.
- Egg: To bind the ingredients together.
- Vanilla Extract: Flavor enhancer extraordinaire!
Preparing the cookie dough is easy. Whisk dry ingredients in one bowl and whisk wet ingredients in another; then, combine everything together.
Chilling this cookie dough for at least 3โ4 hours is a non-negotiable. We need to give the melted butter a chance to firm up before baking the cookies. These brown sugar cookies are very buttery and the colder the cookie dough, the less theyโll over-spread. Here are more tips on how to prevent cookies from spreading.
My advice? Make the dough ahead of time. It can chill in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, so whip it up a day or two ahead of when you have time to bake the cookies.
Scoop & Roll These Drop-Style Sugar Cookies
A medium cookie scoop is helpful to portion out the cold dough into 1.5-Tablespoon-size pieces. Roll the cookie dough into balls, then coat them in granulated sugar.
You know a cookie recipe is a winner when its softness isn’t compromised as the days go by. We all love that about this recipe! True “soft-batch” style, just like the cookies you get from a bakery.
Here’s a Storage Tip: To keep them extra soft, try storing them in an airtight container along with a piece of bread. The bread will get stale, but the cookies will stay soft! It’s the same trick you can use to soften up brown sugar that’s gotten hard in the container.
If you love the pure brown sugar flavor of these cookies, be sure to try my brown sugar shortbread cookies next!
We see this question a lot, so we tested it! Yes, you can use brown butter for these cookies, but you need to add extra liquid to the dough to make up for the loss of moisture during the browning process. Add 2 Tablespoons of water or milk to the dough when you mix together the wet ingredients.
These chewy brown sugar cookies are proof that sometimes the simplest recipes can easily become a household favorite.
This recipe is part of my annual cookie countdown called Sally’s Cookie Palooza. It’s the biggest, most delicious event of the year! Browse dozens of cookie recipes over on the Sally’s Cookie Palooza page.
Chewy Brown Sugar Cookies
- Prep Time: 3 hours, 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 20-24 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Bake a batch of chewy brown sugar cookies with plush centers, lightly crisp edges, and cozy brown sugar sweetness. A simple, no-mixer, beginner-friendly cookie recipe. See make-ahead and freezing instructions below.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/3 cups (292g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch*
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamonย (use 1 teaspoon if you love cinnamon)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 1 and 1/4 cups (250g) packed light or dark brown sugar (I like to use half light + half dark)
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the melted butter and brown sugar together until no brown sugar lumps remain. Whisk in the egg and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together with a silicone spatula or large wooden spoon until completely combined. The dough will be very soft, yet thick.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least 3โ4 hours, or up to 3 days. Chilling is mandatory.
- Take the dough out of the refrigerator and allow to slightly soften at room temperature for 15 minutes if it chilled for longer than 4 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 325ยฐF (163ยฐC). Line large baking sheets withย parchment paperย orย silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Pour the granulated sugar into a small bowl. Scoop and roll dough into a ball, about 1.5 Tablespoons (30โ35g) in size, then roll in the sugar. Place 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets (8โ9 cookies per baking sheet).
- Bake for 14โ16 minutes, until the edges of the cookies are set and small cracks are appearing. The cookies will be puffy and still appear very soft in the middle, but they will deflate slightly and continue to set as they cool. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.ย
- ย Cover cooled cookies tightly and store at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature, if desired, before serving. Unbaked cookie dough balls (before rolling in sugar) freeze well for up to 3 months. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, preheat the oven, then roll in granulated sugar. Bake as directed. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Melted Butter: Let the melted butter cool down for about 5โ10 minutes before mixing with the other ingredients. Don’t want to cook that egg with the hot butter!
- Can I Use Browned Butter? We see this question a lot, so we tested it! Yes, you can use brown butter for these cookies, but you need to add extra liquid to the dough to make up for the loss of moisture during the browning process. Add 2 Tablespoons of water or milk to the dough when you mix together the wet ingredients.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch helps promise a softer, thicker cookie. I highly recommend it. I use it in my chocolate chip cookies and shortbread cookies, too. Feel free to leave it out if you don’t have it.
- Update in 2025: Based on reader feedback about over-spreading, we increased the flour from 2 cups (250g). If you’d like to make the previous version, use 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour.ย
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
HI! You used to have on this recipe to open the oven at 9 min, press with the back of a utensil or your fingers, then do 4-5 mins more. What changed? I made them that way at Christmas then just saw this version and got worried ha
See recipe Notes! Update in 2025: Based on reader feedback about over-spreading, we increased the flour from 2 cups (250g). If youโd like to make the previous version, use 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour.
These cookies are amazing. You actually gave me a cookie that everybody in my group liked, which is almost impossible to make happen ever I was wondering because my sonโs girlfriend canโt have gluten can I use the one to one flour and make it a gluten-free cookie?
Hi Dotti, we havenโt tested this recipe with gluten free flours but if you give it a try, we’d love to know how they turn out!
So weird! I baked these on two different cookie sheets. One was silver stainless steel and the other a black non stick both on parchment, both at the same temp, and time. The ones on the non stick were absolutely toasted at 15 minutes and the others were perfect
Hi, Sally. I say this with the greatest of love, and I regret not leaving a five star review beforehand, but these have been my go-to Christmas cookies for the past five years, and there was absolutely no need to modify the recipe or instructions. It was perfect! This year’s batch were fine, but they had a cakier texture, less of a textured top, and overall did not benefit from the changes. With love!