With big flavor, crisp edges, and mega chewy centers, these maple brown sugar cookies are a definite favorite. Top with maple icing for the ultimate fall cookie! Chilling the cookie dough is imperative, so set aside 2 hours or prepare the cookie dough the day before.
We’re approaching a new season, so a new cookie recipe is in order. 🙂
I may say this a lot, but nothing has been truer than in this very moment… (dramatic? who me?) … these maple brown sugar cookies are the best cookies I’ve ever made. And that statement holds big weight considering I authored an entire cookbook of JUST cookies.
Maple brown sugar cookies > every other cookie.
I know a good one when I bite it!
These Maple Brown Sugar Cookies Are:
- Not cakey
- Brown sugared and buttery
- Unbelievably chewy and soft in the center
- Crisp on the edges
- Filled with pure maple syrup
- Topped with luscious maple icing
The maple icing sets, so these are perfect for stacking and transporting. Because, trust me, you’ll want to bring these everywhere you go. Football game? Bring them. Party? Bring them. Bake sale? Sell them. No occasion at all? Make them.
Video Tutorial
10 Ingredients in Maple Brown Sugar Cookies
We use most of these in maple pecan snickerdoodles, too!
- All-Purpose Flour: All-purpose flour is the structure of the cookie. I played around with different amounts. 2 and 1/4 cups wasn’t enough and 2 and 1/2 cups was too much. 2 and 1/3 cups was the perfect amount to hold up to the liquid maple syrup.
- Baking Soda: Baking soda provides lift.
- Salt: Salt balances the flavor.
- Butter: 1 stick (1/2 cup) is plenty for the maple cookies and be sure you use room temperature butter. It should be cool to touch and not melted in the slightest.
- Dark Brown Sugar: Ditch basic white sugar. For optimal flavor and texture, reach for brown sugar instead. I recommend dark brown sugar for extra flavor, but light brown sugar works too.
- Egg: 1 egg provides structure, stability, and richness.
- Pure Maple Syrup: We can’t make maple cookies without pure maple syrup. Avoid “breakfast syrup” which doesn’t have the same robust maple flavor that pure syrup contains. I played around with different amounts and 1/3 cup is plenty. And, as a bonus, the pure syrup helps create slightly crisp edges.
- Vanilla Extract: Adds flavor. Have you tried homemade vanilla extract yet?
- Maple Extract: Pure maple syrup isn’t enough to guarantee mega maple flavor. Without the crutch of maple extract, the cookies were lacking. Pure maple extract is difficult to find, so reach for imitation. I prefer McCormick brand because the flavor doesn’t taste fake.
- Pecans: Nuts are an optional ingredient, but they add awesome (and complementary!) flavor and texture. If you love these maple pecan snickerdoodles, you’ll also love pecans here.
Which Pure Maple Syrup is Best?
Grade A is good, but Grade B is darker and more flavorful because it’s produced later in the season. Honestly, you can’t go wrong with either here!
How to Make Brown Sugar Maple Cookies
Minimal effort, mega results. ♥
- Whisk the dry ingredients together.
- Cream the butter and brown sugar together.
- Beat in the egg, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and maple extract.
- Mix dry and wet ingredients together.
- Add the pecans.
- Chill the cookie dough. This cookie dough contains an additional liquid (maple syrup), so chilling the dough is crucial. Set aside 2 hours to chill this cookie dough. Without chilling, the cookies will spread into a greasy puddle.
- Roll cookie dough into balls. Each dough ball is about 1.5 Tablespoons.
- Bake until the edges are set. Cookies are done in about 13 minutes.
Then we’ll obviously drizzle maple icing all over the tops!
That Irresistible Maple Icing!!
You only need 3 ingredients for this super easy maple icing: butter, maple syrup, and confectioners’ sugar. To avoid any lumps, sift the confectioners’ sugar. If desired, a pinch of salt adds exceptional depth of flavor. The wonderful thing about this maple icing is that it eventually sets, so these cookies aren’t sticky or difficult to store.
You have my full support to use this maple icing for anything and everything. Some ideas: banana scones and pumpkin scones, obviously.
By the way! Today’s cookies differ from the Soft Glaze Maple Cookies in Sally’s Cookie Addiction. Those are ultra cakey (think pancakes!) with moderate maple flavor. These are more similar to chewy chocolate chip cookies in terms of texture.
Loving These Cookies Too
- Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies
- Butter Pecan Cookies
- Snickerdoodles (no cookie dough chilling!)
- Oatmeal Scotchies
- Caramel Apple Spice Thumbprints
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Pecan Sugar Cookies
Maple Brown Sugar Cookies
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 28-30 cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
With big flavor, crisp edges, mega chewy centers, and maple icing, these maple brown sugar cookies are a definite favorite. Chilling the cookie dough is imperative, so set aside 2 hours or prepare the cookie dough the day before.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/3 cups (291g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) packed dark brown sugar*
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (80ml) pure maple syrup*
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon maple extract*
- 1 cup (130g) chopped pecans*
Maple Icing
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup (80ml) pure maple syrup
- 1 cup (112g) sifted confectioners’ sugar*
- pinch salt, to taste
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar together on medium speed until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Add the egg and beat on high until combined, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the maple syrup, vanilla extract, and maple extract, then beat on high speed until combined.
- Pour the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, then mix on low until combined. Add the pecans, then beat on low speed until combined. Dough will be creamy and soft.
- Cover and chill the dough for 2 hours in the refrigerator (and up to 3 days). If chilling for longer than a few hours, though, allow to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling and baking because the dough will be quite hard.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. (Always recommended for cookies.) Set aside.
- Roll cookie dough into balls, about 1.5 Tablespoons of dough per cookie. This cookie scoop is helpful. Bake each batch for 12-13 minutes until lightly browned on the sides. The centers will look very soft.
- Remove from the oven. If your warm cookies look puffy, lightly bang the pan on the counter when you remove it from the oven. That will help slightly deflate the cookies, creating lovely cracks as you see in the pictured cookies. Cool cookies on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the icing: In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and maple syrup together, whisking occasionally. Once the butter has melted, remove from heat and whisk in the sifted confectioners’ sugar. Taste. Add a pinch of salt, if desired. Drizzle over cooled cookies. Icing will set after about 1 hour.
- Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Allow to come to room temperature then continue with step 5. Baked cookies, with or without icing, freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Medium Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack | Small Saucepan
- Brown Sugar: I recommend dark brown sugar for a deeper flavor, but you can use 1 cup (200g) light brown sugar instead if needed.
- Maple Syrup: Avoid “breakfast syrup” which doesn’t have the same robust maple flavor that pure syrup contains. Grade A is good, but Grade B is darker and more flavorful because it’s produced later in the season. You can’t go wrong with either in these cookies.
- Maple Extract: Pure maple syrup isn’t enough to guarantee mega maple flavor. Without the crutch of maple extract, the cookies were lacking. I use McCormick maple extract. You can find it in the baking aisle.
- Pecans: The pecans are optional, but add wonderful flavor and texture. I recommend unsalted, un-roasted pecans but feel free to use salted roasted pecans. Or feel free to leave them out or replace with chopped walnuts.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: To avoid any lumps, sift the confectioners’ sugar.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Keywords: maple brown sugar cookies
Sally, that post was super helpful!!! I definitely measured my flour wrong, even when it clearly said “spoon & level”. The cookies were still delicious. I’ll nail it next time. Thank you
Taste is delicious!!!!! My cookies didn’t flatten out, they were a bit cakey….. what did I do wrong
Hi Teri! Careful not to over-bake the cookies. How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
These look like they are right up the hubby’s alley however I do not have and having a hard time finding maple extract. Can I make a substitution?
Hi Lori, you can leave it out if needed. The flavor will be more subtle.
My boys’ new favorite cookies! Thx for the recipe
★★★★★
These cookies are some of the best I’ve ever made! The only problem I had was that the cookies weren’t flattening in the oven, so I had to take them out halfway through baking and flatten with a spoon, but they still turned out delicious!
★★★★★
Hi Sally,
Would it work to substitute half whole wheat flour in this recipe?
Also, Thank you for all your wonderful recipes ! I bake A LOT and you are my “go to” for recipes (:
Hi Janet! Whole wheat would change the texture of these cookies, drying them out. We recommend sticking with all purpose flour for these cookies!
I love this recipe! The cookies always come out with that perfect chew, and it’s hard to get enough of the icing. Thank you, Sally!
★★★★★
Great cookie and one I will make again. I toasted the pecans for extra flavor.
★★★★★
Everyone at Thanksgiving loved these cookies! I’ll definitely be making them a holiday staple
★★★★★
I want to make these for a cookie exchange. Any recommendations on making them look more festive?
Hi Shana, You could sprinkle some red or green sanding sprinkles on the icing when it’s wet (the same sprinkles we use here) or if you want the same flavor in a cut out cookie, these maple star cookies are fantastic!
Being from Vermont, I like anything that has maple syrup in it or on it!!
These are delicious! Thank you!
★★★★★
Hi there! Can I make these the night before I bake them and leave them in the fridge overnight?
Yes, absolutely! See recipe notes for details.
I have made these quite often, and they have become a staple at our Thanksgiving festivities. I even got a Paul Hollywood handshake from my 8 year-old niece. I am making them again and want to make a double batch. This may be a silly question, but do I simply double the recipe?
★★★★★
Hi Amy, so long as your mixer can handle the added volume from a double batch, that will work just fine!
These cookies are absolutely delicious, but I followed the recipe to a T and they were super flat, not puffy at all. Perhaps I could add baking powder to make them puff more? When I say more, I mean they did not puff at all, completely flat 🙁 I’m desperate to try again because the taste is absolutely incredible!
★★★★
I made this and topped the glaze with chopped maple bacon, delicious! Can’t wait to make some more of these recipes!
★★★★
I tried these cookies are they are delicious!
I’m needing to make a large amount of them and was wondering if they freeze well? And if so, should I freeze the dough and then bake fresh, or should I freeze the baked cookie?
Thank you for your help on this!
★★★★★
Hi Jessica, we’re so glad you loved these! Yes, these cookie freeze wonderfully and either method works. See recipe Notes for details.
Another winner! Made these for a church coffee, along with Sally’s mini quiche and New York crumb cake, and these were the first to disappear! I wouldn’t skip the glaze – it really took these over the top. My husband had one the day I made them and then at the coffee the next day and thought they were better on day 2.
★★★★★
Sally, these are amazing cookies. But with the price of maple syrup ($21.00 for a quart, $17 for the store brand) is it possible to up the maple flavoring, sugar, and milk and still get the same results??
Hi Dori, maple syrup really is key for best taste and texture. You could try swapping with an equal amount of honey and then increasing the maple extract, but the taste won’t be quite the same.
Some are flatter, some puffed up. All are delicious. I don’t normally eat the cookies I bake, but I’ve had three of these!
★★★★★
I have made these numerous times and they are my absolute favourite (along with your Classic Peanut Butter cookie0! I make these following the instructions to the letter and they turn out perfectly every time. My family enjoys them with or without the glaze. Thank you Sally for giving us so many fabulous recipes!
★★★★★
These are some of the best cookies I’ve ever made or eaten and one of my most requested bakes now. Followed instructions exactly, and used Amish maple syrup for a really strong maple flavor. The icing really makes them pop! I love this recipe and will be making it forever!
★★★★★
These cookies were a MASSIVE hit with the board game club I go to. People grabbed two or three at a time and were BEGGING for the recipe. I omitted the almonds, but otherwise didn’t change a thing and was super pleased with the results. Your cookies, especially, never seem to steer me wrong. Thank you so much for this recipe.
★★★★★
Can these be baked as cookie bars? Would you suggest 8×8 or 9×9? What bake time do you think?
Hi Christine, We recommend a 9×9 inch baking pan for cookie bars. 350F, but we’re unsure of the bake time. You can use a toothpick to test the center for doneness. If it comes out clean, they’re done. Enjoy!
I loved these! A different fall flavor to give pumpkin-everything a rest. I didn’t have pecans so mine were Maple Walnut, and I personally skipped the icing but will try it another time. I’ve stashed extra dough in the freezer so I will be enjoying this for a while.
★★★★★
These are soooooo good. The maple icing is the best!!! Thank you for all of your recipes and instructions. You have become my go-to girl.
★★★★★
I made these and OMFG they are Amazing!!!
I wondered could this recipe be made with gluten-free flour?
★★★★★
Hi Jamie! So glad to read you enjoy these. Some readers have commented that they tried this recipe with a 1:1 substitute of gluten free flour, but I have not personally tested it. Let me know what you try!
The gluten-free turned out amazing!! The Pecans help to hide the grit of the gluten-free flour.
★★★★★
Hello there! I am a massive fan of all of your recipes, and everything has always gone swimmingly for me! I’m waiting on the icing to set now, but I’m worried. My cookies are really, really, really flat. I am not sure why. Could I have over-mixed the cookie dough? I want to make these all winter – I can tell they’re going to be great because I had a thirteenth cookie that I just had to eat before the icing was ready! Thank you!
Hi Natalie, happy to help troubleshoot. Did you make any ingredient substitutions? And did you chill the dough for at least 2 hours?
Hi there! Sorry for my delay. I didn’t make any substitutions, but I could have under-chilled them. Are they supposed to be, for lack of a better term, “not flat?” I want to try again soon!
This is an amazing recipe. I made these cookies twice now and both times amazing. The second time I made them I wanted to make a vegan version so I substituted with vegan butter and a vegan egg substitute. This made the cookie dough more crumbly but everything turned out just as amazing.
★★★★★
Really good recipe. It’s a keeper.
★★★★★
My husband took 2 dozen to work with him this morning and they’re gone. One stashed a couple in their desk. The comments he heard was the best &@$? cookies ever. Lol! So thank you!
★★★★★
Sounds amazing, can’t wait to try this out!! Now, one thing I’d love to know is could this be converted into a recipe for rollout cookies? I’m looking for fall cookie ideas to bake with my toddler who looooves cookie cutters and was hoping this might be something that could be added to our activities
Hi Chastity! This dough is not ideal for cutout sugar cookies — it’s too soft and the cookies will not hold their shape. We do have these maple cinnamon star cutout cookies that you could use instead. Feel free to use different shapes, too! And if you’re interested, here is our roundup of favorite kid-friendly baking recipes.
I’ve been making maple cookies about 2 1/2 years . I make cream cheese icing and maple extract . I gifted them got comments like these are to die for . I also sold them in a restaurant where I made them they were a hit. I made big batches and froze them Un iced took them out the day I wanted to offer them let them thaw then added the cream cheese with maple extract . You only need a few drops of extract taste til you the taste your after they’re always a hit
Hi there I read your notes but center rack? Is that in the middle, top or closer to bottom?
Thank you! I’m making this for a cookie exchange!
Also I see this makes 28-30 cookies, that’s what the “yield” means right?
I just wanna be 200% sure just because I have to make 6 dozen
Reka Koszegi Harkins