I mentioned how cookies are incredibly versatile in a past post, and they can be anything you could possibly imagine. They’re one of the easiest desserts to make, and the variety of flavors and textures you could incorporate into a cookie are limitless. This post is about my absolute favorite cookie, and perhaps the best one I’ve made thus far.
A few months ago, at the beginning of September, I began selling my baked goods on a small scale from my home. It was an unexpectedly successful venture, to say the least. Although I have ceased taking sales orders since then, one of the recurring items on my menu used to be brown butter, oat, and chocolate chunk cookies. They resulted from me trying out things while planning to send a few cookies to my cousins. The brown butter, oat, and dark chocolate chunk cookies (I know the name is a mouthful, forgive me) were so unbelievably delicious. These are definitely the best cookies I’ve ever tasted, and I know it sounds like a brag. They’re irresistible, I just keep going back for more and more each time I have a cookie, and this is coming from me — a person who doesn’t actually have a sweet tooth.
These cookies are indeed the best; they have the perfect balance of sweetness, texture, and flavor. They’re super chocolatey, crispy yet soft, and simply divine.
What goes into these cookies?
These cookie’s name is pretty straightforward; the three components absolutely necessary for these cookies are brown butter, oats, and dark chocolate.
Brown butter or beurré noisette has French origins; it’s a sauce that typically goes over savory dishes. But it’s just as delicious, if not more, in desserts as well. Of course, brown butter is made with butter. Think of it like melted butter that was left over the heat for a little longer. It’s got a nutty smell and a rich brown, caramel-like color.
Making brown butter is a no-nonsense process. You just need to carefully heat the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-low heat until you achieve the nutty smell and amber color. You will also find some dark bits and pieces in the bottom of your brown butter; those are nothing but the milk solids in the butter which have been toasted. Do not discard those; they add a wonderful flavor to the cookies or anything you’re gonna use the brown butter with.
Speaking of, please replace melted butter in any recipe with brown butter; it’s going to elevate the dish like no other! Do remember that brown butter is very hot. So it's best to let it cool fully in the saucepan before transferring it to a different container or using it.
The next crucial component of these cookies is oats. I use rolled oats for these cookies, which I finely grind into a powder in my mixer grinder. I also add some whole rolled oats for some added texture. Because of the oats, these cookies have an advantage over regular cookies. Oats are rich in fiber and antioxidants, so they’re healthy. Oats are naturally gluten-free, but they’re produced with grains that contain gluten, so I guess they’re not entirely gluten-free by the time they reach us. Either way, you won’t need any all-purpose flour for these cookies.
Do make sure to use rolled oats only, not instant oats or steel-cut.
The last essential component is dark chocolate. For these cookies, I use chunks of luscious dark chocolate. Don’t use chocolate chips; try to get a dark chocolate bar with 55% or more cocoa content. It’s gonna give you a gooey, melt in the mouth effect, which the chocolate chips mostly won’t.
Apart from these ingredients, you’ll need some salt, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, and powdered flax seeds. This recipe does not contain eggs, which is why you’ll need to use a flax egg, which is a mixture of powdered flax seeds and water that is left to sit for a few minutes until it turns gelatinous.
What equipment do I need?
The equipment to make these cookies are pretty standard; you will need a couple of mixing bowls, a wire whisk, a rubber spatula, and some plastic wrap. You will also need some parchment paper and a baking tray to bake the cookies on. Lastly, have a tablespoon measure or a weighing scale to measure out the cookies; if the cookies are all the same size, they will bake evenly.
The Recipe for Brown Butter, Oatmeal, and Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Yields: 10 cookies
Time: 1 hour
INGREDIENTS
4 grams (½ tablespoon) ground flaxseeds
21 grams (1 ½ tablespoon) room temperature water
90 grams (¼ cup + 2 tablespoons) softened room temperature butter
70 grams (⅓ cup) granulated sugar
10 grams (2 ½ teaspoons) brown sugar
2 grams (½ teaspoon) vanilla extract
80 grams (⅔ cup) powdered rolled oats
20 grams (4 tablespoons) whole rolled oats
½ gram (⅛ teaspoon) baking powder
1 gram (¼ teaspoon) baking soda
2 grams (½ teaspoon) salt
120 grams (1 cup) chopped dark chocolate
METHOD
Add your butter to a light-colored saucepan and place it on medium heat. Let it melt completely.
Once you start seeing bubbles on the surface, keep moving it around using a rubber spatula.
Once you see a lot of foam on top and the butter isn’t visible anymore, remove it from the heat and keep stirring until the foam moves aside. You should have a light brown color right now, and the butter should start smelling nutty.
Place the saucepan back on medium-low heat and keep moving it with the spatula. The butter will start browning rapidly, so do NOT move away from the pan at this point.
Once you’ve achieved a rich caramel-like color and a strong nutty smell, take it off the heat. Let it cool down for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a heatproof bowl.
Let the brown butter fully cool.
Mix the ground flaxseed and water and let it sit for a few minutes until thick and gelatinous.
In a mixing bowl, combine the cooled brown butter and sugars until creamy. Add the vanilla and mix it in.
Add the flaxseed egg and incorporate it well.
Sift in the dry ingredients and fold them in. Fold in the whole rolled oats too.
Then fold in the chocolate chunks.
Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a baking tray and dust it with flour, or alternatively line it with parchment paper.
Scoop out 40 grams or two heaping tablespoons of cookie dough and form them into balls.
Place the cookie dough balls on the prepared baking tray 2-inches apart. Press down the cookie dough balls lightly with your fingers.
Bake them at 180°C for 12-14 minutes until golden brown on the outside.
Let the cookies cool in the tray for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool down completely.
Notes
You can play with the ratio of white and brown sugars depending on whether you want chewy or crisp cookies.
You can also portion the cookie dough and freeze it for up to 6 months.
You can also chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator for up to 24-72 hours for a much more developed flavor.
If you’d like, you can also make the cookies bigger or smaller. You will need to adjust the baking time by a few minutes.
Store the cooled cookies in an airtight box; they will remain intact for a couple of weeks.
If you liked this recipe or tried it, let me know in the comments below or post it to my Instagram and Facebook, I'd love to see your creations!
#cookies #brownbutter #oats #darkchocolate #dessertsandpastries