Brown butter is the secret to the best small batch chocolate chip cookies, and once you make them this way, there's no going back. The process takes about five extra minutes and that nutty, caramel flavor of the butter carries all the way through to the finished cookie. Paired with just an egg yolk for richness, this small batch chocolate chip cookie recipe produces seven cookies with crisp buttery edges and soft, chewy middles.
When you only need a small batch of chocolate chip cookies - for an after school snack, a quiet evening of Netflix, or just because the craving hit - this is the recipe to reach for. No mixer, one bowl and about 45 minutes start to finish (including chill time). These brown butter chocolate chip cookies are small batch cookies done right. If you are looking for a larger batch, our One Bowl Chocolate Chip Cookies are your go-to, or browse all of our cookie recipes for more inspiration.
Jump to:
- Quick Look: Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Ingredients for Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Variations
- Substitutions
- How To Make Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
- How to Make Brown Butter for Cookies
- Notes From My Test Kitchen
- Storing and Freezing Small Batch Chocolate chip Cookies
- Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies FAQs
- More Brown Butter Cookie Recipes
- 📖 Recipe
Quick Look: Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Ready In: 45 minutes
- Makes: 7 chewy cookies
- Calories: 200 kcal per cookie
- Add to Your Shopping List: unsalted butter, brown sugar and chocolate chips
- Dietary Info: contains gluten, dairy and eggs
- Baker's Note: Chill your dough for at least 30 minutes before baking - this is the key to cookies with chewy centers and crisp edges that don't spread too much while baking.
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Ingredients for Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
Brown Butter - Browning the butter before mixing your cookie dough adds a nutty, caramel like flavor that you simply can't get from melted or softened butter. It's a five-minute step that makes a huge difference in the finished cookie.
Egg Yolk - Using just the yolk instead of the whole egg keeps this small batch of chocolate chip cookies rich and chewy rather than cake. The yolk adds fat and richness without the extra moisture from the egg white.
Brown Sugar - Brown sugar contains molasses which does two things: adds a warm, caramel flavor to your cookie dough and helps create that chewy texture we all love. This recipe uses mostly brown sugar with just a touch of granulated sugar to balance it out.
Vanilla Extract - Use a good quality pure vanilla extract. In a small batch cookies recipe with so few ingredients, the vanilla does some serious flavor work.
Variations
milk chocolate chip cookies - swap the dark chocolate out for milk chocolate chip cookies
add nuts - mix in ¼ cup of toasted pecans or macadamia nuts
Substitutions
gluten free chocolate chip cookies - swap the all purpose flour out for ½ cup of your favorite gluten free baking mix. I've had good luck with using both King Arthur Measure for Measure and Bob's Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour. Both of theses mixes have been formulated for baking and you don't need any additional xanthum gum or guar gum to achieve great results.
How To Make Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
Be sure to see the recipe card for the full list of ingredients and detailed recipe instructions.
Combine the cooled brown butter with the sugar and mix until well combined.
Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract to the cookie dough. Mix until well combined.
Mix in the dry ingredients.
Fold the chocolate chips into the cookie dough. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Scoop cookie dough onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake cookies at 375° for 8-9 minutes.
Enjoy warm cookies with a glass of milk or a cup of tea.
Hint: Use a cookie scoop to make your cookies. My cookie scoop is probably my most used kitchen tool. It's perfect for scooping cookie dough but also great for making meatballs, filling muffin tins and making pancakes and waffles. If you don't have a cookie scoop, you should definitely treat yourself to one.
How to Make Brown Butter for Cookies
- Place butter in a small sauce pan and cook over medium heat until the butter becomes bubbly, fragrant and nutty smelling - swirl and stir as needed.
- Watch closely for small brown bits to begin forming on the bottom of the pan - this will happen around 5 minutes.
- As soon as you begin to see brown bits in the butter, remove the butter from the heat. If you leave the butter in the pan it will continue to brown and could even become burnt.
- Transfer butter to your mixing bowl and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before proceeding with your recipe.
For more tips, troubleshooting, and the science behind why brown butter makes everything better, see my full guide on how to brown butter.
Notes From My Test Kitchen
I've made these brown butter cookies more times than I can count, and the biggest thing I've learned is that the details really matter in a small batch recipe.
Always make sure that your brown butter has cooled before mixing up the cookie dough. I've learned the hard way more than once. If the butter is too warm, the sugars will dissolve and the egg yolk will begin to scramble. I like to cool the brown butter for 10-15 minutes in the refrigerator before mixing up the cookie dough.
I know 30 minutes feels like forever when the cookie craving has already hit but trust me, the rest in the fridge is what gives these small batch chocolate chip cookies their chewy texture and keeps them from spreading too much in the oven. I've baked without chilling and the difference is noticeable every single time.
I like to pull the cookies from the oven right around the 8-minute mark. The middles will look a bit underdone but the edges will be golden brown. They'll finish setting on the hot pan. I let the cookies cool completely on the pan and then move them to a rack to cool. This is how you get that perfect chewy center and crisp edges.
Storing and Freezing Small Batch Chocolate chip Cookies
Room temperature - Store baked cookies in an airtight container for 2-3 days. They're best on the day they are made - though in my experience, leftover cookies are rarely a problem that needs solving.
Freezing baked cookies - Let cookies cool completely and then arrange them in a freezer container or freezer bag with parchment paper between the layers. Freeze for up to 2 months and let them come to room temperature before eating, or warm them up in the oven at 300° for about 5 minutes.
Freezing cookie dough - Scoop the chilled cookie dough into balls and freeze on a baking sheet until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag or container. Bake directly from frozen at 375° and add 2-3 minutes to the baking time.
Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies FAQs
Yes! But if you do, reduce the added salt in the recipe by half (⅛ teaspoon). Since this is a small batch cookie recipe with very few ingredients, the salt balance matters more than it might in a larger batch.
Yes! You can absolutely make these small batch chocolate chip cookies gluten. Simply swap the all purpose flour out for ½ cup of gluten free flour blend. I like baking with King Arthur Measure for Measure and Bob's Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour.
You can choose if you want to use the whole egg or two yolks. The whole egg will work perfectly. Two egg yolks will create a more rich and chewy cookie.
You can, but I'd encourage you not to. Because I tested this recipe using brown butter, the moisture content on the brown butter is less that it would be in melted butter. This swap will throw off the texture of your cookies and you'll miss out on that nutty, caramel depth that you can only get from brown butter.
More Brown Butter Cookie Recipes
- Brown Butter Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Brown Butter Triple Chocolate Cookies
- Chipless Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Cadbury Mini Egg Cookies
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Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies (made with brown butter)
Equipment
- small mixing bowl
- small sauce pan
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- whisk
- spatula
- cookie scoop
- cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter browned and cooled
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 large egg yolk at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup (65 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup chocolate chips
Instructions
For the Brown Butter
- Place butter in a small sauce pan and cook over medium heat until the butter becomes bubbly, fragrant and nutty smelling - swirl and stir as needed. Watch closely for small brown bits to begin forming on the bottom of the pan - this will happen around 5 minutes.5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- As soon as you begin to see brown bits in the butter, remove the butter from the heat. Transfer butter to your mixing bowl and allow to cool for a few minutes before proceeding with the recipe
For the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- In the small mixing bowl, combine the brown butter with the brown sugar and granulated sugar. Mix until light and fluffy.¼ cup light brown sugar, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- Add the egg yolk and vanilla to the butter and sugar mixture.1 large egg yolk , 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the flour, baking soda and salt to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Be careful not to over mix.½ cup (65 g) all-purpose flour, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Mix in the chocolate chips. Cover dough and chill in the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes.⅓ cup chocolate chips
- Preheat oven to 375° Use your cookie dough scoop or two small spoons and scoop 1.5 tablespoons of dough.
- Arrange cookie dough balls on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake cookies at 375° for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are just golden brown. The middle will look slightly undercooked. Allow cookies to cool for 15-20 minutes on the sheet pan before moving to a cooling rack.
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