The depth of flavor and soft, chewy goodness that’s in these Brown Sugar Cookies will instantly have you falling in love! And with a minimal ingredients list and short bake time, there’s even more to love about these cookies than their flavor!
You Have To Try This Brown Sugar Cookies Recipe
We all know and love the flavor as well as the nostalgia of biting into Classic Sugar Cookies! They’re soft, tender, and lightly sweet! And while those are delicious, these Brown Sugar Cookies are an elevated version that lends a deeper flavor from dark brown sugar.
The depth of flavor and ease of this recipe make them worth saving a spot for in your annual holiday cookie tins! And though the ingredients may seem simple, they pack a big bite of flavor into the cookies that’s incredibly unforgettable!
Plus, who doesn’t love a cookie recipe that’s easy to make using minimal ingredients yet is still holiday cookie-worthy?! Or everyday cookie-worthy!
What Are Brown Sugar Sugar Cookies?
Brown Sugar Sugar Cookies are made with dark brown sugar for a tasty twist on classic sugar cookies! Since they’re made with dark brown sugar, you can expect and enjoy a deeper-flavored sugar cookie that gives off a cozy, sweet flavor!
Brown Sugar Cookie Ingredients
- Bread Flour
- Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Unsalted Butter
- Dark Brown Sugar (light can also be used)
- Large Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Granulated sugar
Pair bread flour with a box of instant vanilla pudding mix and a handful of pantry staples to create the most delicious brown sugar cookie that you’ll ever have! While bread flour does create softer cookies, it can be swapped out for all-purpose flour instead, though the texture of the cookies will slightly change.
Other substitutions include using salted butter in place of unsalted butter. However, the additional salt will need to be cut back to 1 teaspoon. Lastly, half a teaspoon of almond extract may be used in place of vanilla extract.
Variations On Brown Sugar Cookies
- Brown Sugar – Light brown sugar may be used instead of dark brown sugar. Since dark brown sugar has more molasses than light brown sugar, this swap will provide a slight flavor variation. You can also use a combination of both sugars!
- Ground Cinnamon – Give these Brown Sugar Cookies a sweet cinnamon flavor by adding 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. You can also add other spices, such as ginger, nutmeg, or even pumpkin pie spice!
- Sugar Coating – Instead of rolling the cookie dough balls in granulated sugar, you can roll them in coarse sugar for added crunch. You can also roll the cookies in sprinkles for an added touch of fun!
- Optional Add-Ins – These cookies are a delicious blank slate that is great for adding mix-ins! Add in some chocolate chips or chopped toasted walnuts or pecans.
- Pop-Tarts Cookies – I use this delicious brown sugar dough as the base for my Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tart Cookies recipe!
How To Make Brown Sugar Cookies
Step 1: Whisk the bread flour, box of instant vanilla pudding mix, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Set this aside.
Step 2: In a separate bowl, cream the unsalted butter and dark brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or by using an electric mixer.
Step 3: Add the large eggs one at a time to the butter mixture, mixing after each addition until just incorporated.
Step 4: Pour in the vanilla extract and mix until light and fluffy. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl as needed when mixing.
Step 5: Turn the mixer on low speed and slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a little to a time. Mix until fully incorporated; the dough will take on a Play-Doh texture and not be sticky.
Step 6: Portion out the dough using a cookie scoop.
Step 7: Add granulated sugar to a small, shallow bowl and then roll the cookie dough balls in the white sugar to coat them.
Step 8: Transfer the sugar-coated cookies to baking pans that are lined with parchment paper. Then, bake the cookies one pan sheet at a time.
Step 9: Remove the baked cookies from the oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Tips For Making Soft and Chewy Brown Sugar Sugar Cookies
- Bread Flour – Since bread flour has a higher protein content than all-purpose flour, it yields chewier and slightly softer cookies. Therefore, to bake the best Brown Sugar Cookies, I’d recommend baking these cookies with bread flour.
- Measuring Ingredients – For the best recipe results, measure ingredients by gram using a kitchen scale. We tested the recipe both ways, using a kitchen scale and measuring cups, and either way will work; however, measuring by grams is the most accurate. If you choose to use measuring cups, I highly recommend making sure that you’re measuring flour correctly.
- Unsalted Butter – Using unsalted butter over salted butter gives you flavor control over the entire recipe, creating a cookie with the perfect taste every time!
- Two Baking Sheets – It’s best to use two baking sheets when baking cookies. This will prevent the cookie dough from being dropped onto a hot baking sheet, which could ultimately change the structure of the cookie.
How To Store This Brown Sugar Cookie Recipe
Store Brown Sugar Cookies in an airtight container to enjoy for up to one week. These cookies can also be frozen for longer storage or to get a jump start on holiday baking!
To freeze the baked cookies, layer them in a freezer-safe container with parchment paper separating the layers. Then, transfer them to the freezer to store for 2 to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature to enjoy!
If you prefer, you can also freeze brown sugar cookie dough to bake off for a freshly baked treat later! To freeze cookie dough, place the portioned cookie dough onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets.
Afterward, transfer the sheets of cookie dough to the freezer for an hour to flash-freeze them. Flash-freezing the dough will prevent the dough balls from freezing together in one big clump.
Next, transfer the frozen cookie dough balls into a freezer Ziploc bag with the excess air squeezed out of it. Then, store it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Brown Sugar Cookies FAQs
Yes, these cookies can be baked on silicone mats instead of parchment paper. Just be sure to keep a close eye on them as they bake since the cookies tend to bake quicker on silicone mats.
No, the box of vanilla pudding mix is added to the recipe in its powder form. Do not prepare the pudding mix according to the instructions on the box!
If you choose to use light brown sugar instead of dark brown sugar when making this cookie recipe, there will be a slight flavor difference, as well as lighter-colored cookies.
Yes, brown sugar does create cookies with a darker color!
More Sweet Cookie Recipes
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Brown Sugar Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
Dough
- 3⅔ cups bread flour 500g
- 1 (3.3oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix 93g
- 2 teaspoons baking powder 12g
- 1¼ teaspoons salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter 226g, room temperature
- 1½ cups dark brown sugar 315g, packed
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup granulated sugar for coating
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and line two 12×17-inch baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the 3⅔ cups bread flour, 1 (3.3oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix, 2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1¼ teaspoons salt. Set aside.3⅔ cups bread flour, 1 (3.3oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1¼ teaspoons salt
- In a separate large bowl or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together 1 cup unsalted butter and 1½ cups dark brown sugar for 1 minute until smooth.1 cup unsalted butter, 1½ cups dark brown sugar
- Add in the 3 large eggs one at a time, mixing after each one just until incorporated.3 large eggs
- Add 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract and mix for 2 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- With the mixer running on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients a little at a time to the wet ingredients until fully incorporated. The dough should come together in a play-doh texture and not be sticky.
- Measure the dough into 2-ounce portions of dough. You can make these as drop cookies with a cookie scoop (we use a #24 size for these) or roll into balls.
- Add ½ cup granulated sugar to a small bowl and roll the cookies in it to coat them.
- Add 9 cookies to each pan with 2 inches of space between them. Bake one sheet at a time.
- Bake for 7 to 9 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- It is best to go by the gram measurements in this recipe. During testing, we measured both ways for each batch to ensure that the measurements were correct both ways, but grams will be the most accurate. If you are going to use measuring cups, make sure you are measuring your flour correctly.
- Light brown sugar may be used instead of dark, but we preferred the stronger flavor of dark in these cookies.
- All-purpose flour may be used instead of bread flour, but we found the bread flour yielded a slightly softer cookie.
- Using two baking sheets is important because you don’t want to put the cookie dough down on a hot pan.
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Laurie says
Could these be made with Swerve brown rather than actual brown sugar?
Rebecca Hubbell says
Hi Laurie, unfortunately, I’m not familiar with sugar alternatives, so I can’t say for sure if they will turn out with the substitution.
Megan says
Great flavor and very delicious!