These thin and chewy brown sugar cookies are baked with the flavors of brown sugar, molasses, and vanilla extract. The edges of these sugar cookies are crisp and they have tender and chewy centers.
Ingredients in Brown Sugar Cookies
Simple ingredients are used to make these soft-baked brown sugar cookies.
- All-purpose flour - spooned & leveled
- Salted butter
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Molasses
- Egg + Egg Yolk - an egg separater is a great tool to separate the egg from the yolk.
- Vanilla extract
- Granulated sugar
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How to Make Brown Sugar Cookies
Sugar cookies usually require chilling time but not these. These cookies are prepared, rolled in granulated sugar, and baked. These cookies start off as large balls of dough but spread out too thin but chewy deliciously tender cookies.
I usually prefer my cookies thick and chewy but these cookies are pretty high on the list of my favorite cookies to make!
Start with room temperature ingredients- Start with room temperature butter. It will cream together with the brown sugar more easily and it will make the process of creating the dough much quicker.
Preheat the oven- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Room temperature egg and egg yolk will blend with the other ingredients easier as well.
Combine the dry ingredients- In a medium-size bowl, spoon and level the all-purpose flour and stir in the baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
TIP: Stir the all-purpose flour and spoon it into the dry measuring cup. Using the back of the spoon, scrape off the extra flour. This spoon and level method reduces the amount of flour that is used by up to 50%. That's a lot of extra unnecessary flour!
Combine the wet ingredients- Beat the room temperature salted butter until it is creamy. Beat in the dark brown sugar and then the molasses.
Once those ingredients are mixed well, beat in the egg and the egg yolk as well as the vanilla extract.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients- Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix until the dry ingredients are moistened.
Prepare the cookie sheets- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.
Scoop the dough and roll in sugar- Roll the cookie dough by two tablespoons or use a #30 cookie scoop. Pour granulated sugar into a shallow dish and roll each ball of cookie dough into the sugar.
Place the prepared dough two inches apart on the baking sheets and bake one cookie sheet at a time. Bake for twelve to fourteen minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.
Transfer to an airtight container for maximum freshness.
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📖 Recipe
Thin and Chewy Brown Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour - spooned and leveled
- 14 tablespoons unsalted butter - room temp
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon molasses
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Granulated sugar for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F
- Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, combine the spooned and leveled flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, beat the butter until creamy.
- Add in the brown sugar and molasses. Beat until combined.
- Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
- Slowly beat in the flour mixture until moistened.
- Scoop and roll into 2 tablespoon balls (or use a #30 cookie scoop)
- Roll in sugar and place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
- Place th4 dough balls 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Bake in batches.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes
- Allow to sit for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack and allowing to cool to room temperature before storing.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate based on third-party calculations. Actual values may vary due to ingredients, measurements, and serving sizes.
© Mama Needs Cake
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Dana is an experienced recipe creator who crafts easy and delicious recipes for all levels of home cooks.
Her recipes range from classic comfort foods to healthy and nutritious meals, and she is always on the lookout for new and exciting ways to bring flavor and variety to the table.
Linda says
Yum! It's hard to say no to cookies especially when they're this good
Grace says
@Linda, Approximately how many cookies does this recipe make?
Liz says
Love trying new cookie recipes! Thanks for sharing!
Kate says
We made these and they turned out amazing! Chewy and delicious, I can't wait to make them again, especially now that the baking season is coming.
Amanda Dixon says
These cookies are to die for! They were so wonderfully soft and chewy -- just how I like my sugar cookies. The molasses flavor was such a nice touch too.
Katie Crenshaw says
These are my newest addiction! They turn out so delicious and chewy. I will be baking these all the time.
Julie says
These are perfection! So chewy and I love the brown sugar flavor. I'm saving this recipe for the Christmas season.
Claire says
I made these with the kids over the weekend. It was such a great recipe for them to follow and even the youngest could help. And we ALL enjoyed eating them!
Thank you
Natalie says
They are SO thin. Amazing. I bet they taste delicious with added molasses. I have to bake them asap.
Gail Montero says
This would go perfectly well with my morning cuppa! A must on any baking list!
amy liu dong says
This is one of my favorite cookie recipes to make. It is so easy and delicious!
Lizzie says
I just finished baking the second batch of these glorious cookies in a week. To say my husband and I love them would be an understatement. It amazes me that such a simple recipe produces cookies this rich. FWIW, I baked the first batch for 12 minutes and they became a bit crunchy by the next day. I baked today's batch for 11 minutes and they are exactly as you described: lightly crunchy around the edge but perfectly chewy in the middle. You can't even get cookies this delicious at a bakery. Cheers!
Dana says
Hi Lizzie! It makes my heart happy that you and your husband enjoyed these cookies! Thank you for taking the time to leave feedback. Happy baking!
Frida says
Is there any way to translate this into another measure than whales per football field? Like, who legit measures 14 tablespoons of butter? One thing is not using grams, but using these super inaccurate measures can only lead to a baking disaster.
Dana says
Hi Frida, if you would like 14 tablespoons of butter in cups it is 7/8 cup of butter or 198.5 grams if you prefer it that way. It is not an inaccurate measurement as this recipe has been a favorite for quite a few years now. Hope I was able to help you understand how much butter to use. Happy baking.
Winie says
@Frida, it's 1 3/4 sticks of butter! (Each stick is 8 teaspoons)
Winie says
@Frida, oops 8 Tablespoons! Not teaspoons!
There I go annoying you with inaccuracy--sorry!
Grace says
Approximately how many cookies does this recipe make?
Dana says
about 18 cookies!
Diane says
Great recipe. Simple ingredients. Easy to prep. Great taste. Crust and chewy. Yum. Will definitely make again.