Chocolate Chipless Cookies are soft, chewy, buttery brown sugar cookies -- basically, everything we love about classic chocolate chip cookies without chocolate chips.
For more delicious cookies without chocolate chips, try Browned Butter Peanut Butter Cookies and Nutter Butter Bars next!
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❤️You're Going to Love These
- Perfect cookies when you're out of chocolate chips (or just not a fan).
- Like soft, chewy brown sugar cookies with slightly crisp edges.
- The best cookies without chocolate chips - soft, chewy, buttery, and rich.
- Easy cookies to make ahead or freeze to have on hand for your non-chocolate lovers.
- Customize with mix-ins like spices, nuts, and candies.
I can't believe I'm saying this. These Chocolate Chipless Cookies don't need chocolate chips. They're soft and chewy cookies with the deep, rich flavors of brown sugar and butter. Perfect simple cookie for dunking in milk, coffee, or this yummy almond tea.
🧈Ingredients
See recipe card at the bottom of the post for the full list of ingredients and exact amounts.
- Softened butter. I use unsalted butter, but salted butter is also fine, just omit the salt.
- Brown sugar. For chocolate chip-less cookies, I love the deep, rich, more pronounced molasses flavor of dark brown sugar. You may also use light brown sugar.
- All-purpose flour. Just a reminder to carefully measure your flour -- spoon it into the measuring cup and level off the top, don't scoop. Too much flour can make the cookies dry.
- Cornstarch. Cornstarch in cookies does a couple of things. It makes them soft and tender and also helps prevent spreading.
🍬Variations
- Spices. Add ½ to 1 teaspoon of cinnamon or a combination of warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, cardamom, allspice, even black pepper, like these Chai White Chocolate Chip Cookies.
- Flavor extracts. Add a unique flavor twist with rum extract, maple extract, or a tiny (tiny!) bit of almond extract.
- Mix-Ins. Add up to 3 cups of chopped nuts, coconut, peanut butter chips, Heath bits, white chocolate chips, M&Ms, raisins, or dried cranberries.
🥣How to Make Chocolate Chipless Cookies
Step 1: Cream butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until fluffy. Mix in the eggs and vanilla.
Step 2: Sift in the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt. Mix until just combined. Cover with plastic wrap and chill the dough at least an hour, up to overnight. When ready to bake, let dough sit at room temperature 5-10 minutes to slightly soften.
Step 3: Portion dough into 2-tablespoon balls. Place 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. If desired, sprinkle the tops of the cookies with a little flaky sea salt.
Step 4: Bake in preheated oven at 350 for 9-11 minutes until edges are light brown and the tops are fluffy -- it's okay if they look a little underdone. Do not overbake or the cookies will be dry and hard.
Step 5: Cool cookies on pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.
Step 6: Enjoy. Repeat.
👉Helpful Hint: Instead of sifting, you can also whisk the dry ingredients together in a small bowl before mixing them in.
✅Top Tips
- If your cookies spread, try chilling the dough a little longer or mixing in another tablespoon or two of flour.
- For thicker cookies, shape the dough into "tall" cookie dough balls.
- If your cookies don't spread enough, it's okay to gently flatten them with a rubber spatula toward the end of baking.
🎁Storage
- Store leftover cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days or in the refrigerator for about a week.
- Freeze chocolate chipless cookies in a single layer between layers of wax paper in ziptop freezer bags or an airtight freezer-safe container.
🗓️Make Ahead
- Make the cookie dough ahead of time, up to 3-5 days, and store it in the refrigerator covered in plastic wrap. Before baking, let it sit at room temperature for 15-30 minutes or until it is soft enough to scoop.
- To freeze the dough, scoop it into portions and freeze balls of cookie dough on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Place the frozen cookie dough balls in a zip-top freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator.
❓FAQs
Yes! These cookies are delicious on their own, but you can add white chocolate chips, chopped nuts, toffee bits, or dried fruit if you'd like.
Some people don't like chocolate (gasp!), others are allergic, or maybe you just ran out. These brown sugar cookies prove you don't need chocolate chips for a great cookie.
Not quite. Sugar cookies are typically made with white sugar and have a different flavor and texture. These are brown sugar cookies-soft, chewy, and rich in flavor.
😋More Delicious Cookie Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Chocolate Chipless Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Mix in the eggs until well combined, then the vanilla.
- Sift in the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt (or whisk in a separate bowl before adding them). Mix on low speed until just combined. Do not overmix. Cover and chill dough at least an hour, up to overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 350 and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Let the dough sit at room temp 5-10 minutes or until soft enough to scoop. Scoop dough into 2-tablespoon portions and place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake 9-11 minutes or until the edges are light golden brown and the middles are puffy and look a little underdone. Cool a few minutes on the pan, then transfer to a baking rack to cool the rest of the way.
Notes
- If desired, sprinkle a little sea salt on top of the dough balls before baking.
- If your cookies spread, try chilling the dough a little longer or mixing in another tablespoon or two of flour.
- For thicker cookies, shape the dough into "tall" cookie dough balls.
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