BEST Brown Butter Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

These gooey brown butter gluten free chocolate chip cookies are exactly what you need this holiday season! Brown butter adds an extra layer of flavor to these ultimate chocolate chunk cookies while bitter dark chocolate perfectly balance the sweetness of the cookies.

Recipe Price: $15.16 | Per Serving: $0.28 | Makes: 55 cookies

These photos do not do these cookies justice. They look so normal and humble but my friends, they are EPIC!

Jump to:

• What Makes This the Best Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
• Ingredients
• Dietary Modifications and Variations
• How to Make Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
• How to Store
• Other Amazing Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Expert Tips
• FAQs
• More Gluten-Free Cookie Recipes
• Brown Butter Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

What Makes This the Best Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

1. Brown butter! Taking the time to brown butter really amps up the rich nutty flavor.
2. The Chocolate! I use a mix of different levels of dark chocolate, all of which are 65% and above, and by weight, this recipe is ⅓ chocolate!! That’s a great ratio if you ask me.
3. Sugar Ratio! I use slightly more brown sugar than white sugar.
4. An EXTRA Egg! This helps create a better structure in the cookie when we’re using gluten-free flour. 

When testing these cookies, I tried a lot of different variables and versions. I've included some tips and notes below just in case you also like to know all.the.things. about testing these gluten-free chocolate chip cookies.

• 1 whole egg vs. 1 egg + 1 yolk vs. 2 eggs
  • 2 whole eggs was best
• Equal parts brown sugar and white sugar vs. more brown sugar
  • less white sugar was best
• Softened butter vs. browned butter
  • both great! browned butter = more flavor!
• Melted browned butter vs. re-solidified browned butter 
  • both worked pretty well
• Flour by cup (2.5 cups) vs. flour by weight (410g)
  • flour by weight! definitely ideal here.
• Bake immediately vs. overnight in the fridge
  • REST OVERNIGHT IN THE FRIDGE!!
• All 87% chocolate vs. all 65% chocolate vs. a mix
  • a mix! 65% and below was way too sweet; 85-87% only was too bitter.

Ingredients

Here's a quick look at the main ingredients you need for making this gluten-free cookie recipe. Be sure to check the recipe card for the full list of ingredients and the quantities you need of each.

• Butter: Brown butter is THE ingredient powerhouse in this recipe that's in the background of each bite but adds a richness and nutty flavor you can't get with just plain butter.
• Dark chocolate: Use a mix of dark chocolate for the best flavor. Bitter chocolate helps to temper that sweetness. However, I did find that using all 87% chocolate provided too much of a contrast between the sweet dough and the bitter chocolate. A better combination is using at least half 85% or higher chocolate and half of a sweeter chocolate like 55-75%.
• Gluten-Free Flour: I am using Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Gluten Free Flour. You can use other brands of gluten-free flour blends which are formulated to replace regular flour.
• Leavener: This recipe uses a combination of baking soda and baking powder for giving the cookies a bit of lift.
• Sugar: We're using a combination of granulated white sugar and light or dark brown sugar. The brown sugar adds additional moisture and has a more interesting sweetness thanks to the molasses added to it.
• Flavor: I like adding a bit of nutmeg for a more complex flavor in my chocolate chip cookies and of course, vanilla extract adds a warmth and natural sweetness that brings all the flavors together.

Dietary Modifications and Variations

• Paleo: Nope, it's not! If you're looking for a paleo cookie, check out my other recommended chocolate chip cookies below! Or you might try these lemon almond cookies.
• Vegetarian: Yep, they are!
• Different Chocolates: You can of course use milk chocolate, toffee, or white chocolate if you’d like but these are very sweet cookies already and these types of chips will add more sweetness to the cookies.
• Add Nuts: Add chopped nuts such as walnut or pecans along with the chocolate chunks.

How to Make Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here's a look at the steps that go into making gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. Be sure to check all the details in the recipe card before you get started cooking.

1. Melt the butter in a medium sized pot or pan over medium heat stirring constantly once it's melted.
2. Continue cooking until the butter is golden brown and the milk solids at the bottom of the pan have become toasty brown but not burnt or black. Immediately remove from the heat and pour into a large, heat-safe bowl. Set the butter aside to cool and start to harden again.

3. Chop the chocolate into various sizes.
4. Combine the gluten-free flour, baking soda, baking powder, and fine salt in a bowl.
5. Add most of the chopped chocolate but be sure to reserve some large pieces for topping the cookies later. Stir it all together.

6. Stir the brown butter once it's opaque and softened rather than melted.
7. Add the white sugar, brown sugar, and nutmeg to the bowl.

8. Stir together until combined and then whip on relatively high speed with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer. Creaming the butter together with the sugar so the sugar can fully dissolve into the butter will take 5-6 minutes and will be light and fluffy when done.
9. Add the vanilla and add one egg to the bowl.
10. Whip until combined and then repeat with the second egg.

11. Add the flour mixture to the sugar and butter about a third of it at a time and mixing it into the dough after each addition. You cannot really over mix these cookies because there’s no gluten to develop.
12. Form the cookies and place them on a baking tray. I like to scoop them into 27-gram dough balls using a 1.5 Tablespoon ice cream scooper. (I use the purple one for these cookies, but feel free to make them larger and bake them longer.) Add a few pieces of chocolate to each dough ball, and then place them in the fridge overnight.

PRO TIP: Chill the dough for as long as possible. A few hours at a minimum, but overnight - or even a couple of days in the freezer - is ideal.

13. Place the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 2-3 inches apart and bake for 8-11 minutes.
14. Let them rest for 5-10 minutes before enjoying as they will likely be super soft and not very sturdy when the first come out of the oven.

How to Store

I find that these are always the best when enjoyed fresh from the oven. I prefer the softer texture and I love a little melty chocolate. However, Zac prefers eating them a day later straight from the fridge when the chocolate is solid and the cookies have a bit of a chew to them. A lot of personal preference here so I recommend trying them both ways! 

• Storing Baked Cookies: Place the cooled cookies in an airtight container and store at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the fridge for up to a week. You can also freeze baked cookies for up to three months.
• Freezing Cookie Dough: If you don't love leftover cookies (like me!) make a full batch and freeze the dough. Place chilled cookie dough balls directly in a freezer safe bag and store them in the freezer for about 3 months. When you're ready to cook you can remove exactly how many cookies you wish to bake and lay them out on a parchment-lined baking sheet at room temperature for about 20 minutes and then bake as directed.
• Reheat Leftover Cookies: Warm them in the microwave for 30 seconds or in a preheated oven for 1 minute to soften a bit and melt the chocolate making them taste more like they're fresh from the oven.

Other Amazing Chocolate Chip Cookies

Some of my other favorite chocolate chip cookies from around the web! I have made dozens of different recipes, and while THIS recipe is of course my favorite, here are some other great ones!

The other BEST Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

• Ambitious Kitchen’s Paleo Chocolate Chunk Cookies: These cookies are obviously not the same as your typical soft and chewy Tollhouse cookie but they are quite delicious and can certainly stand on their own. I’ve made them a dozen times or so over the years and am always so happy with the outcome. 
• “Any Butter” Nut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies: As the name implies, you can use any nut or seed butter to make these chocolate chip cookies. I’d say these are the cookies I have made more than any other in the last 5-8 years. This recipe accommodates a lot of allergies, and you can make them completely vegan and dairy-free by using a flax egg. These are the chewiest cookies on this list!
• Otto’s Classic Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies: Long before I had to drop gluten from my diet, I had friends with gluten allergies and sensitivities and this recipe was the first chocolate chip cookie recipe that felt like a true replacement for the classic Tollhouse cookies.
  • I recently emailed with a rep at Otto’s to find out why their flour works differently from (and more consistently than) other cassava flours and it turns out that they actually bake their cassava root rather than allowing it to dry in the sun. This creates a more consistent and uniform product that is more reliable. And secondly, the age of the cassava when harvested can impact the starch-to-fiber ratio. They harvest their flour at a specific time in its growth cycle in order to optimize this ratio to mimic the function of wheat flour as closely as possible. I’d categorize these as soft and gooey, but do get chewy as they cool. 

The Best Non Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

• Tara O’Brady’s Basic Great Chocolate Chip Cookies: When I first tested all the best chocolate chip cookies on the Internet, sometime around 2018, this recipe was the standout. I would consider this a classic chocolate chip cookie and it is quite close to the Nestlé Tollhouse recipe, but has better flavor and texture. This cookie is basic, but also great, as the title implies. I would never turn this cookie down!
• Stella Parks' Quick and Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies: In my opinion, these are the ultimate cookies with ONE very specific alteration. They MUST sit overnight in the fridge. I think Stella often shares that her cookies can be baked fresh but I’m telling you, an overnight rest is required here for the best results. You’re welcome.

Expert Tips

• Use Chopped Chocolate. It might seem easier to use chocolate chips but chopped chocolate creates different sizes of chocolate pieces, which results in a much better cookie. The small shards melt into the cookies and provide a nice texture while large chunks create those delectable pools of chocolate.
• Plan Ahead. These cookies are truly better when you give them time to sit in the fridge or the freezer so whenever possible try to plan out your cookie baking 24 hours ahead of time - though 2-3 days is even better!
• Use a Cookie Scoop: It will improve your cookie shape and consistency! Plus they bake more evenly.
• Save Some Chocolate for the Top: Press a large or a few small pieces into the top of each cookie before baking.

FAQs

More Gluten-Free Cookie Recipes