Gourmet Salted Brown Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

These are gourmet cookies that are really simple to make. This recipe uses brown butter. Brown butter gives the finished product a delicious nutty, almost hazelnut flavour. This flavour goes great with chocolate and salt. Brown butter is very easily made: by simply heating the butter till it browns. I'll give detailed instruction in the steps. These cookies are perfect gifts too. You can use up leftover chocolate bars or candy to make the chunks that go into these cookies.This is a cookie that you will be making again and again!

Step 1: Ingredients:

This recipe makes 2 dozen small cookies.

Butter - 1/2 Cup

Brown Sugar - 1/2 Cup

All Purpose Flour - 3/4 Cup

Milk - 1 1/2 Tablespoon

Chocolate Chunks - 1/4 Cup or more

Vanilla Extract - 1 Teaspoon

Sea Salt - 1/2 Teaspoon + extra for sprinkling

You could use chocolate chips instead of chunks. For the chunks I just chopped up a bar of dark chocolate. Any chocolate would work, but i recommend not to use chocolate that has a cocoa solid content higher than 65%. These would be amazing with hazelnuts in them too!

Step 2: Make Brown Butter

1. Place the butter in a pan and melt it over medium-high heat. Cook the butter till it becomes golden brown in colour. Immediately take off the heat. Let cool till it solidifies. The butter is ready to use once it solidifies.

Step 3: Make the Dough

1. Cream the brown butter till it is light and pale.
2. Add the sugar and cream it till the mixture is light and creamy and the sugar has mostly dissolved. Mix in vanilla essence, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the milk. Combine well.
3. Add the flour and 3/4 of the chocolate chunks and mix this till it comes together in a smooth ball. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Step 4: Rolling the Cookies:

1. Take 1/2 tablespoon of the dough and roll into balls. Place onto baking paper and flatten them lightly with the back of a spoon. Push the remaining chocolate chunks into the dough and sprinkle with the sea salt.

Step 5: Bake the Cookies

1. Bake these cookies in an oven that has been preheated to 350F (180C) for 15-20 minutes until the edges are light golden.
2. Cool them slightly before moving them to a cooling rack and devouring them. Nom nom!