Chocolate Chip Cookies Without Brown Sugar (2024)

These soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar are perfect for you if you’re looking to make a chocolate chip cookie recipe and you have no brown sugar! They’re perfectly soft, gooey, and rich, and wonderful dipped in milk! Read on to find out how to make chocolate chip cookies - no brown sugar needed!

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And for more cookie goodness, try my three-ingredient Coffee Cookies, my Cookie Monster Cookies, and my Raspberry White Chocolate Cookies!

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies Without Brown Sugar

A typical chocolate chip cookie recipe will usually start with the same basic ingredients, including flour, egg, butter, and of course, brown sugar. But if you're having a chocolate chip cookie recipe craving and you don't have brown sugar in your cupboard, have no fear! You can still enjoy soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar!

What can I use if I don't have brown sugar for chocolate chip cookies?

Is it necessary to use brown sugar in cookies? Not at all! If you don't have brown sugar and you're looking to make a chocolate chip cookie recipe, there are several ways to make soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar and still get that chewy texture.

Brown sugar is basically white sugar with molasses mixed into it. So if you have molasses on hand, you can replicate brown sugar perfectly by just using white sugar with a little brown sugar added. But chances are, if you don't have brown sugar, you may not have molasses on hand either!

What is a replacement for brown sugar?

Other substitutes for the rich sweetness and moisture that brown sugar provides could be maple syrup, agave nectar, or honey. And in my experience, honey provides the best combination of moisture and sweetness to yield a soft, delicious chocolate chip cookie recipe! So that's what we're using to make these soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Ingredients

Check the recipe card below for precise measurements, but here are the basic ingredients you'll need to make these homemade chocolate chip cookies - no brown sugar needed!

• butter - you'll want a stick of unsalted butter for these soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar. I like to brown my butter to give the cookies amazing flavor, but if you're short on time you can just use melted butter.
• granulated sugar - regular white sugar provides the sweetness and texture we want!
• honey - this is the secret to making these cookies soft and chewy!
• egg - your egg should be room temperature to help the dough mix more easily.
• vanilla extract - make sure you use a good-qualitypure vanilla extract. Or better yet, check out my post onhow to make vanilla extractat home with just 2 ingredients!
• all-purpose flour- (measured by weight with a kitchen scale or fluffed using the spoon-and-level method)
• cornstarch is a great way to achieve soft, thick cookies!
• baking soda - baking soda reacts to the acid in the brown sugar to give just enough lift to these cookies!
• salt - helps to bring out the delicious flavors in this chocolate chip cookie recipe!
• semisweet chocolate chips - you can also use chopped baking chocolate or dark chocolate chunks!

Equipment

To make this chocolate chip cookie recipe, you'll want to grab akitchen scaleto help you measure your flour with perfect accuracy to get that chewy, gooey texture that you like. Also, anoven thermometerwill help to correct any temperature disparities to make sure that your cookies bake perfectly.

And a small cookie scoophelps to measure out your cookies to the exact size you'll need. You'll also want to grab a cooling rack and a large baking sheet -- I use theNordicware Baker's Big Sheetlined with aSilpat ¾ sheet liner. You may also want to use an electric mixer for these cookies, but I usually mix them up by hand!

How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies without Brown Sugar

See the recipe card below for detailed instructions and a recipe video, but here are the simple steps to make soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar:

Whisk together brown butter (or melted butter), sugar, and honey in a large bowl.

Add eggs and vanilla and whisk until smooth.

In a separate bowl, whisk together dry ingredients -- flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.

Gradually mix flour mixture into wet ingredients to form your chocolate chip cookie dough.

Fold in semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Scoop cookie dough balls onto a lined baking sheet and bake until golden brown around the edges.

Hint: For the most soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar, be sure to take your cookies out of the oven when the center is not quite set -- they'll still look underdone in the middle, but as they cool they'll set into that perfect soft cookie texture!

What happens if you don't put brown sugar in cookies?

They'll still be delicious! You can substitute brown sugar in a recipe for equal amounts of white sugar and enjoy your cookies! But they won't be exactly the same. White sugar causes cookies to flatten out more and take on a crispier texture.

Flavor-wise, white sugar is more sweet than brown sugar, without any rich molasses flavor. So your cookies will still be yummy, but won't have that iconic flavor and texture of a classic chocolate chip cookie recipe!

That's why in this recipe, we're making our chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar, but adding in a bit honey to maintain that moist texture. Honey also provides a bit more flavor than white sugar!

And try my Chocolate Filled Cookies for another fun variation on traditional chocolate chip cookies, and my Matilda's Chocolate Cake for even more chocolatey goodness!

Substitutions

These chewy chocolate chip cookies can easily be adapted to fit your needs!

• To make eggless chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar, replace the egg with aflax eggor (use a store-boughtegg replacer)!
• To make vegan chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar:
  • Replace the egg with aflax eggor (use a store-boughtegg replacer).
  • Instead of honey, use maple syrup or agave nectar.
  • Use vegan butter and dairy free chocolate chips like in my Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies!
  • Usevegan-friendly granulated sugar!
• Gluten Free - this chocolate chip cookie recipe works well with a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour! Be sure to check labels to make sure your other ingredients are gluten free as well.

Variations

Make this chocolate chip cookie recipe your own!

• Add nuts - make these cookies a little chunky with chopped walnuts or pecans!
• Brown your butter - for me, this is a MUST when making chocolate chip cookies. Check here for details on how to brown butter!
• Small batch chocolate chip cookies (no brown sugar) - Halve this recipe (using just the egg yolk) to make 12 perfectly-portioned, delicious cookies!

And check out my Matcha Chocolate Chip Cookies or my Cake Mix Brownie Mix Cookies with White Chocolate if you're looking for another easy cookie recipe that's a fun twist on classic chocolate chip cookies!

Storage

Store your cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. You can also freeze your baked cookies! Just let them freeze solid uncovered, then place them into an airtight container or freezer bag to stay frozen for up to two months. You can enjoy them one at a time — just let them thaw, uncovered, at room temperature.

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Last Updated on April 23, 2024 by Chenée Lewis