Browned Butter Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies

What's better than your Grandma's chocolate chip cookie?

That's right! My chocolate chip cookie with nutty browned butter and a sprinkle of sea salt!

Step 1: Ingredients!

1 1/4 cups sifted AP flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp GOOD QUALITY sea salt

1/2 cup turbinado sugar (if yours are large crystals, throw it in a food processor until as fine as white sugar)

1/4 cup white sugar (or use all turbinado sugar if you want a chewier cookie)

1 tsp molasses

1/2 cup butter

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract (optional: use half vanilla and half almond extract)

1 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional: use half chocolate chunks)

Step 2: Brown Your Butter!

Preheat a small sauce pan to Medium/Medium Low heat and throw your stick of butter in. It will start to bubble up a little as it melts down; swirl the pan around instead of stirring with a spoon.

After about 5 minutes, the bubbles will begin to turn to a thick foam.

Watch it carefully! The foam will turn from a nice white/cream to a tan color after a couple more minutes. Once that happens, and it begins to smell nutty and delicious, remove your pan from the heat.

Pour the butter into a silicone baking cup or any heat resistant container and throw it in the freezer for about 15 minutes. You want it to get to the "softened" stage. (don't you DARE forget to keep all the yummy brown bits in the bottom of the pan!)

Step 3: Preheat Your Oven!

Now that your butter is nice and chilled, preheat your oven to 300 F

Step 4: Cream the Butter and Sugars!

Pop out the butter from it's mold and cream it with both the turbinado and white sugars at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Step 5: Add the Wet Ingredients!

Add the molasses and extracts to the butter/sugar mixture at medium-low speed.

Add each egg, one at a time, until well combined.

Step 6: Add the Dry Ingredients!

Combine the flour, baking soda, and half the salt.

Add half of the dry ingredients at a time!

Step 7: Fold in Your Chips!

Dump in your chips (or chunks) and by hand, fold them in.

Make sure not to overmix!

Step 8: Bake Them Up!

Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking sheet.

Scoop 2 tbsp balls of dough and place them about 2 1/2 inches apart.

Sprinkle the remaining half of the sea salt onto the tops of the dough balls.

Bake for 18-20 minutes until the edges are browned.

Step 9: Devour!

Let your cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Pour yourself a glass of ice cold milk, and devour!