Chocolate Chip Cookies without Brown Sugar

See how to make chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar! The easy homemade cookies are studded with chocolate chips and have a rich, buttery aroma. Plus, you only need 6 ingredients and 15 minutes prep for this simple white sugar chocolate chip cookies recipe.

Chocolate chip cookie with white sugar

Are you craving moist and soft chocolate chip cookies, but are out of brown sugar and don’t want to run to the store? Then this chocolate chip cookie recipe without brown sugar is for you!

I chose white, granulated sugar for these soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies because it’s the most accessible type of sugar. White sugar chocolate chip cookies are a bit crisper and thinner than their brown sugar counterparts but still absolutely delicious!

Cookies made from scratch are the best thing ever! My family loves these cookies and didn’t even notice that they are made with white sugar only. I’m sure you’ll love the recipe too. It’s so easy and quick to make!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup salted butter – I usually use salted butter for the chocolate chip cookie recipe, but unsalted butter + 1/4 tsp fine sea salt will work just as fine. You can also omit the salt if preferred.
• 1 cup granulated sugar (white sugar) or caster sugar
• 1 egg – Use a large egg, not medium or jumbo. If you live in the UK or Europe, use a medium egg.
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour – Unbleached all-purpose flour is best. You can also opt for bread flour if you like extra chewy cookies. I don’t recommend cake flour as the cookies will spread too much.
• 1 teaspoon baking soda – gives the cookies a nice rise and soft texture. Baking powder works as well, but makes the cookies more cakey.
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract – balances out the other flavors and creates a rich, bakery-style aroma.
• 1 cup chocolate chips – I used semi sweet chocolate chips, which you can swap for chopped chocolate or chocolate chunks. Using top-quality chocolate makes all the difference and creates the best chocolate flavor.

Mix-ins & substitutes

• Chocolate chips: Semisweet chocolate chips can be subbed with milk, dark, or white chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, peanut butter chips, or butterscotch chips. You can also mix and match different types of chocolate chips.
• Chopped nuts: Feel free to replace 1/2 cup chocolate chips with 1/2 cup chopped nuts of your choice, for example, pecans, walnuts, or almonds. Nuts tend to make the dough oilier, so I always add 2 extra tablespoons of flour to the dough.
• Dried fruit, such as cranberries, cherries, raisins, or chopped apricots, is delicious add-ins for chocolate chip cookies. Replace 1/2 cup chocolate chips with 1/3 cups dried fruits. Since dried fruit often contains extra sugar, your cookies might turn out a little sweeter.
• Flavor extracts: Tired of vanilla? Then swap it for peppermint or bitter almond extract!

Instructions

1. Preheat oven

• Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C / gas mark 4. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment (baking) paper. Set aside.

2. Cream butter and sugar

• Add the butter and granulated sugar into a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until the mixture becomes creamy, for about 1 to 2 minutes. Scrap down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Tip: Don’t mix the butter and sugar longer than 2 minutes as this leads to flat cookies.

3. Add egg and vanilla extract

• Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until combined.

4. Incorporate dry ingredients

• Add the flour and baking soda. Stir with a rubber spatula or cooking spoon until the ingredients are just combined, and you see no lumps of flour.

5. Add chocolate chips

• Fold in the chocolate chips or other mix-ins until evenly distributed throughout the dough.

6. Portion the cookie dough

• Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, scoop out cookie dough and arrange the cookie dough balls 3 in / 7 cm apart on the lined baking sheets (trays).
• Optionally, press a few extra chocolate chips on top of each dough ball.

7. Bake

• Bake the cookies for 11 to 14 minutes, until the sides are lightly browned. The centers will still look soft and pale, which is fine.

8. Cool

• Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheet (tray) for 5 minutes.
• Once the cookies are cool enough to handle, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Tips

• Measuring flour: Measuring flour correctly is essential for the best chocolate chip cookies. Using the flour with a kitchen scale will produce the most accurate result. The best way to measure flour by volume (with cups) is to spoon the flour into the measuring cup and then use a straight edge to level off the excess. This is called the spoon and level method. Packing the flour will result in dense and crumble cookies, so we want to avoid that.
• Don’t overmix the cookie dough. If you watch the recipe video, you’ll notice that I only use my electric mixer to cream the butter and incorporate the egg but switch to a spatula to add the flour. Preparing the cookie dough this way ensure that we aren’t overmixing the dough. Overmixing promotes gluten development, which will make the cookies tough.
• Space the cookie dough scoops apart. Be sure to arrange the cookie dough scoops 3 in / 7 cm apart. They will expand while baking as you don’t want them sticking together.
• Oven temperature: Always preheat the oven for at least 10 to 15 minutes. Some ovens don’t heat correctly and can be off by a few degrees. If your cookies seem underbaked or brown too quickly, use an oven thermometer to check the temperature.
• Soft cookies: Bake only for the minimum cooking time and reduce the oven temperature to 325°F / 165°C / gas mark 3 if you prefer soft chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar.
• Chewy cookies: In case you like chewy cookies with crisp edges, bake a little longer, around 13 to 15 minutes.

Store

• Store: Keep the cookies in an airtight container. They will last at room temperature for 7 days.
• Freeze: You can freeze baked cookies in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to enjoy your white sugar chocolate chip cookies, simply allow them to defrost for a few hours.
• Cookie dough: The unbaked dough will last for up to 4 days in the fridge. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap/clingfilm or transfer the dough into a food container. I also recommend pressing a piece of plastic wrap/clingfilm directly on the dough, so it doesn’t dry out.