Sourdough Brownie Cookies

These were supposed to be double chocolate chip cookies but they turned out so brownie-like in texture and flavor that I had to change the name to sourdough brownie cookies! This isn’t just a way to use up that discard (I treat my unfed starter like a coveted ingredient, and am always purposefully incorporating it into my bakes). The discard here provides structure and moisture to the cookie dough but also lightens the overall cookie.

Recipe Origins

I worked off my sourdough chocolate chip cookie recipe; but changed a few things in order to incorporate cocoa into the dough; increasing the discard added, upping the leavening a little and the cookies overall do fine with a shorter rest (overnight is ideal but we don’t need the full 24-48 hours that the original recipe needed). 

The result is a perfect brownie cookie: The edges and exterior are crispy and the inside is a deeper fudgier (gooey when warm!) chocolate. Sourdough softens the texture and makes the filing even more gooey! 

Recipe Ingredients 

Butter: unsalted butter, american (around 80% butterfat) or european (82-83% butterfat) will do though the latter will lead to a slightly flatter cookie. 

Brown sugar: light or dark, but I prefer light brown here. 

Sugar: fine granulated sugar. 

Cocoa: dutch process cocoa powder; not natural cocoa powder and not black cocoa. Dutched cocoa will give us the optimal cookie texture and richest chocolate flavor.

Egg yolks: from two large eggs. Reserve the egg whites for another use (like these double chocolate cookies that don’t use discard!).

Discard: unfed sourdough starter. My discard is usually no more than a week old. 

Salt: fine sea salt. If using table salt, halve the amount. 

Vanilla: pure vanilla extract, for the best flavor.

Flour: all purpose flour of a medium protein content (mine is about 11%). If your flour is 10% protein content (gold medal is relatively low) the cookies will spread more. 

Baking powder & Soda: to leaven the cookie (help them spread and puff up). 

Chocolate: either semi-sweet, milk or dark chocolate chips or chop up a chocolate bar into chunks. Chocolate chunks will likely lead to a wider cookie spread because they melt rather than hold shape (a chocolate chip is designed not to melt). Use a good quality chocolate! 

How to Make Sourdough Brownie Cookies

Cook the sugar and butter: set the two sugars and butter in a pot over medium heat. Once the butter melts, whisk the mix together well then let it cook until it begins to bubble. 

Let it bubble for about 2 minutes, then shut off the heat. We’ve just made something that’s rather like a butterscotch sauce =)

Turn off the heat and add the cocoa and whisk to combine. Transfer the mix to a medium sized bowl. 

Pour in the vanilla and salt, then whisk: the mix will start to clump around and inside the whisk. 

Let it cool for about five minutes. 

Add the egg yolks and whisk very well

Pour in the sourdough starter and whisk until you have a thick, shiny runny batter (it will be like brownie batter)

Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda and stir until well mixed. 

Check the dough – if it’s still pretty warm, wait 10 minutes before adding the chocolate chips (we don’t want the chocolate to melt into the dough before it bakes).

Cover the dough with plastic wrap and set in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight. 

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. 

Use a disher or cookie scoop to portion the cookies into mounds that are about two tablespoons per cookie. Set them so there’s space for the cookies to spread. 

Bake until the cookies are matte all over, have spread and cracked, for about 12-13 minutes. 

Sourdough Brownie Cookies Recipe

Sourdough Brownie Cookies

Thick, fudgy chocolate brownie cookies with crispy exteriors and gooey middles made with sourdough discard, dutch cocoa, and chocolate chips!

Prep Time: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 12 minutes mins

Chill Time: 4 hours hrs

Yields: 12 large cookies

5 from 9 votes

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Ingredients

• 113g or ½ cup butter unsalted
• 100g or ½ cup brown sugar
• 100g or ½ cup fine granulated sugar
• 50g or ½ cup cocoa dutch process
• 2 yolks from 2 large eggs yolks only, reserve the whites for another use
• 90g sourdough discard unfed starter
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1-2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 150g all purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• up to 1 cup chocolate chips optional

Method

• Set the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a medium sized pot over medium low heat. Let the butter melt then whisk the mixture well. Continue to cook until it starts to bubble, then let it boil for another 1-2 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the cocoa (sift it in if it’s lumpy), whisk to combine.
• Transfer the mixture to a medium to large sized bowl, add the vanilla and salt then give it a good whisk (you’ll see it start to clump into the whisk). Let cool for at least 5 minutes.
• Add the egg yolks and quickly whisk well. Add the sourdough discard and whisk until you have a smooth, shiny batter. Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda and switch to a spatula to stir and combine.
• Before adding the chocolate chips, check to ensure that the dough is cool (if you add them too soon, the chocolate will melt into the dough). Once cool, stir in the chips and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Set in the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours, and up to overnight (about 8-10 hours).
• Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease then line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop the cookie dough onto the prepared sheets in balls that are about 2 tablespoons each. Leave enough space for them to spread, an inch around.
• Bake the cookies for 12 minutes, the centers should look matte and dry. Let cool briefly on the pan then transfer to a cooling rack.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container.

Notes

Note: I’ve added cup measurements for those ingredients that translate easily into cups, for when a slight over or under measuring will not affect the final result. This recipe is ideally made using a scale.

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