Brown Butter, Brown Sugar, Chocolate Chip Shortcakes.

Slow down. Like... just slow down. 

I don't need to see Halloween candy just yet. I know I've already started my Christmas list, but this is different. 

And maybe I'm already thinking about candy corn dinners (just let it happen), cut-out sugar cookies, and gingerbread cakes, but why are you all seriously baking with pumpkin already? P.S. It's August and I'm still eating kettlecorn for dinner, looking for pools to jump into, and baking with fresh summer fruit. 

Or, you know. Sandwiching it between chocolate chip shortcakes. Which is totally the same thing and you know it. 

This is the kind of girlfriend I am. Can I tell you? 

Strawberry shortcakes are kind of our thing. Kind of like cheesecake is our thing... except yeah, we'll definitely bring strawberries and whipped cream and those round, sponge-y yellow shortcakes to the drive-in and on picnics and on long-distance road trips. We'll do that. No problem. We know how to shortcake it up. 

So I made these homemade shortcakes because it's still August and I refuse to bake with pumpkin, full of brown butter, chocolate chips, and loads of brown sugar. 

They looked like pancakes. 

Then they turned into crumbly, soft, for real shortcakes. 

Which are basically just giant biscuits for berries. 

... and maybe I baked them a minute too long because I was busy swirling Oreo cheesecake tuffles into cookie dough at the same time. Totally a normal day.

Then I piled on whipped cream and big slices of strawberries to make up for it and ended up with this fancy shortcake situation. 

Which he devoured in two bites and declared "hella breakfast-y" before wandering off in search of Oreo truffle chocolate chip cookies. 

And that's our relationship. 

So in case you weren't aware: strawberry shortcakes are officially a breakfast thing. Put that in your summer and seriously, on our friendship, put down the pumpkin.

Brown Butter, Brown Sugar, Chocolate Chip Shortcakes

Printable Recipe 

2 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, browned

1/4 cup brown sugar + 1 tablespoon for sprinkling

2/3 cup milk

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Sliced strawberries & whipped cream 

Brown butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. (Click here for a post on browning butter.) Pour into a separate bowl and allow to cool slightly. 

Preheat oven to 425°F. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

Whisk brown sugar into slightly cooled browned butter. Add mixture to the bowl with flour and whisk until just combined. Add the milk, a little at a time, and continue whisking until a smooth dough begins to form. Fold in chocolate chips.

Drop by the spoonful onto a baking sheet lined with parchment, form into a round shape, and sprinkle with a little brown sugar. Bake for 12 minutes. 

Allow to cool completely, then slice and layer with sliced strawberries and whipped cream. 

Makes 6 shortcakes.

Source: Baking Serendipity.

Cheesecake Cookie Sandwiches Two Ways: Brown Butter Chocolate Chunk & Strawberry Shortcake.

Things.

1. I finally got caught up with The Secret Circle.

And it got cancelled! What? This is not okay. Dear The CW: please write Jake, Adam, Melissa, Diana, and Faye into The Vampire Diaries. Which I'm also not caught up on. 

2. COOL WHIP Whipped Topping + cream cheese + sugar = basically impromptu cheesecake for your face. 

3. Can life please slow down? I cannot juggle being an adult, finding time to enjoy life, and laundry. 

4. I'm blogging this in a Starbucks. I never thought I'd be that girl. Plus I feel like everyone's staring. "Look at that girl in the corner, staring at twenty pictures of cookies like she's doing important business. Her hair's cute though." 

4. Strawberry shortcake cookies. Totally an acceptable summer breakfast thing.

They're soft, muffin-y, and best the very minute they're made.

... especially with spoonfuls of creamy cheesecake filling.

It turns them into magical strawberry shortcake sandwiches. Who doesn't need that in their summer?

5. Chocolate chip cookies are tasty with cheesecake too. Who knew?

How festive would these be rolled in some sparkly red and blue sprinkles for a 4th of July/summer/barbeque situation?

Answer: Do it.  

6. Also... brown butter? It makes everything better. 

It's kind of like ice coffee after work. 

Actually, it's like anything after work... because you're off work. 

Flecks of brown butter. Chunks of chocolate. Molasses. Yes. I never thought I'd put molasses in anything other than gingersnaps, but these are soft and chewy and rich... and that brown butter! Get out.

I know I just declared passionate love for these cookies, but these are hands-down my new favorite chocolate chip cookies.

7. Cookie sandwich party. It happened.

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies 

Original Post

Printable Recipe

Note: These cookies are made from a crumbly shortcake dough and take a little bit of determination to scoop into dough balls. They bake up cakey and soft and because they're made with fresh strawberries, are only good the day they're made. P.S. They're so worth it.

Brown Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies 

Printable Recipe

1 cup (2 sticks) + 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon molasses

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Brown 1 stick plus 1 tablespoon of butter. Once butter is browned, remove from heat and pour into a bowl to cool slightly.

In a stand mixture fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the other stick of butter with the granulated sugar until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and molasses and beat until incorporated. Add the slightly cooled brown butter and the brown sugar and mix on medium speed for about 2 minutes. Add the egg and egg yolk and mix until fully incorporated. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Add all at once to the butter mixture and mix on low until just incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips with a wooden spoon or spatula.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Scoop dough into balls using a small cookie scoop and place 2 inches apart on baking sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until cookies are just starting to turn golden brown around the edges. Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Source: The Joy the Baker cookbook.

Cheesecake Filling

Printable Recipe

1 cup COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons granulated sugar 

Beat together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Stir in the COOL WHIP until creamy. Refrigerate until ready to use. Spread or pipe on bottom of one cookies, then place another cookie on top. Store in refrigerator.

Source: Kraft.

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I recieved coupons for free COOL WHIP Whipped Topping and a stipend. Sponsored posts are purely editorial content that we are pleased to have presented by a participating sponsor. Advertisers do not produce this content. 

What you add makes it. #coolwhipmoms