Brown Butter Whole Grain Granola Cookie

Have granola? Can cookie.

Hey Everyone!

It’s been warmer here in Brooklyn and the shift in energy is so noticeable. More neighbors are out on the street, businesses are more bustling. It’s great. While I have the month off due to some much needed building renovations and improvements at work i’ve been preparing recipes and accumulating ingredients for my first ever pop up. It’s coming at the end of the month at a cute coffee shop in my neighborhood. I promise more details soon! So excited.

I hope ya’ll are taking care and enjoy this super accessible recipe today. One of my favorite things is to see how people take a recipe of mine and make it their own through unique additions and adaptations. I can’t wait to see how you enjoy this flexible cookie recipe!

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There’s been so much talk about granola here lately!

Cookbook author, visual artist, and salad evangelist,

Julia Sherman

kicked off a huge nationwide granola exchange (yes you read that right) last month alongside a way to support the LA community via granola care packages. Since the launch i’ve seen so many delicious granola recipes across my feed here and on instagram. It’s been fun to see so many people gravitate around a simple way to share joy and kitchen creativity. Here are some of my favorites:

Cherry-Ginger Sourdough Granola from

Lukas Volger

Strawberry Pistachio Granola from

Clare Langan

Tahini Granola + Brown Sugar Crunch from

Sarah Copeland

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Today’s Recipe

While I missed out on the chance to make and send my own granola via the exchange, I’ve made a lot of it in my time. In graduate school I got the knack for making huge batches that would make breakfast one less thing to think about as I navigated busy week after busy week. At the time I was also making my own yogurt weekly so I really had a whole production going on in my kitchen. A lot of the granola was gifted away (no one wanted the yogurt) but I’d still wind up with freezer bags of the stuff that needed a home.

For this cookie, I imagined an already delicious granola being gently hugged by a wholegrain-y brown butter-y dough. The cookie itself had to be delicious on it’s own with wiggle room to compliment any creative granola you could throw at it. While the cookies might be unassuming from the outside, you’ll know the beauty that lies within.

You can certainly use any homemade granola but this recipe also works wonderfully with store bought granola. Granola recipes often tout themselves as great ways to use up a pantry of dried fruits and nuts but I know many people’s pantries don’t look like that so it was important that this work with all granolas and all pantries in mind. :)

A few notes…

• For the flour, you have a lot of options! I used a blend of wheat, rye, spelt, and corn from Maine Grains because I had it but you can use 100% all-purpose or 100% whole wheat or a blend of flours. I haven’t tested a fully gluten free version, but a store bought blend that includes a thickener like xanthan gum should work fine!

• This recipe works (and is quite delicious) with granola that includes dried fruit. If your granola has freeze dried fruit tuck any exposed chunks of fruit into the dough before baking. freeze dried fruit has a tendency to burn in the oven but will be just fine if enveloped within the cookie dough.

• The melted butter, brown sugar, and extra yolk here help to create a cookie with a nice chew and fudgy interior. Extend the baking time by 3 to 4 minutes to make a more crisp cookie.

• These cookies are best baked right after mixing, before the oats and grains in the granola absorb too much of the cookie’s hydration. If you bake these from chilled the next day, you’ll get pudgier cookies, which isn’t a bad thing! I like to gently press them down before baking to create a more rounded and flat cookie.

Brown Butter Granola Cookie

makes about 10 cookies

113g unsalted butter, cold

80g white sugar

75g light brown sugar

1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk

177g flour (see note above)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

225g granola, homemade or store bought

1. With a rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 350F. Line a sheet tray with parchment and set aside.

2. In a small light-colored saucepan or skillet, place half (56g) the butter and melt over medium heat. Stir the butter frequently until the sizzling subsides and you notice flecks of copper colored butter solids resting on the bottom of the pan. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining butter to stop the cooking. Allow to cool until just above room temp but still liquid, 10 to 15 minutes.

3. In the same pan or after moving into a large mixing bowl, combine the melted butter with both sugars and whisk to combine. Add in the egg followed by the yolk and continue to whisk until the mixture is lighter in color, and aerated. It should appear whipped and creamy, see photo below.

4. Add the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon to the mixture and fold a few times with a rubber spatula before adding in the granola and continuing to mix until no dry flour remains. I find it easier to switch to a clean hand and gentle knead the mixture together a few times at the very end of mixing.

5. Scoop the dough into heaping 3 tablespoon balls and place onto the prepared pan with about 3 to 4 inches between each cookie. Bake for 14-16 minutes. Less time yields a chewier cookies. More time yields a crisp cookie. Cookies can be stored at room temperature and are even better on the second day.