Brown Sugar & Toffee Sourdough Discard Cookies

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Soft, bakery-style sourdough discard cookies are given given a fun, gut-healthy twist with the addition of sourdough discard! These brown sugar toffee cookies are buttery, chewy, and topped with a buttered maple icing to make them over the top delicious.

brown sugar and toffee sourdough discard cookies drizzled with icing

Since the holidays are officially in full swing, it was high-time for another cookie recipe, don’t you think?

Enter these delightful brown sugar toffee cookies!

Just like this sourdough discard chocolate chip cookie recipe, these cookies are packed with flavor and have great texture, with crisp edges and chewy centers. Deeeeelicious!

Why You’ll Love These Cookies

  • PACKED WITH FLAVOR: These cookies are soft, chewy, and packed with buttery flavors of toffee, vanilla, and maple.
  • USE UP SOURDOUGH DISCARD: Not true to its name, sourdough discard is great for use in a variety of recipes! I love to use it a variety of baked goods, like these sourdough scones, pie crust, and even sourdough discard tortillas!
  • QUICK AND EASY: These cookies can be made in own bowl and bake up very quickly (about 10 minutes!) This helps obtain that chewy texture that we’re going for.

Ingredients You’ll Need

  • Flour: I use unbleached organic all purpose flour.
  • Sourdough Discard: Either discard or active starter will work in this recipe.
  • Brown Sugar: This recipe uses brown sugar for its deeper flavor and to make an extra chewy, rich cookie.
  • Butter: Softened, please! You can use salted or unsalted.
  • Eggs: This recipe uses 1 egg + 1 egg yolk. Trust me here, the addition of the extra yolk makes the cookies rich and chewy.
  • Salt + Leavening agents: The salt is needed to balance all the sweetness. This recipe also calls for baking powder, baking soda, and cornstarch (to make the cookies extra chewy).
  • Vanilla Extract: Pure vanilla extract, pretty please.
  • Toffee Bits: The best part! The recipe calls for 1 cup, but make to sure to measure with your heart 🙂

Rachael’s Top Tips!

  • I HIGHLY recommend chilling the dough for a minimum of 2 hours for best results. I typically chill mine overnight and bake the next day.
  • If you love sweet and salty, topping these cookies with a light sprinkle of flaky sea salt makes them extra delicious.

Step by Step Instructions

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a medium bowl, cream together softened butter and brown sugar until combined.
  2. Beat in the egg, egg yolk, sourdough discard, and vanilla extract until light (about 1 minute).
  3. Begin adding in the dry ingredients, mixing until combined.
  4. Add in the toffee bits and mix well.
  5. Add the dough to the fridge to chill for a minimum of 2 hours and up to overnight.
  6. Once ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare two baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper or a silpat baking mat. Set aside.
  7. Using a medium sized cookie scoop, scoop out 12 equal balls of cookie dough onto each prepared cookie sheet.
  8. Bake in preheated oven for approximately 10-11 minutes. Take them out when they are just barely starting to turn golden brown.
  9. For best results, let them sit on the baking pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.
  10. Baked cookies will store well in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Enjoy!
brown sugar and toffee sourdough discard cookies drizzled with icing

How to Make Buttered Maple Icing

Optional but definitely delicious, this maple glaze is the same one I use in this sourdough chocolate chip scone recipe. It comes together quickly using just a few ingredients. To make it, you will need:

  • 6 tbsp butter
  • 1/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • good pinch of salt
  • 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, add in the butter and maple syrup, whisking until the butter has completely melted and combined with the syrup.
  2. Remove from heat and add in 1 tsp of vanilla extract, pinch salt, and powdered sugar. Whisk together until completely smooth.
  3. Pour the glaze over the cooled cookies. Enjoy!
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Quick Tips for Success

  • I HIGHLY recommend chilling the dough for best results. I typically chill mine overnight and bake the next day.
  • If chilling overnight, I like to set out the bowl of cookie dough to thaw on the counter before trying to scoop and shape the cookies. Letting the dough come to room temperature makes this process much easier.
  • I always like to slightly underbake my cookies in order to obtain a chewier texture. They will continue to cook briefly on the cookie sheet once they are pulled out of the oven.
  • Don’t skip out on the additions of the egg yolk and cornstarch. They help to make a much chewier, softer cookie!
  • Using room temperature ingredients really does make a difference!
  • Feel free to experiment with different flavors. I add chopped pecans in this cookie recipe. Dark chocolate chips would also be a delicious swap.
  • If you don’t own a stand mixer, you can still easily make this recipe using a large bowl and an electric handheld mixer.

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FAQs & Storage Tips

Yes! These cookies can be made ahead of time and placed in the freezer until ready to bake. Sometimes I will make double the amount of cookie dough just so I can freeze some to have at a later time. My method for this is to scoop out balls of cookie dough and add them to a gallon sized freezer safe bag, making sure I store the bag laying flat in the freezer. Once you are ready to bake, you can pop the cookies straight from the freezer into the oven, or set out on the counter to thaw beforehand. If you are putting them straight in the oven from the freezer, you may need to adjust your baking time to allow the frozen dough extra time to bake.

These cookies store well at room temperature on the counter for up to 3 days, or an airtight container for up to 5 days. If you haven’t heard of the bread trick, definitely try it. Simply add a small slice of bread to your container to keep your cookies extra soft!

Keep in mind that at the end of the day, it is still a cookie recipe that contains sugar and fats. However, sourdough is a great option because the long fermented grain is more easily digested and utilized. It also adds more flavor to any recipe.

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Yield: 24 cookies

Brown Sugar Toffee Sourdough Discard Cookies

brown sugar and toffee sourdough discard cookies drizzled with icing

Soft, bakery-style sourdough discard cookies are given given a fun, gut-healthy twist with the addition of sourdough discard! These brown sugar toffee cookies are buttery, chewy, and topped with a buttered maple icing to make them over the top delicious.

Ingredients

Cookies

  • 2 sticks butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
  • 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup toffee bits

Buttered Maple Icing

  • 6 tbsp butter, melted
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • Pinch of salt

Instructions

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a medium bowl, cream together softened butter and brown sugar until combined.
  2. Beat in the egg, egg yolk, sourdough discard, and vanilla extract until light (about 1 minute).
  3. Begin adding in the dry ingredients, mixing until combined.
  4. Add in the toffee bits and mix well.
  5. Add the dough to the fridge to chill for a minimum of 2 hours and up to overnight.
  6. Once ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare two baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper or a silpat baking mat. Set aside.
  7. Using a medium sized cookie scoop, scoop out 12 equal balls of cookie dough onto each prepared cookie sheet.
  8. Bake in preheated oven for approximately 10-11 minutes. Take them out when they are just barely starting to turn golden brown.
  9. For best results, let them sit on the baking pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.
  10. Make the maple icing: In a small saucepan over medium heat, add in the butter and maple syrup, whisking until the butter has completely melted and combined with the syrup.
  11. Remove from heat and add in 1 tsp of vanilla extract, pinch salt, and powdered sugar. Whisk together until completely smooth.
  12. Pour the glaze over the cooled cookies. Enjoy!

Notes

  • I HIGHLY recommend chilling the dough for best results. I typically chill mine overnight and bake the next day.
  • If chilling overnight, I like to set out the bowl of cookie dough to thaw on the counter before trying to scoop and shape the cookies. Letting the dough come to room temperature makes this process much easier.
  • I always like to slightly underbake my cookies in order to obtain a chewier texture. They will continue to cook briefly on the cookie sheet once they are pulled out of the oven.
  • Don’t skip out on the additions of the egg yolk and cornstarch. They help to make a much chewier, softer cookie!
  • Using room temperature ingredients really does make a difference!
  • Feel free to experiment with different flavors. I add chopped pecans in this cookie recipe. Dark chocolate chips would also be a delicious swap.
  • If you don’t own a stand mixer, you can still easily make this recipe using a large bowl and an electric handheld mixer.

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    © Rachael

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    Rachael

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