Chewy Brown Butter Sourdough Cadbury Egg Cookies

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There is something undeniably good about pastel Cadbury mini chocolate eggs that results in me buying several bags as soon as they hit the shelf each Spring. Their petite size, crunchy outer shell, and creamy, rich chocolate makes them so, so satisfying.

And guess what? They make one of the best cookies you’ll ever make. Using my super chewy, reader favorite Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe as the base, the mini chocolate eggs are crushed and mixed into salted brown butter sourdough cookie dough, and baked into the chewy, gooey cookie of your dreams – spring style.

You’ll love the buttery crisp edges and super soft middles, filled with pockets of melted Cadbury eggs with just a little crunch from the chocolate shells. There’s loads of nutty, rich flavor from using browned butter, extra vanilla, and being kissed with perfect amount of salt. Each bite has a good amount of the milky, sweet chocolate and the pastel colors make these the perfect Easter treat.

They come together so easily – no stand mixer needed, just a bowl and a whisk! That was a very important factor when I was developing this recipe, as I wanted everyone to be able to make them.

A few ingredient notes for you:

• Brown Butter
  • To enhance the chew and give these cookies the most amazing toasty flavor, you’ll brown unsalted butter. This is a simple process that means melting regular butter on the stovetop and simmering for a few minutes, which cooks some of the water out and the milk solids fall to the bottom and turn into brown toasty bits. That’s where all the flavor is! I have included a video in the recipe card so you can see just how easy it is to do.
• Sourdough Discard
  • Use room temperature discard so that it easily incorporates into the wet ingredients, otherwise you risk over mixing the dough.
• Mini Cadbury Chocolate Eggs
  • There really is no substitute here! They come in milk chocolate and dark chocolate. Normally I prefer dark chocolate, but when testing this recipe, the milk chocolate really complimented the brown butter. I preferred it.
• Pure Vanilla Extract
  • I do not hold back on using vanilla. You’ll use 3/4 tablespoon to impart incredible flavor, just like a bakery.

To crush the Cadbury mini eggs, put them in a ziploc bag and use a rolling pin or meat tenderizer mallet. Using a knife will not work.

Does Sourdough Discard Make Cookies Sour?

Nope! Sourdough discard provides moisture and adds a developed flavor to the cookies. Since it is fermented, the gluten structure is weakened so baking soda and baking powder are used here as leaveners.

Sourdough discard is simply your sourdough starter that hasn’t been fed, therefore has no leavening power. It is a really great, fermented ingredient of just flour + water that can be used to make many different things, like my flaky sourdough discard biscuits and our weekend staple; quick and fluffy sourdough pancakes that are better than the diner.

I keep my discard in a closed jar in the refrigerator and add to it for up to 10 days. (Longer than that and it will get pretty sour, and isn’t great for baking with.)

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Chewy Brown Butter Sourdough Cadbury Egg Cookies

These chewy, brown butter sourdough cookies are filled with crushed mini Cabury chocolate eggs and are incredibly delicious. They have the perfect gooey texture, pastel colors, and buttery edges. Brown butter gives them a rich and nutty flavor and the sweet, rich chocolate pairs perfectly. So easy to make with just a whisk and bowl. It's the most delicious way to use up leftover sourdough starter!

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time :15 minutes minutes

Cook Time :12 minutes minutes

Fridge Time :30 minutes minutes

Yield: 18 cookies

Author: Amanda Paa

Ingredients

• 113 grams (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
• 150 grams brown sugar
• 140 grams granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 80 grams sourdough discard, room temperature (discard less than 5 days is old is preferred)
• 3/4 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 235 grams all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 6 ounces finely chopped Cadbury chocolate mini eggs (I prefer the milk chocolate in these cookies)
• Flaky salt, optional

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Equipment

• Half Sheet Pan

Instructions 

• To crush the Cadbury mini eggs, put them in a ziploc bag and use a rolling pin or meat tenderizer mallet to smack and crush them. Using a knife will not work. Keep about 2 to 3 tablespoons of the crushed chocolate in a small bowl, as you'll use this to top the baked cookies.

Brown the Butter:

• In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Cook for several minutes to brown the butter. It will go from simmering to bubbling to foaming, and you will begin to see brown flecks on the edges of the pan and the bottom. It will smell nutty and delicious. Once you can see a good amount of brown specks, remove from heat and pour butter and scrape all the bits into your mixing bowl that you will use for the cookies.
• Add sugars and stir to coat. Then add sourdough discard and stir to incorporate a bit. Then add egg and switch to a whisk, whisking mixture until it is cohesive. Add vanilla and whisk again.
• In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add half the flour mixture to the wet mixture, and stir with a spatula, about 15 times. Then add remaining flour and stir gently to incorporate, until almost all the flour is absorbed, but not quite. We want to avoid overworking the dough, so add the chopped chocolate (except the reserved tablespoons) now, and finish mixing the dough.
• Cover and refrigerate for 45 minutes*. When time is up, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare a sheet pan with parchment paper, and scoop 55 gram dough balls. I usually bake 7 cookies at a time.
• Bake for about 12-13 minutes, until edges are a little bit brown and middles are just set. Do not overbake. Remove from oven , sprinkle some of the reserved crush chocolate eggs on top, and using a spoon, press (smush) down the middle of the cookies; this deflates the cookie a bit and gives you the gooeyness (watch me do this in quick video below).

  Let cookies cool on pan for 5 minutes. They will finish baking here. Then move cookies to a wire rack to cool. Top with a light sprinkle of flaky salt.

Notes

• You can refrigerate the dough for up to 36 hours. The longer they are in the fridge, the more you will be REWARDED with a more intensified the flavor and goodness. Same goes for these (delicious!) Brown Butter Sourdough White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies.
• I highly recommend using an inexpensive oven thermometer when you are baking, as no oven is calibrated exactly precise, even one that is brand new. Your other likely runs hotter or cooler than it actually reads, and this can determine how much your cookies spread or do not spread and if they will look and taste like the recipe was written for. Using an oven thermometer allows you to slightly adjust the temperature to make it correct.