Maple Brown Butter Sweet Potato Cookies with Vanilla Bean Glaze

Some cookies are simply sweet and others tell a story. This one tells of fall mornings, warm kitchens, and that golden stillness that only the season can bring.

These Maple Brown Butter Sweet Potato Cookies are tender, melt-in-your-mouth creations perfectly balanced between rustic warmth and refined indulgence. They taste like a cross between a soft sweet potato pie and a maple-glazed shortbread, but lighter, silkier, and kissed with vanilla.

They’re the kind of cookies you bake when you want to treat yourself gently when you crave comfort that still feels beautiful.

Affirmation for the Bake

“I am allowed to taste joy in small, golden moments.”

Ingredients

For the Cookies:

• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, browned and cooled

• ½ cup light brown sugar, packed

• ¼ cup granulated sugar

• ⅓ cup mashed roasted sweet potato (about ½ small sweet potato)

• 1 large egg yolk

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg

• ¼ teaspoon salt

For the Vanilla Bean Glaze:

• 1 cup powdered sugar

• 1 tablespoon melted butter

• 2 tablespoons milk or cream

• ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or extract)

• Pinch of salt

Directions

Step 1: Brown the Butter

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat until golden and nutty.

2. Let it cool for 10 minutes until slightly thickened.

Step 2: Mix the Wet Ingredients

1. In a bowl, whisk together brown butter, sugars, sweet potato, egg yolk, vanilla, and maple syrup until creamy.

Step 3: Combine Dry Ingredients

1. In a separate bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

2. Gently fold into the wet mixture until a soft dough forms. Chill for 20–30 minutes for easier shaping.

Step 4: Bake

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).

2. Scoop tablespoon-sized portions onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.

3. Bake for 9–11 minutes, until the edges are just golden but the centers remain soft.

4. Cool completely before glazing.

Step 5: Make the Glaze

1. In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, butter, milk, vanilla bean, and salt until silky and pourable.

2. Drizzle or dip each cooled cookie for a luxurious, glossy finish.

3. Let the glaze set for about 10 minutes — though they’re divine even slightly warm.

Reflection from the Kitchen

Every fall, there’s a sweetness that doesn’t shout it hums softly beneath the cinnamon, the maple, the stillness of early evenings. These cookies carry that energy: tender, golden, full of quiet joy.

They remind you that comfort doesn’t have to be heavy sometimes it’s just a soft cookie, a cup of tea, and a pause between heartbeats.

Serving Notes

Serve with a warm latte, chai, or even a maple cold brew. These cookies keep beautifully for up to 3 days though they rarely last that long.

They also make a lovely gift wrapped in parchment and tied with a satin ribbon, they say “thank you,” “I love you,” and “this moment matters.”

Destiny’s Reflection

“Even in the smallest things like cookies cooling on a rack I can find peace, beauty, and becoming.”