Eggless Condensed Milk Cookies (4-Ingredient Milkmaid Cookies)
Soft, chewy eggless condensed milk cookies with crisp edges and a tender melt-in-your-mouth centre. Made with just 4 simple ingredients and no eggs, these Milkmaid cookies are the perfect tea-time treat — ready in under an hour with minimal effort.
Equipment
- OTG / Oven
- Hand Mixer (or hand whisk)
- Mixing Bowl
- Silicone Spatula
- Measuring Cups & Spoons
- Sieve
- Baking Tray
- Parchment / Butter Paper
- Cooling Rack
- Cling Film / Plastic Wrap (for chilling dough)
- Fork (for marking cookies)
Ingredients
- ½ cup Unsalted Butter, soft at room temperature (113g)
- ¼ cup Castor Sugar (or fine granulated sugar) (50g )
- 200 g Sweetened Condensed Milk (about ½ cup, I use Nestle Milkmaid)
- 1 ½ cups All-Purpose Flour (Maida) (180g)
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract (optional but recommended)
- A pinch of Salt (only if using unsalted butter)
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, take the soft butter and castor sugar. Using an electric hand mixer, beat together for about 2 minutes until the mixture turns light, creamy, and pale.
- Add the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract. Continue mixing for another 1–2 minutes until everything is well combined and smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula in between.
- Add the all-purpose flour (and pinch of salt if using unsalted butter). Mix until just combined and a soft dough comes together. Do not overmix.
- Cover the dough with cling film and refrigerate for 30–60 minutes. This step is essential — it firms up the butter and prevents the cookies from spreading too much while baking.
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Take the chilled dough out of the fridge. Scoop a spoonful of dough and roll it into a smooth ball between your palms. Place each ball on the prepared baking tray, leaving about 1 inch of space between each cookie.
- Press each ball gently with a fork in a crisscross pattern. This flattens the cookies slightly and gives them a beautiful classic finish.
- Bake in the preheated oven at 180°C for 12–15 minutes, or until the edges turn golden brown. The centres will look slightly soft — that's exactly what you want.
- Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking tray for 5 minutes — they will firm up as they cool. Then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5–7 days.
Video
Notes
Notes / Tips
- SOFT BUTTER, NOT MELTED — Take butter out of the fridge 30 minutes before baking. Soft butter creams properly with sugar; melted butter will make cookies flat and greasy.
- DON'T SKIP THE CHILLING — The 30–60 minute fridge time is non-negotiable. It firms up the butter, hydrates the flour, and prevents excessive spreading in the oven.
- DON'T OVERMIX THE DOUGH — Once you add the flour, mix only until combined. Overmixing develops gluten and makes cookies tough.
- FORK MARKING IS OPTIONAL BUT BEAUTIFUL — Two gentle crisscross presses with a fork before baking gives that classic homemade cookie look.
- WATCH THE EDGES — These cookies are done the moment the edges turn golden. The centres will look soft — they continue cooking on the hot tray and firm up as they cool.
- STORAGE — Once fully cooled, store in an airtight container. They stay fresh and soft-centred for 5–7 days at room temperature.
- SUBSTITUTIONS — Salted butter works (skip added salt). Regular granulated sugar can replace castor sugar (cream a little longer). Vanilla can be skipped if unavailable.
- DO NOT substitute condensed milk with evaporated milk — they are completely different products.