Introducing my favourite thick and chewy Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies. These big, buttery chocolate chip cookies are soft and chewy and filled to the brim with chocolate.
I am obsessed with these cookies.
And rightly so. These thick and chewy Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies are what my sugar-coated dreams are made of. They’re big, buttery and completely irresistible.
If you love cookies with crispy, golden edges and a melty centre filled with chocolate, these cookies have your name on them ❤️
I just returned home from a holiday in New York two weeks ago. And one of the first recipes I wanted to try to develop when I got back was a copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie.
I finally had the chance to try their legendary – and ridiculously big – cookies. They are famous, not just for their taste, but for their size – 6 ounce each apparently. They have a rustic, golden brown exterior, and buttery middle that’s filled with chocolate chunks and crunchy walnuts.
And yes they were as delicious as they sound and look.
(Finally trying the Chocolate Chip Cookie from Levain Bakery in New York)
I love my Classic Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe but I knew to achieve the thickness of a Levain Bakery style cookie, it was going to need some tweaking. But the results ARE IN.
A few adjustments to the ingredients and the method and you have a big, fat Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie that you can make at home. BOOM.
You don’t need any special equipment to make these cookies. In fact, you only need all the basic ingredients of a regular Chocolate Chip Cookie, but you need to follow the instructions carefully for best results.
A big part of the cookie magic has to do with the temperature of the butter. While most cookie recipes rely on softened butter or melted butter, but this recipe calls for cold butter. It helps the cookies not to spread too much in the oven.
Another key is the amount of fix-in’s. There’s alot of chocolate AND nuts in this recipe, just like Levain Bakery’s cookie. It also helps the cookies stay thick and lumpy.
I know everyone has their favourite chocolate chip cookie recipe, but I stand by this recipe. It is legit one of the best cookies I’ve tasted at home!
YOU WILL LOVE THESE LEVAIN BAKERY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES BECAUSE:
- They’re extra thick and chewy, with crispy edges.
- They’re filled with good things, like loads of chocolate and chopped walnuts.
- You don’t need to chill the dough so they could be on your table in less than an hour.
- Everyone always loves them!
TIPS FOR MAKING THICK CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
- This recipe calls for COLD butter – straight from the fridge. Not softened or melted.
- Use brown sugar for this recipe for maximum flavour. Brown sugar will also help the cookies spread less in the oven than white sugar.
- These cookie use a little more flour than regular cookies for extra body. You also need to add 1 tablespoon of cornflour (or corn starch) to help keep the cookies soft. If you don’t have any cornflour, you can add an extra tablespoon of plain flour.
- These cookies call for lots of chocolate. I recommend chopping a block of chocolate by hand, instead of using chocolate chips. You can use milk chocolate or dark chocolate or a mix of both.
- Levain Bakery cookies have walnuts in them. I have included walnuts in this recipe, but have tried these cookies with other nuts, such as pecans and almonds. The nuts also help the cookies not to spread. If you don’t want to add nuts, you will need to add extra chocolate to help the cookies from spreading.
- I recommend using 2 tablespoons of cookie dough per cookie. Because these cookies are very thick, they need a few more minutes in the oven, until they are golden brown.
- Test one cookie to see if the cookies are thick enough. If it spreads too much, you might want to chill the dough for an extra 30 minutes and then try baking them again.
MORE COOKIE RECIPES TO TRY:
- Chocolate Oreo Cookies
- Cornflake Marshmallow Cookies
- White Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Honey Cookies
- Lemon Cookies
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Let’s Bake
Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies
Super thick and chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies made from scratch.
Ingredients
- 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter, COLD (straight from the fridge), roughly chopped
- 190 grams (1 cup) brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg, cold
- 245 grams (1 and 3/4 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornflour or cornstarch*
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch of salt, optional
- 225 grams (1 and 1/2 cups) dark or milk chocolate, chopped by hand
- 50 grams (1/2 cup) walnuts, roughly chopped*
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Line two baking trays with baking or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add cold butter and sugar. Beat with an electric mixer until combined. Add vanilla and egg. Beat again until combined – but try not to over mix.
- Add flour, cornflour, baking soda and salt, if using, and beat on a low speed until soft cookie dough forms. Add chocolate and walnuts and beat briefly.
- Scoop out cookie dough, roughly 2 tablespoons per cookie, and place on prepared oven trays, leaving room for the cookie to spread.
- Bake cookies for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown. Leave cookies to cool completely.
Notes
*Cornflour: If you don’t have any cornflour (or cornstarch), add an extra tablespoon of flour.
*Nuts: You can use any nut you like (e.g. pecans or macadamias). If you want to leave out the nuts, add extra chocolate. The generous amount of fix-in’s help the cookies stay thick.
Shaping the dough: Instead of rolling the cookie dough smooth with your hands, leave it rough and pieced together for a more rustic look as pictured below.
Thickness: Try baking one cookie initially. If it’s not thick enough, place the cookie dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes and try again.
Nutrition Information
Matilda says
They look amazing, can’t wait to try making them!
Can you freeze them once baked?
Jessica Holmes says
Totally!
Kari says
Hey Jessica ! Cab we follow the same recipe and make with without eggs?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Kari, I haven’t tried this recipe without eggs but you’ll need to make some adjustment if you do. An egg adds moisture, fat and acts as a binder. Perhaps an egg replacement would work?
Phylis says
Excellent flavor and texture…. definitely a special cookie… but I was expecting them to be higher…. then I realized the picture is of 2 cookies back to back… I thought it was 1 cookie and did 3 batches adjusting oven temp, bake time… and chilling the dough… needless to say there were no complaints from friends and family as I was going through the adjustments.
★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so glad you enjoyed them Phylis!
Emily says
These were some of the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve made. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe. My family loves the cookies and fights over the last one!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Yes! Love that Emily!
Mary says
Rack position in the oven ?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Mary, I just use the middle rack.
Amanda says
I made these for the first time yesterday and they taste amazing.
My family love them.
Thank you, they’re now my go to cookie recipe.
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Yes! So happy to hear that Amanda!
LAK says
amazing recipe !!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Glad you enjoyed them!
Kelly says
My go-to cookie recipe! Love this recipe so much. I swapped for gluten free flour to try it out and it worked great too! I swear by this recipe. Thank you so much 😃
I also swap chocolate flavours and nuts for how I’m feeling on the day and is always delicious x
Jessica Holmes says
Ohh that’s brilliant to hear Kelly! Love that the gf version worked well too.
Amie says
This recipe turns out brilliantly every time. I like how I don’t have to wait an hour while the dough chills like with other cookie recipes.
I often sub in candy like m&ms or smarties for the nuts and use dark baking choc for the choc chunks.
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Love that! Thank you for your kind feedback Amie!
Tina says
Hi! Love this recipe! How can I make these cookies with other flavors? TIA!
Jessica Holmes says
Love that Tina! I use this recipe as a base for lots of different cookies. You can easily shake up the mix-in’s, and add things like M&M’s, pretzels, mini marshmallows, different chocolate chips etc.
Erin says
Hi Jessica,
I am worried about mixing the cold butter with my beaters, as I find this usually just makes chunks of butter fly all over my kitchen. I was wondering whether I could blitz the cold butter and sugar together in the food processor (which is what I do when I make shortbread) and then do step 3 in the mixmaster with the dough hooks? I would be grateful for your advice. Thank you.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Erin, totally understand! I find it works fine in a stand mixer, but I understand it can be a bit wild with hand-held mixers. I think you could do your blitzing idea, although I would use a beater for step 3 on rather than a dough hook. Or you can use softened butter and just chill the dough for 30 minutes to 1 hour before baking. The taste of the cookies will be the same either way!
Erin says
Thanks so much! I’ll let you know how I go.
Reem aqel says
I made it and it was a terrible mess
Ellice says
Love this recipe! Sooo delicious.
My cookies never go golden within the time frame (have checked oven temp and is fine)! By the time they go golden, they’re overdone. Any tips? Or follow time more than colour?
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Ellice, so glad you love them! Are you using all brown sugar, not white sugar? That should aid with the golden colour as well. If your oven temperature is correct, it could just be your oven setting. All ovens are different, but I use the fan-forced setting myself.
L.S says
Made these and they were gone in minutes. I made them a bit thinner so they young ones can eat them easier. And they still turned out perfect!
Thanks so much!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
So happy to hear that!
Mayra Winandy says
I don’t use the nuts, just chocolate instead, and is always PERFECT! Do you think this is the best recipe for whose wants to use just chocolate in the recipe? Another doubt just for curiosity: what happen if overmix the sugar+butter+egg? the dough gets harder? Tks a lot ❤
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you love them Mayra! Yes it’s still a great recipe without the nuts. And great question, over-mixing will cause the butter to become softer/warmer, which can result in the cookies spreading. And yes, it can also cause your cookies to be tough or dry.