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Authentic Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

June 22, 2020 by thedomesticrebel | 25 Comments

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author holding a split open dark chocolate chip cookie

No need to travel to NYC for Levain’s cookies when you can make these Authentic Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies in the comfort of your own home! Easy, fast, and utterly decadent!

So as you can probably tell, I am on a Levain copycat cookie kick and I don’t intend on stopping!*

*well, I’m stopping after Wednesday’s post of their copycat oatmeal raisin cookies. THEN I’m stopping.

These cookies are just SO good that I had to keep making the rest of the cookies in the series. It’s only fair!

So far I’ve made the Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies and the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies, and the oatmeal raisin is coming soon! But first: these dark chocolate wonders.

If you’ve never had Levain Bakery’s cookies, they are insanely good. At a whopping 6 ounces EACH, they’re ginormous and packed with tons of gooey goodness. Usually Levain has a huge, long line snaked around the block outside and once inside on their Upper West Side location, there’s about 5 cubic square feet to move around in before you’re bum-rushed out by a new wave of eager and hungry customers. So it isn’t exactly a relaxing bakery sit-down experience.

cut open dark chocolate chip cookie stacked on wire rack

And if you wanted to ship Levain’s cookies home, you’d be looking at a hefty price tag. For 2-day air shipping it’s around $40-50!!! That is insane to pay for 2-day old cookies, IMO, when you can make these Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies from home!

closeup arrangement of dark chocolate chip cookies on a wire rackThe best part is that these taste nearly identical to the famed bakery without ever leaving your home. Score!!

There are a few key components to creating perfect Levain copycat cookies. Check out the insider info:

  1. Cake flour is used to create a light and tender crumb. Even though these cookies are massively thick and huge, they are surprisingly light and delicate with a tender crumb. That’s because of cake flour! Had we used all AP flour and omitted the cake flour, they’d be way more dense and scone-like.
  2. Cornstarch gives these cookies a soft and lovely texture, too! I love using cornstarch in my cookie dough recipes because it just creates a damn fine texture.
  3. To keep these cookies nice and thick, we briefly refrigerate the dough for 15 minutes to allow everything to quickly meld together and prevent the butter from spreading too much. Using a ton of dark chocolate chips in the dough also helps prevent the dough from spreading.
  4. Cookies are baked one sheet at a time in the middle rack of the oven for optimal results, with only 4 cookies on each sheet. This helps the cookies bake as evenly as possible and prevents them from sticking together.
  5. We’re used to forming cookie dough into smooth, compacted balls but these cookies need to look rougher and craggly on the outside. I prefer barely forming them into loose balls which aids in texture but also the appearance. And remember, the dough balls are 6-ounces each, so for best results I recommend using a digital kitchen scale for accuracy.
  6. Lastly, do not over-bake! Cookies will appear dry and dull on the outside and seem mostly set. Levain Bakery’s cookies are notoriously underbaked and gooey in the center, and my version is no exception! Everyone’s oven temperatures vary, so for best results my recommendation is to bake 1-2 cookies at a time to test and see what baking time is best for your oven. We start around 9 minutes but it could be up to 12.

photo of a dark chocolate cookie dough ball on a parchment lined baking sheet

Ultimately, you NEED to make these fantastic cookies! You’re going to LOVE them!

author holding a split open dark chocolate cookie between her fingers

*adapted from Kirbie Cravings

author holding a split open dark chocolate chip cookie
Print Recipe
5 from 7 votes

Authentic Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

These Authentic Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies are sinfully delicious and surprisingly simple to make! Hugely thick and chewy, they have gooey centers and lots of melty chocolate chips!
Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time12 mins
Total Time32 mins
Course: Cookies, Dessert
Cuisine: American, Dessert
Servings: 8 cookies

Equipment

  • Digital kitchen scale, for accuracy

Ingredients

  • 1 cup COLD unsalted butter cut into small cubes
  • 1½ cups granulated white sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup dark cocoa powder like by Hershey's Special Dark
  • 1½ tsp vanilla extract optional but recommended
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup cake flour
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 3 cups dark chocolate chips

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 410° degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners; set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together cubed butter pieces and granulated sugar on low speed for 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium and beat for another 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for a final 30 seconds, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
  • Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, followed by the vanilla, if using. Add in the dark cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking soda, salt, cake flour, and all-purpose flour and mix on low speed until just combined. Mix in the dark chocolate chips until fully incorporated.
  • Refrigerate the dough for 15 minutes before baking.
  • Using your hands, scoop out rough 6-ounce portions of cookie dough (using a digital cooking scale for accuracy is best). Roughly form the dough into a ball shape - it should be rougher textured, not at all like the smooth compacted cookie dough balls we're used to (see photos in post for an idea). Place 3" apart staggered on a lined baking sheet with 4 cookie dough balls per sheet.
  • Bake one sheet at a time in the center rack of the oven for approximately 8-12 minutes, checking at the 8-minute mark. Cookies should appear dry and dull on top and look mostly done with slightly gooey centers; increase baking time if needed. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for at LEAST 30 minutes before serving, as they will continue to finish cooking and setting on the baking sheet after being removed from the oven and are quite delicate straight from the oven.

Notes

This recipe makes eight 6-ounce cookies, with enough dough leftover to make one smaller 2-3oz cookie.
For best results, I like using a high quality dark chocolate chip, like by Guittard or Ghirardelli.
 

Closeup of a split open dark chocolate cookie on a black wire rack

Thick, gooey, chewy and utterly decadent – you’re going to swoon at first bite with these cookies!

Want more chocolate goodness? Check out these recipes!

split open stack of chocolate chip walnut cookies on parchmentCopycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

author holding chocolate peanut butter cookieCopycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

And check out these chocolate recipes from around the blogs!

Copycat Cheesecake Factory White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake by Tried and Tasty

Devil’s Food Cake by Grandbaby Cakes

Dalgona Whipped Chocolate by Sweet Tea Thyme

Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies collage

Have a super sweet day!

xo, Hayley

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Comments

  1. Francie says

    July 11, 2020 at 10:06 am

    5 stars
    i made these yesterday and they are soooo good! I’ve been craving some seriously chocolate, chocolate chip cookies and these hit the spot!

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      July 11, 2020 at 7:15 pm

      Francie, I am so thrilled you loved the recipe!

      Reply
  2. Elaine Ruth Arriola-Enteria says

    July 31, 2020 at 8:50 pm

    5 stars
    I made them tonight and my family loved it! Thank you for the recipe.

    Reply
  3. Sarah+Rubin says

    November 29, 2020 at 9:33 am

    5 stars
    I made these cookies once and they came out flat. There is much user error on my part when ever I bake so I know they should have been thicker. They still came out delicious! I would recommend this recipe for anyone looking to impress with some homemade cookies.

    Reply
  4. Karen says

    January 6, 2021 at 1:38 pm

    I don’t have cake flour. Would it be ok to use only all purpose flour?

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      January 8, 2021 at 1:53 pm

      Hi Karen, yes you can, but keep in mind it will make these cookies denser, almost like a scone.

      Reply
  5. Maria Flores says

    January 14, 2021 at 8:03 pm

    Hi. Can I use like Duncan hines flour for the cake flour ingredient? Tks. I love thick and chewy cookies. ???

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      January 15, 2021 at 3:25 pm

      Hi Maria, I have not heard of Duncan Hines flour. I recommend using a cake flour and all-purpose flour combo for the best texture.

      Reply
  6. Karen says

    January 15, 2021 at 6:58 am

    Hi, I want to make these in advance, can I form the dough and freeze it for later baking? Thanks

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      January 15, 2021 at 3:25 pm

      Hi Karen, that should work! You may want to increase baking time for frozen dough – maybe a few minutes? Test one cookie first so you don’t overcook a whole batch by accident.

      Reply
  7. Rene says

    May 14, 2021 at 2:43 am

    Needs ingredients listed by weight. I can’t get repeatable results measuring flour and brown sugar by volume.

    Reply
    • Lynne says

      July 17, 2021 at 1:40 pm

      That would be helpful!

      Reply
    • Natalie says

      August 13, 2022 at 3:07 am

      5 stars
      U can easily Google the weight of any ingredient to get the conversion.
      As you sound like someone who uses weights instead of US measures, I’m surprised you don’t have common baking ingredient weights already noted. For example, a cup of AP flour, spooned & leveled, weighs about 120-125 grams depending on the reference.
      I’ve made many of Hayley’s recipes & never once had an issue with measurements as written.
      Bloggers willingly post recipes to share with the world. It shows a bit of entitlement to expect them to provide conversions when you clearly have the internet already at your fingertips.

      Reply
  8. Lynne says

    July 17, 2021 at 1:44 pm

    I made the Chocolate Chip Walnut cookies, they turned out fabulous! However, when I made these they turned out flat! I even refrigerated the second half longer but they still came out flat. Where did I go wrong?

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      July 18, 2021 at 2:27 pm

      Hi Lynne, I’m so sorry your cookies came out flat! There could be a few reasons. Are you sure you used real butter and not margarine? Real butter is a must, and sometimes margarine can be sold in sticks which is confusing. Was the butter cold? Even softened butter will affect the recipe; it needs to be cold. Were your leavening ingredients fresh? Even if they are technically not “expired” according to the date on the package, if they hadn’t been used in awhile they could have gone bad.

      Reply
  9. Alivia says

    August 14, 2021 at 11:06 pm

    Mine definitely were not flat they actually never really spread. They were almost the exact shape I put them in as. Used real butter and fresh ingredients. They came out a thick and high. I had to shape it a little more flat in order for them to look like normal cookies. Although the height was a little weird the taste was alright. I would consider myself great at cookie baking and this recipe seems hard to replicate. Idk if it’s a solid recipe.

    Reply
  10. Bianca says

    August 30, 2021 at 1:48 pm

    Hi there, I tried these but mine turned out very tall and muffin like. was it something I missed I wonder?

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      September 6, 2021 at 3:10 pm

      Hi Bianca, interesting. They are quite tall since I advise you make them into taller dough balls as opposed to the shorter, more compact dough balls of typical cookies. As for the muffin texture, did you accidentally use baking powder?

      Reply
  11. Teri says

    February 18, 2022 at 7:38 am

    Oh wow! I am thinking these would be great with mint chocolate chips, or caramel chocolate chips (or a combination or the caramel bits & chocolate chips)!! I will be trying all of your recipes listed here.

    Reply
  12. imsen says

    February 23, 2022 at 6:45 am

    5 stars
    That was an amazing and easiest way of making chocolate cookies at home. I am definitely gonna try this very soon.

    Reply
  13. Bes says

    June 2, 2022 at 8:09 am

    Hello!
    I just discovered your recipe of these cookies.
    Do you think it is possible to have the recipe in grams as I live in France and we don’t do cups and spoons measures.
    I’ve tried to convert some recipes but they all turned into complete fiasco!😂🤷🏻‍♀️
    Thanks for your answer.
    Bes

    Reply
  14. Natalie says

    August 11, 2022 at 11:21 am

    5 stars
    These are SO good! They have a nice chocolate flavor without being too sweet. I didn’t add as many choc chips so I only got (7) ~6oz cookies. I didn’t refrigerate the 1st batch for 15 mins, maybe more like 10 (bc I forgot, lol), so they were a tad flatter than the picture. The 2nd batch was in the fridge for a good 30 mins & still didn’t stay as thick as I would’ve liked. However, these are so frickin good no one will care how tall they are, lol!
    That said, this recipe is a keeper, I’m just gonna play with a couple ratios to see if I can get em taller.
    I love your recipes Hayley (I’ve made several), so ty so much for sharing!

    Reply
  15. Emily says

    September 27, 2022 at 8:50 am

    Hi, Hayley-Loved the recipe. Question: is the only difference between this chocolate chocolate chip and your Levain chocolate peanut butter chip the Dutch–processed cocoa, vs the natural cocoa?

    Reply
  16. Fernanda says

    January 24, 2023 at 4:55 pm

    5 stars
    Hi, these cookies look amazing. I´ll do the recipe for sure. I have a question. Can I use chocolate cake flour instead the regular cake flour? And I believe I need to remove the cocoa, right?
    Thanks a lot

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      January 25, 2023 at 12:39 pm

      Hi Fernanda, I have never heard of chocolate cake flour before! I assume you can omit the cocoa powder, but I have not personally heard of this before.

      Reply

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About me

Welcome to The Domestic Rebel! My name is Hayley and I am the 31-year old writer, photographer, recipe developer, taste-tester and creator of this blog. I’m so glad you’ve stopped by my little slice of sprinkly, butter-laden heaven on the interwebs. If it wasn’t apparent, I like to bake… a lot. Read More…

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