Buy the Cookbook

Desserts | January 26, 2017

Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

If you’ve traveled to, or live in New York City, you have probably heard of Levain Bakery and their famous chocolate chip cookies. On my last trip back east, I made a stop at the popular bakery on West 74th Street to see for myself if this was indeed the best chocolate chip cookie in the world!

Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies

Levain Bakery is rumored to have the best chocolate chip cookies in the world. Yes, in the world.  Hmmmmmmm. This is a highly debatable subject. What determines if a recipe is the best recipe in the world?  

It’s all a matter of personal opinion and preference.  Follow along and I’ll give you my observations and the results of my taste testing and baking research.

Trip to NYC with Mint Arrow!

Last September, I took a trip with my oldest daughter Corrine to NYC. She was there for Fashion week and I was there for support, choosing restaurants and overall sightseeing. Levain Bakery was high on my list of places to visit this trip.  We purchased each of the four types of cookies they sell. My favorite was the Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie.

I Instagrammed a photo (below)  of the cookie while we were in NYC and received almost 100 of comments from readers professing their love for Levain cookies, recipe requests and even comments stating a copycat recipe would be an answer to prayers!

Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie broken open

In the interest of answering prayers and helping everyone who doesn’t live close to NYC (or even those who just want a make a batch of Levain style cookies) I’m going to share my version of the Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie recipe (and also the no-nut version, read end of post). But first, I’ll give you the story of how this recipe came to be…

Cut to the chase:

I know some of you probably just want the cookie recipe. If you are one of those people, skip to the bottom of this page and I’ll spare you my three thousand word essay on the who/what/why of  recreating the Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie. If you want the back story, here it is…

Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie in hand

History:

Levain Bakery was opened in 1994 by two women, Pam McDonald and Connie Weekes,  who trained for triathlete/Ironman competitions together. They were often hungry after training and wanted a treat that would fill them up. During the training process they talked about creating the best chocolate chip cookie in the world.  Over 20 years later, they are still baking cookies (and muffins, breads, pizza, sticky buns)  and wowing New Yorkers and tourists every day.

They have 3 (now) 7 locations! There is almost always a line out the door, and their locations even sport a line cam giving you a look at the length of the line. Not that a long line seems to deter anyone from buying Levain’s cookies! We visited the West 74th street location and waited in line for less than 20 minutes.

Levain Bakery CHocolate Chip Cookie in open hand

Size: Huge. 6 oz (almost half a pound) of cookie. Everything is is big and flamboyant in NYC, and Levain cookies are no exception. The cookies are enormous. If you are forking out $4 per cookie (price in 2016 when this post originally went live),  you want a cookie you can sink your teeth into.

I’ve purchased big cookies in the past, only to be disappointed that the flavor didn’t match up to the size of the cookie. The Levain cookies deliver in both the size and deliciousness categories!

Texture: Perfect combination of crisp outside and incredibly gooey center. The cookie is baked at a high temperature, and mounded high, allowing the outside of the cookie to crisp up perfectly while the middle barely gets baked and creates puddles of chocolate in the cookie dough.

Hype: New Yorkers love to wait in line! No really.  Anything with a long line in NYC= (usually) an experience you don’t want to miss. This isn’t a tourist-only line. New Yorkers faithfully stand in the Levain line, patiently waiting for their cookie fix.

Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough on Scale
Levain Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough in oven

Reason 1. They are delicious- See all of the above reasons. A big melty hunk of a cookie.


Reason 2. Cost- At $4 per cookie, if I lived in NYC and could run down the street to buy a cookie whenever I had a craving, it would be an easy choice. Four dollars a cookie is a reasonable  price, given the size of the cookie. I mean, it’s a meal for $4.  So one cookie or two or three are affordable. But when you consider you can make 8 at home for about a dollar per cookie, the make at home option  starts to look very attractive.

Reason 3. Location- If you don’t live in NYC, (and who does?)  I mean, only about 8 million people, but most of them don’t read this blog, which brings us to the out-of-towner option, having the cookies shipped. See reason 4.


Reason 4. Affordability of shipping: The mail order option, in my opinion, is not very affordable for most people.  And who wants to wait 2 days when they have a chocolate chip cookie craving? Levain cookies are sold four to a package in the smallest package available.  The least expensive shipping option (to Utah, 2 day air) will set you back approx $64 or about $16 per cookie. For two day old cookies.  Gulp.

or

The next option is $81.50 for next day air, which is about $27 per cookie. Fairly fresh, but still a day old.

or

Last, but not least, next day (early) delivery is $108.50 or $34.94 PER COOKIE. Did you just pass out?  I’ve eaten a lot of cookies in my lifetime. Probably more than my share. I don’t ever recall eating cookie that was worth $35 per cookie.

The shipping is what increases the price of the cookies.  If you have a friend visiting NYC, having them hand deliver cookies is a sweet option. Unless they leave the cookies on the plane. Oops. See Reason 6.

Reason 5. Everyone asks for the recipe. Many of you have been to Levain, and NEED this recipe. After eating one of the Levain cookies, I knew it was my duty to create a make at home version of the Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie.

Reason 6.  I want to help you keep your integrity intact. These cookies are a HOT item. Don’t leave them unattended, or else. True story. My friend Maria was visiting her kids in New York last year. We were texting back and forth and talking about some of the fun restaurants and treats they were enjoying in the city, including Levain cookies. At one point, I asked her to pick up a cookie for me if she was close to the bakery again before returning home… for research purposes.

Maria  was kind enough to buy a few cookies, had them packaged up and carried them back on the plane to SLC in a cute little Levain Bakery bag. After she left the plane, she realized she had left the cookies onboard. Maria tried unsucessfully to re-board the plane.  Her husband saw a man leave the plane with the cookies in hand…

He approached the man and said “I believe that is my wife’s bag of cookies she left on the plane.”  (awkward, right?)  The man looked startled, but acted like they were his cookies, although he had no story to share or no retort for the insistence by Maria’s husband that they were Maria’s cookies.

Picture me, reading this text from Maria, about what happened to the cookies, and saying over and over again,  “OH MY GOSH”  Grant thought maybe someone had passed away. No, just a cookie casualty… Maybe this gentleman did purchase the cookies, but it sounds like a possible cookie heist to me. Don’t take something that doesn’t belong to you. Just bake a batch at home instead.

Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie broken on cookie sheet
Levain Chocolate Chip Cookies

Observations, baking tips and how I came up with this copycat Levain Bakery recipe…

In order to make a cookie that tastes, looks and has the same texture of the Levain cookie, I started by watching an episode of Bobby Flay’s Throwdown, where the Levain Bakery owners and Bobby Flay bake up a batch of cookies and judges pick their favorite cookie.

Pam and Connie (Levain founders) show up to the throw down with their dough already made, so it was difficult to do much observing of the actual cookie making process in the video clip.

I did take a look at the texture of the dough, which seems to be fairly sticky, leading me to believe there is not an excessive amount of flour in the dough. They also state a few times during the segment, they like to “keep it simple”. Bobby Flay’s cookies include Muscavado sugar and gourmet chocolate. In the end, the Levain cookies won the throw down.

The second video “Levain Bakery Pam and Connie Make Cookies” shows Pam and Connie making the cookies. They don’t show specifics, such as amounts, but I carefully watched and re watched the video several times and gathered the following:

-They use cold butter in 1 lb blocks

-The walnuts are not chopped, and don’t appear to be toasted.

-It looks like the amount of brown sugar is a bit more than the white sugar added, and the brown sugar appears to be light brown sugar, but difficult to tell the proportions of white to brown sugar, since brown sugar is usually measured in packed down amount, and the amount in the bowl does not looked packed.

No vanilla. They also mention in the Bobby Flay video they don’t add vanilla because they think it is not needed. At first I thought WHAT? No vanilla in a cookie? But they are right. It really doesn’t add much flavor.

Eggs, appear to be 2 per recipe, from what I can see, the butter and egg ratio per (at home) recipe would be 1/2 lb butter to 2 eggs.

Chocolate chips. Semi sweet. About 2 cups per recipe. They add the walnuts first and pulse the dough, then add the chocolate chips last. They add the walnuts and chocolate chips after the dry ingredients have been pulsed into the wet ingredients.

Dry ingredients. They add the dry ingredients in one big bowl, so it is difficult to tell what is in the dry ingredient portion of the recipe. I tried all purpose flour, cake flour, bread flour, a combination of bread and AP flour, a combo of cake flour and AP flour, and the AP flour by itself. I also tried baking soda, baking powder and a combination of both. Many people believe Levain Bakery  includes cornstarch in their cookie, but I believe it is just plain old baking powder, which is made with a bit of cornstarch (remember the “keep it simple” quote)?

-The cookies also seem to be on the less salty side, which is less to my liking. I’m a firm believer in salt to balance out and enhance the flavors in desserts. I think they probably use about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of salt per recipe. I always use a coarse sea salt for best taste results. I am not sure if they use salted or unsalted butter, but I always use unsalted.

Mixing: The mixer used in the video is a large commercial grade machine. They mix the butter and sugars together first, with the mixer on low. The mixer speed is always on low, it seems.  When making other chocolate chip cookies, I usually add my chocolate chips and nuts with the flour to get them coated with flour (which is supposed to help them from sinking into the bottom of the dough) but Levain just adds the walnuts and chocolate chips after mixing in the dry ingredients. They pulse the mixture several times to prevent the flour and other dry ingredients from spilling over the bowl.

Refrigeration of dough: They don’t talk about refrigerating the dough, but there are reports of the dough being refrigerated or frozen  before baking. Refrigeration of dough usually enhances the texture of the cookies, but I don’t feel it is necessary in this cookie. I have baked this recipe right out of the bowl and also refrigerated the dough before baking. You can see what will be best in your oven by baking  a cookie right after mixing up. If the cookie flattens too much, refrigerate the remaining dough for 30 minutes before baking.

Shaping: Pam and Connie talk about “no baseballs” when shaping the dough. I usually create “baseballs” by using a cookie scoop. The Levain cookie is a more rustic looking treat. They use their hands to shape the dough. I prefer to use a food handler’s glove and measure the dough out and weigh it on my trusty kitchen scale.

Baking time and temp: I found the best temperature in my oven is 400 degrees. If I am baking on a regular setting, I bake at 400 for 11-12 minutes. If using convection, I bake for 8-9 minutes. To achieve the gooey consistency of the Levain Bakery cookie, you must take the cookie out of the oven before the center is baked.

Cooling-an important step: The Levain cookie needs to sit on the cookie sheet for at least 15 minutes before eating. Leave the cookie on the warm cookie sheet so it can finish baking and set up. I believe the cookies are best when left to sit for about an hour after baking.

Levain Chocolate Chip Cookies on marble counter

I loved this cookie at the bakery and at home. It’s definitely a cookie lover’s dream. Not to be confused with the New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookie, which is a chocolate lover’s dream, this cookie is a mini-mountain of chocolate chip cookie dough.

I’m still partial to my all time favorite, ABK’s Tried and True Chocolate Chip Cookie. If you know someone who loves to eat the dough more than a baked cookie, I am guessing they will fall in love with the ABK version of the Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie. One recipe makes 8 GINORMOUS cookies.  I  look forward to reading your reviews… Happy baking!

Can’t Get Enough Levain?

I’ve made multiple copycat versions of Levain cookies: The Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip, the Oatmeal Raisin, and the Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookie.  They were all tested, tested again,  and retested until I felt the recipe was as close as possible to the real deal.

This Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe has the most in-depth explanation of all the who, what, why and how on everything in my Levain Bakery copycat cookie journey. A little over the top, but seriously some of the most fun I’ve had in the recipe development game.

**Update May 2017** NO-NUT VERSION**

After receiving lots of feedback on this recipe several of you have said in emails, messages through Instagram and comments on Instagram posts that your cookies are going flat. I was puzzled by this! As you can see, the cookies are HUGE balls of dough before baking. I finally measured, and the  dough balls sit about 3 inches high.

How could they flatten out after baking for such a relatively short time? When I drilled down the problem, I found the readers who were having issues with the cookies going  flat were NOT adding walnuts to the recipe. I stated in the recipe notes originally – “If you are going to omit the nuts, you may want to try adding more chocolate chips and 1/4 cup of additional flour.”

I should have been more specific. I didn’t want to add much more flour than the originally called for  2 1/2  to  2 3/4  cups total, because once you add too much flour it changes the texture and flavor of the end product. Apparently 1/4 cup of additional flour was not enough.

I talked through this with my friend Melinda a few days ago. She mentioned something about replacing the volume of nuts in the cookies with something else. Then it hit me. To have success with this recipe the volume of the nuts had to be replaced exactly if the cookies were going to hold their shape.

I experimented with adding the additional 1/4 cup of flour-  3 cups total flour (1 cup cake flour, 2 cups AP flour) and 4 cups total semi sweet chocolate chips. HOORAY!  The no-nut perfect version of the Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie Copycat was born. The adjustments are in the recipe notes.

I highly recommend refrigeration of dough if you do not have a convection oven. Refrigerate for 45 minutes after shaping the dough, then bake as directed. This will also help the cookies hold their shape.

One more note-  The chocolate chips weight equals 14.6 oz for 2 cups, while 2 cups of whole walnuts equal 10.16 oz for 2 cups. The walnuts take up more volume, but weigh less than the chocolate chips. When measuring out the cookies made with chocolate chips only, the dough is more dense and the dough balls are smaller.

I weighed out the cookies without walnuts to about 7 oz per cookie, as opposed to 6 oz for the cookies with nuts. The recipe will still yield about 8 cookies per batch!

**Update May 23, 2017 Mini Version**

The cookies can be made in a “mini” size, about 3-3.5 oz each. Perfect size for any gathering where you don’t want to make and serve cookies that are nearly 1/2 lb each! Shape as directed, then bake at 400 degrees ( I use convection bake, but you can use regular bake as well) for about 5-6 minutes or just until top of cookie forms a crust.

**Update June 2017**

Lots of questions about CAKE flour. It is usually found on the top shelf at grocery stores, in a small box. Most groceries sell ” Softasilk” Cake Flour in a box. Make sure you read the label if you buy other brands and buy Cake Flour and not a “Cake Flour Blend”.  

If you can’t find cake flour at your grocery,  you can make your own at home by using this method to Make Cake Flour at Home:

  1. Measure out 1 cup of all purpose flour into a medium size mixing bowl.
  2. Remove 2 tablespoons of the flour and place back in the flour container.
  3. Add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to the flour in mixing bowl.
  4. Sift the flour and cornstarch mixture. Sift again about 3-4 more times.
  5. You now have cake flour! Place in a bag or container, measure out and use as needed.
Levain Chocolate Chip Cookies on Cookie Sheet
 
Levain bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies
4.87 from 213 votes
Print

Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 11 minutes
Total Time 21 minutes
Servings 8 cookies
Author Si Foster, A Bountiful Kitchen

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter cut into tablespoons I prefer unsalted
  • 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup cake flour
  • 1 1/2-1 3/4 cup all purpose flour* see notes
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
  • 2 cups walnut halves
  • 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips* see notes

Instructions

  1. Pre heat oven to 400 degrees and set rack in middle of oven.
  2. Place butter into bowl and turn mixer on low. If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment.
  3. Add sugars and beat butter until smooth on medium speed. This should take about 1 minute. Mix until the butter pieces are completely blended with the sugar and is no longer visible in pieces.
  4. Add the eggs and beat on medium just until incorporated with butter and sugars, about 30 seconds.
  5. Turn the mixer off. Add the cake flour, all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Pulse the dry ingredients on low until the wet and dry ingredients are mixed together.
  6. Pour the walnuts into the batter all at once. Pulse the batter 5-6 times.
  7. Pour the chocolate chips into the batter and pulse again 5-6 times.
  8. Pour the batter out onto a clean surface. Fold the dough together a few times until all of the chocolate chips and walnuts are mixed into the batter.
  9. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces about 6 oz each. Use your hands to shape cookies. Do not use a cookie or ice cream scoop. The cookies are meant to be roughly shaped. Do not flatten the dough.
  10. Bake 4 cookies per pan, for 11 minutes on regular bake or 400 convection bake for 8-9 minutes.
  11. The cookies are done when the top is a bit golden and the bottom is also golden.
  12. Do not over bake. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.
  13. To make the cookies without walnuts, see recipe notes below!

Recipe Notes

-It is important to let the oven fully heat up. Turn it on for at least 15-20 minutes before baking.

-I use 1 cup Cake Flour and 1 3/4 cup AP flour. You may try using 1 1/2 cups AP flour. I found the dough to be too sticky. If you have issues with the cookies flattening out, use 1 3/4 cups flour.

-If you do not have cake flour, try using All Purpose flour. 2 1/2 cups should work. When purchasing Cake Flour, look for it on the upper shelves of the grocery aisles. 

– If you can’t find cake flour at your grocery, you can make your own at home by using this simple method: Measure out 1 cup of all purpose flour into a medium size mixing bowl. Remove 2 tablespoons of the flour and place back in the flour container. Add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to the flour in mixing bowl. Sift the flour and cornstarch mixture. Sift again about 3-4 more times. You now have cake flour! Place in a bag or container and use as needed.

-Cake flour is usually found on the top shelf at the grocery store, near the All Purpose Flour or near other baking goods.

-I buy chocolate chips in bulk and scoop my semi sweet chips out of a jar. This recipe calls for 2 cups of chocolate chips. Most bags of chocolate chips are 11-12 oz or closer to 1 1/2 cups of chips, which will work for one recipe, no need to open another bag of chocolate chips.

-I use food handlers gloves to shape the dough, and also weigh the dough balls on a scale. Each dough ball is approx 6 oz.

-These cookies freeze extremely well. After cooling completely, place cookies in a large ziplock bag or small sandwich size bags. Place in freezer. When ready to eat, either let thaw, or wrap in paper towel and microwave for about 15-18 seconds. The cookie will not have a crisp exterior after being frozen, but will still be moist and taste fresh.-In the recipe it says to turn the batter out onto a clean surface and mix the chocolate chips and the walnuts together by hand. I do not do this step. I add this to the recipe because it is shown in the video. I simply fold the dough a couple of times with a spatula in the bowl to make sure all of the walnuts and chocolate chips are distributed.

Update 5/3/2017**

-Dislike walnuts? You may add additional chocolate chips OR  try increasing the All Purpose flour by 1/4 cup. Add 4 cups chocolate chips in place of the original 2 cups chips and 2 cups walnuts. If you omit the walnuts, you must replace with another substance that will take up mass in the cookie. Two additional cups of chocolate chips or 2-11.5 oz packages per recipe. Bake as directed. The best alternative to omitting the nuts is to add additional chocolate chips. 

Refrigerating dough for 30-45 minutes after shaping and before baking is recommended, especially if baking in a regular bake and not a convection bake oven. 

547 thoughts on “Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




    1. Hi Amanda, yes, I use butter straight out of the fridge. If you are not using a stand mixer, you may want to soften the butter a bit, maybe about 12-15 seconds in the microwave. The stand mixer will mix cold butter better than a hand mixer. Therefore, if you are not using a powerful mixer, it may be beneficial to soften the butter a bit to insure all of the butter is blended well. Thanks for asking, I will add this to the recipe tips!

        1. Hi Abigail,
          The easiest way to make these cookies if you are using a hand mixer is to cut the butter into pieces and leave the butter sitting on the counter top for about 30-45 minutes or just microwave for a few seconds to soften the butter a bit. If for some reason the butter is too soft, make the dough and then place the dough balls into the fridge or freezer for 30-60 minutes before baking. Hope this helps!
          xo
          Si

  1. So I DO live in NYC and I am still VERY excited about this recipe! I love levain but I can’t often justify spending $4 a cookie, so I usually only go there when I have friends in town and I take them there! So, this is awesome! Thank you!!

    1. Angie, You are so very welcome! I hope you love this recipe. Come back and let us know how they turn out for you in NYC! Thanks for reading ABK xo

    1. Hi Amy, I have used a few different brands, Usually I purchase Softasilk, because it is easy to find where I live, but my favorite brand of flour is King Arthur. I love the way my baked goods turn out when using King Arthur. Happy baking!

  2. 5 stars
    Made these twice. Everyone LOVES them. Mine don’t look like yours but flavor is good. I have has Levain and it’s close enough for me. Thank you!

    1. 5 stars
      Have you ever frozen the preportioned dough and then cooked it later? Made these and yum, although I personally would add vanilla and amp up the salt for my tastes.

      1. Hi Christina, I usually bake the cookies and then freeze them. You can proportion the dough and then freeze it, just make sure it’s stored in an air tight container. Thank you for asking!
        xo
        Si

    1. Susan, Thanks for reading ABK. I think you will love this recipe. We would love to hear back from you!

    1. Hi Katie,
      I have tried making them smaller. They are awesome! Just watch the cookies and take out of oven after the top is set and the cookies are a bit golden. Usually after about 7 minutes for about a 3-4 oz cookie.

  3. 5 stars
    I love your story telling! You are just the cutest!. I’m hoping my cookies will look and taste like yours! <3

  4. Hi,
    My child is highly allergic to walnuts. Do you think I could skip the walnuts and still use the same recipe and get same results?
    Thanks!

  5. Okay, first of all these are so yummy and maybe my all time favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.
    If it helps: at first the edges of my cookies got burnt/flattened. (I may have a convection oven and not know it,) but after I saw that I added the extra 1/4 cup (I started with the minimum suggested all purpose flour, then when I saw that I added in the extra flour). So at least for me or my oven, mine needs less time to cook or the flour helped it because the next batch solved the problem.

    1. Chanel,
      You can easily tell if you have a convection oven if there is a fan at the back of the oven. Usually there is also a fan symbol on the dial or setting of the oven 🙂 I’m glad you loved this recipe! Please rate it (stars below) if you have a minute!
      Thanks for reading ABK!

    2. If I didn’t want to put any nuts and put Nutella or something else like peanut but not the chips what would I have to do and would and would it work ?

  6. PERFECTION! Our new favorite!! I didn’t add the walnuts and therefore used the extra 1/4 cup flour and they were perfect. Baked them using convection for 8 minutes. An A++! Thank you!

    1. Thanks Heidi! I appreciate your feedback on the swap out for the nuts as well. Now if I can just stop eating chocolate chip cookies for breakfast lunch and dinner…:)

  7. Made these today and I am in LOVE! Seriously so good. Followed the recipe exactly, followed the note and swapped out the walnuts for an extra 1/4 cup flour and they are perfect. Super thick, gooey center, slightly crisp edges and plenty of chocolate…just the way I like my cookies! Will make them many more times I’m sure of it!! Thanks for the recipe!!

  8. 5 stars
    For those of you with nut allergies, do not shy away from making these cookies. I followed her instructions for how to make without the nuts (at end of recipe) and they turned out just fine. In fact they are AMAZING!! This recipe is definitely a keeper. I shared some with a friend last night and got a thank you text first thing this morning. Haha

  9. 4 stars
    Gave them a try. I’ve never been to NYC so I had no expectation. Though I’m a huge cookie fan, and bake more then I should. I made 3oz cookies and they still seem so huge. Baked up in about 13 minutes at 400. Tasted great. Don’t know if I’m a fan of the gooey/raw middle. Thanks for the recipe. I might stick to my New York Times Chocolate Chip cookies at a smaller size.

    1. Thanks Jennifer,
      If you thought the 3 oz was huge, you should see the 6 oz!
      I really like these cookies better after they have completely cooled and the middle sets up and is not soft. So good! Thanks for reading ABK
      xo
      Si

  10. 5 stars
    I’m in love !! Thank you very much for this recipe:) silly question.. how do I store these lovelies? (If there’s any left)

    1. Hi Sue,
      IF there are any leftover, I freeze them and take out one at a time. If you are just storing for eating in tow or less days, just store in a Ziplock bag or a tupperware container.

  11. I have travelled home with levain cookies many times and ordered them in the mail. They told me once frozen, just pop them in the oven for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. They come out perfect! I am about to make your recipe right now. Thank you so much for doing this!!!

    1. Oh interesting! It seems like 10 minutes at 350 would be too long! Good to know. Thanks so much,
      Si

  12. This recipe is spot on! Great job on researching this! I made them tonight for Valentines Day and we had to sample one. They are outstanding!

  13. I’m so not a baker, but I’m a Levain addict. Making them for my Valentine today! Do you put them on parchment or anything? Or just directly on a baking sheet? Greased or ungreased?

    1. 4 stars
      Made these today April 16, they are really good. How can I make it less gooie so to speak. I was hoping it would have more crumb. Any tips? Matt

  14. I made these tonight and I’m obsessed! This is the chocolate chip cookie I’ve been searching for, thank you for concocting this perfect recipe.

  15. Fantastic recipe! We make cookies weekly, this is my new go to chocolate chip cookie recipe. Thanks for the awesomeness!!

  16. 5 stars
    I love a good no fail recipe and this is a winner. These are perfection in a deliciously large cookie and I added the 1/4 c flour as recommended in place of walnuts since i’m allergic and it was spot on. thank you!!

  17. I live in St. George and have followed your exact recipe and cannot get them to stay up and fluffy with that nice crispy top the way yours look! (There’s a place in Provo called Chip that makes these and they’re supposed to be Levain copycats too and they look just like yours so that’s what I’ve been trying to achieve ha…) I’ve tried the extra flour but I live in St. George, shouldn’t they stay up even better with the altitude being so much lower?!

    1. Shelby,
      I’ve had dozens of people report that this recipe works for them, I even made a batch at my daughter’s home in CA (sea level) with success. Try making the recipe as directed and refrigerating the dough for 30-45 minutes before baking.
      You should have success after refrigerating!
      Si

    2. I read a blogger (can’t remember which one) who suggests breaking the scoop of dough in half and stacking it vertically (for each cookie). I’ve tried this and it works well if you want thicker cookies.

  18. Hey Si, I don’t have kitchenaid or any type of mixer to pulse. Is it worth trying to make this recipe without one? Maybe I should just stick to the ABK fav choc chip cookie. LMK! 🙂

    1. Laurie,
      You can make the recipe up to the point of adding the dry ingredients using a small hand mixer. Then fold in the dry ingredients by hand in a large bowl using a large spoon or spatula! I am so curious as to why you don’t have a stand mixer with all of the cooking you do?

      1. 5 stars
        Thank you for this tip for those of us (amateur) bakers without stand mixers. I folded the dry ingredients and the recipe turned out fantastic. (I used to live in NYC and have had Levain cookies many times, and like other commenters have noted, these cookies are JUST like them.)

        I used an electric hand mixer for earlier steps, and was having trouble beating the butter and sugar–I didn’t microwave the butter because I still wanted it to be cold–but some brief, gentle mashing with a fork helped get rid of the clumps of butter and allowed my hand mixer to fully beat the ingredients.

      2. 5 stars
        Thank you for including this tip for those of us (amateur) bakers without stand mixers. I folded the dry ingredients and the cookies turned out wonderfully. (Like many other commenters have noticed, they are JUST like the real thing–I used to live in NYC and have been missing my trips to Levain so I jumped at the chance to make this recipe!)

        Also, I was having trouble creaming the butter and sugar with my electric hand mixer (I did not heat the butter because I was afraid I would compromise the recipe), but I was able to use my fork gently to get rid of any big clumps, and the mixer did the rest.

        1. Kenny,
          I’m glad this recipe turned out so well for you. Thanks for your tips on mashing the butter with a fork for help with a hand mixer. Enjoy those yummy cookies!
          Thank you for reading ABK.
          Si

  19. Can’t wait to try these! If I let these cool and then want to heat them to have the chocolate be melty, how long should I nuke them for (from room temperature, not from frozen, that is).

  20. I made these in Utah and they were PERFECT! I adore them. Then I made them here in minnesota and they were completely flat. The only difference was I used cold butter in Utah and softened butter in MN. I baked half of them and when I saw they were flat, I put the rest of the dough in the fridge overnight to try again today. Same thing! Delicious but flat. I will try cold butter next time for sure!

    1. Hi Lacey!
      Did you make them with walnuts? It makes a huge difference if you omit the walnuts… Try adding a bit more flour. Im very interested in hearing about the nuts and if you added any flour to the original recipe!
      xo
      Si

      1. 5 stars
        Hi! Made these again! I used cold butter, left out the walnuts and they were flat again. Checked the comments after the first half came out of the oven, thank you for replying! Added more flour to the other half of the dough and they’re great! Thank you!

  21. Hey! Have you tried making their dark chocolate chip cookies? Just wanting to make them all!
    Thanks

  22. Thank you for posting a non nut variation. I’m allergic to walnuts, but these sound amazing! I can’t wait to try them.

    1. Laura, I am not sure about adding oatmeal? I haven’t ever tried it in this recipe. If I were to try, I’d add one cup and then a cup of chocolate chips. But Im guessing it will still be a bit sticky. Refrigerate the dough for about an hour after shaping the cookies. this should help the cookies to hold their shape!
      xo
      Si

  23. Hi just wondering if the serving size is off on this? I followed the recipe which says it makes 8. I did not weigh them but dumped out the dough and divided it up. I put the recipe into my fitness pal and it says a serving is over 1,300 calories, where the original Levain is under 600. Thanks!

    1. When I did the calorie counting for these, my cookies were about 900 calories each, not sure where you got 1300 – but if you did 4 cups chocolate chips instead of 2 cups and 2 cups walnuts the calories would of course be higher with more chocolate chips. Different brands of chocolate chips would of course change it too, but I’m not sure what levain does!

      1. Oh my. I wish I hadn’t read this. The last thing I wanted to know was the calorie content! Guess I’ll eat one as a meal instead of a treat!

  24. 5 stars
    Hi, I’ve done this recipe a couple of times and didn’t realize that if you omitted the walnuts you should add some extra flour, so my cookies were a bit flat but taste and texture were amazing. I’ll try addint that extra flour. By the other hand, how would the recipe change if I want to bake the dark chocolate and dark chocolate peanut butter type? Any suggestions?
    Thanks.

  25. Yes! I would love the dark chocolate and dark chocolate peanut butter recipes as well, if you have tried those!

    These are amazing, by the way!

    1. I think so? I haven’t ever tired M&M’s as a replacement. Let us know if you give it a try!
      thanks!
      Si

  26. Made these cookies the other day and they were fabulous, but…we’re a no nut family and so I followed your changes. They were soooo chocolatey that it was almost too much (never thought I would say that). Is there a conversion for maybe more flour and a little less chocolate chips to replace the nuts?

    1. Leah, you could try adding a little more flour, but the cookie texture and flavor will at some point be compromised if you add too much flour. It will taste cakey instead of like a cookie. Pile the cookie high, 2-3 inches and then refrigerate the dough for an hour this will also help the cookie to hold its shape while baking. Hope this helps!

  27. 5 stars
    This recipe is surprisingly easy to follow – mine turned out great on the first attempt (workout nuts even). Read through all of the notes especially if you’re not using nuts. I added the 4 cups of choc chips and the addl flour, and they were great. I agree that they need to completely cool and rest a bit before eating, otherwise they’re extremely doughy. I preferred them several hours after baking. I also refrigerated my dough for an hour before baking and used the cake flour. Excellent recipe, easy to follow, and delicious cookie!!!

    1. Thank you Natalie! I agree, letting the cookies “rest” will result in a great texture. Patience, right?
      Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  28. Great recipe! I can’t stop making these. They remind me exactly of the real Levain cookie from NYC. This is for sure my new staple chocolate chip cookie go to.

    1. Thank you Christine 🙂 Always good to hear from someone who has tried the real deal in NYC!
      thanks for reading ABK
      xo
      Si

  29. 5 stars
    Absolutely amazing cookies. I used cold butter, 1 3/4 C ap flour, one bag of chocolate chips, and 2 C of walnuts. I also did half size cookies, 3 oz each, and 6 per cookie sheet sheet (made 16 total) and cooked them for 10 minutes and they turned out perfect. I left a few out but froze the rest individually to pull out as needed. Thanks for this awesome recipe Si!

    1. You’re welcome Shannon! Thanks for sharing your modifications! I love the 3 oz size as well. A little more manageable than the 6 oz!
      Thanks for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  30. 5 stars
    I’ve never eaten from the bakery in NYC, but I just had to try these. These are seriously the most amazing cookies! Perfect little crunch on the outside, and the center, amazing! I don’t love lots of gooey, raw feeling texture in the center, but if you wait the 15 min cooling time, they are perfect. After storing in a zip lock on the counter over night, same perfect center the next day. Such a great recipe! My family was going crazy for these! I’m excited to try them in the 3 oz size next and also try w/o nuts and maybe even throwing in some PB chips or mint chips with regular ones! Thanks for this amazing recipe!!

    1. They really are so good the next day! I almost prefer them after they have set up for a day. You’ll love the 3 oz size too <3
      Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  31. 5 stars
    Si, I just made the smaller ones. I checked them at 5 mins (convection overn) but they needed 2 more minutes to get the golden crisp on the outside. Heavenly little pillows of sweetness. You have enriched my life in SO many ways!

    1. Thanks Karen! I think it’s a little different in each oven, checking to see when they are just a bit golden is perfect!
      Thanks too for being a long time supporter of ABK
      xo
      Si

  32. 5 stars
    Amazing cookies! Directions are easy to follow. Will be making these again! This time I ended up with only 1 cup of walnuts and 3 cups of chocolate chips, still turned out great! 🙂

    1. Thanks Whitney! Glad you had success with this recipe! Thanks for reading ABK 🙂
      xo
      Si

  33. I’m sorry if you mentioned this in the notes, (or it was answered in the comments) but do you let the cookies cool on the baking sheet after you take them out or transfer to a cooking rack right away?

  34. Googled Levain cookies and found this blog. I just made these and everyone loved them. Taste just like Levain cookies. Thanks!

  35. I made the smaller version (2.75 oz) how raw are the supposed to be in the middle? Used a regular oven, baked about 8 minutes with the outside edges/top golden brown. Haven’t tasted them yet so hoping they work out. They look and smell amazing and it was such an easy recipe!

    1. Hi Marissa,
      These cookies are barely cooked in the middle, and baked until the chocolate chips are just melted.
      Hope you loved the finished product!
      xo
      Si

  36. Hi! These cookies tasted fantastic, but mine didn’t come out thick like yours. Mine spread out wayyy too much! I did the no nut recipe and added extra chocolate and flour as you said, and chilled the dough 40 mins. Any idea what went wrong? It seemed like too much chocolate. Thanks so much! I will definitely try these again!

  37. I can’t wait to try these tonight! Do you have a suggestion for an eggless version? Maybe a substitute that may still work?

  38. My friend made these and brought me one, and I’ve been craving them ever since! So excited to make them!! I usually like to put pecans in my cookies rather than walnuts… what do you think about making that sub Thanks for the recipe!!

    1. Shanna,
      I think they are pretty darn close to the originals!
      Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  39. 5 stars
    I made these yesterday in “mini” version for a family gathering (I stretched one batch to make 2 dozen) and they were ALL gone! Everyone devoured them. For the nuts: I only had 1 cup of walnuts, so I added those plus 1 cup of pecans. The mixture of those two nuts plus the chocolate chips was surprisingly amazing! Super yummy. Thank you!!

    1. I love both pecans and walnuts! I’m going to give your combo a try soon! Glad everyone loved the cookies. They are addictive!
      Thanks for reading ABK
      xo
      Si

  40. This recipe looks so good and I cannot wait to try it soon! Just to clarify if I omit the nuts, do I add both 1/4 cup AP flour AND 2 more cups of chocolate chips? Thank you so much!

  41. I absolutely cannot wait to try this! Just to be clear, if i omit nuts, does that mean I add both 1/4 cup extra flour AND 2 more cups of chocolate chips? Thank you!

    1. Hi Maria, If you omit the nuts add 1/4 cup of all purpose flour and 2 additional cups of chocolate chips! Good luck!

  42. 5 stars
    Hello!
    I’m a reader from Brazil, so I’m sorry for my English. Congratulations on the recipe, I always accompanied Levain Bakery for instagram and I was very keen to try the cookies, now I can do them here in my country =)
    I have a question: can I use 1/2 cup butter instead of 1 cup?
    Thanks and congratulations again.

    Ps. I hope you have understood my text.

    1. Gustavo,
      No need to apologize for your English! No you need to use the full amount of butter for the cookies to turn out a success, 1 cup of butter is needed!
      thanks for reading A Bountiful Kitchen!
      Si

  43. 5 stars
    Hello! I’m from Brazil and I’d like to thank you for this delicious Levain Bakery cookie recipe!
    I have a question: can I put 1/2 cup butter instead of 1 cup?
    Many thanks and congratulations!

    Ps. Sorry for my English! =)

  44. 5 stars
    I made these after seeing you post something about them on Instagram a couple weeks ago. They are amazing. My new special occasion chocolate chip cookie! And dare I say they cook up better from frozen. And I’ve learned they are just as good and beautiful if they are smaller than 6oz. If smaller than 3oz, just watch the cooking time. Also, you’ll be tempted to dive right in, but let them rest. It’ll make them that much better!

    1. Rachel,
      I love the mini size too! Glad they have been a hit in your home! I would love to know if you let them thaw at all when baking from frozen? There is rumor that Levain bakes their cookies from a frozen state…
      xo
      Si

      1. 5 stars
        The rumor may be true, because I cooked them straight from frozen to my preheated oven. Watch the cooking time (it’s slightly longer) but they cooked up nicely. They were beautifully browned on the outside and soft on the inside-just like the picture. It has been nice to cook only a couple at a time for my husband and I as a little treat after the kids go to bed!

  45. 5 stars
    These are delicious! Made the mini version, which is funny since they’re still huge and my son wanted to know why I’d made them so big. Thanks for figuring all this out and sharing with us.

  46. 5 stars
    These lived up to the hype. We’ve got a nut allergy in our home, so I did 4 cups of chocolate chips and an extra 1/4 cup of flour (making 2 cups of flour total). I also cooled the dough for 35 minutes, and made sure to let our electric oven preheat 20 minutes (just to make sure it really was hot enough. With only 2 minutes left in baking, they still looked like a complete dough ball….we were skeptical. I let left them in for 1 extra minute (12 min total), and my gosh, they were AMAZING! Looked just like yours, too! Perfect instructions, perfect adjustment recommendations, perfect cookie! I’m officially obsessed. So thank you!

    1. Kaela,
      You’re welcome!
      I’m glad these turned out so well for you! What can be better than the perfect cookie?
      Wish I was there to have one with you.
      Thanks for your comment!
      xo
      Si

  47. I’m so excited!!! Tried the recipe out, and I am currently waiting for cookies to cool! 😀
    I divided my dough into two, the other half I baked in the original size, and the other half I baked in mini version. I hope it turns out nicely –– I’m still testing out what temperature to use for our oven. Will report back! (The cooling part is testing me. Haha.)

    Thank you for this wonderful post and recipe!

  48. 5 stars
    Hi,
    Thank you for this recipe! i am a bit confused with the non nuts version. If I don’t want nuts, should I add 1/4 cup of flour AND 2 extra cups of chocolate chips? Or should I add one OR the other? thank you so much! I am a big fan a Levain… living in France!

    1. Val,
      Yes, if you don’t use nuts, add BOTH 1/4 more flour and 2 more cups of chocolate chips.
      You will be so pleased with the results! Enjoy your amazing cookies!
      xo,
      Si

  49. 5 stars
    This is the most perfect cookie recipe. Love the texture of this cookie (especially the next day!). I make with all chocolate chips, 3 oz size. I make the mounds of dough, refrigerate then store in the freezer and take a few out at a time, let thaw and then bake. SO delicious!!

    1. Jeanelle,
      It sounds like you have this recipe perfected! Having a stash in the freezer is a great idea – you can have fresh baked cookies anytime you want. So glad you love this recipe.
      Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo,
      Si

  50. 5 stars
    Just wanted to thank you for this recipe and for all of your tips! I followed everything to the letter for adding more chocolate chips, placing the cookies in the refrigerator for 45 minutes, setting the time limit for regular bake – and the cookies came out perfect!! If I could upload a picture, I would. I appreciate that you took the time to work on this copycat recipe and added the suggestions and tips. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

    1. Isabel,
      Thank you for your kind words! So glad this recipe turned out so well for you.
      It’s worth the time to read and follow the directions to be able to enjoy such an amazing cookie!
      Thank for reading ABK!
      xo,
      Si

  51. 5 stars
    Thank you! I needed a big delicious cookie with chocolate and nuts and this was perfect! I sized mine down to 2oz and baked them for 9 mins and they were so amazing! Next time I’m going to try a cup of semi sweet chips and a cup of milk chocolate chips for fun

  52. 5 stars
    I just want to say THANK YOU for an amazing recipe. I was never able to go to New York to buy them fresh. But I have had them shipped to me and they were amazing. BUT now that I was able to make them and have them straight out of the oven any time I want is even better. Thank you so much for this recipe! You’re a baking genius

  53. 5 stars
    I’ve been making your tried and true cookies for a long time. They’re my favorite! But decided to try these and oh my word!!!! The best cookie I’ve ever put in my mouth. No joke. Love love love!

  54. 5 stars
    Just made a batch of these heavenly goodness! Ever since I left NYC tried to find replications, THIS recipe definitely is THE one!!!
    I made my cookies 4.4 oz but they needed 13 min to bake and flattened a little, What do you think I did wrong?

  55. 5 stars
    Heaven!!! These cookies put me on 9th cloud. Im a native New Yorker whose been trying to find a replica of Levains cookies and you nailed it!!
    One question though, I made the cookies 4.4 oz and while they took 13 min to bake they spread a little, what do you think I did wrong?

    1. Tzippi,
      I’m glad these cookies were such a hit! Now for your question…was your oven fully pre-heated? I recommend refrigerating these cookies 30-45 minutes before baking. Also, shape the dough in a tall mound before baking. I don’t shape them in a ball or use a scoop.
      I hope this helps!
      xo, Si

      1. 5 stars
        Thank you Si! My oven was preheated but maybe didn’t refrigerate them enough or didn’t mound them enough.. Will be trying again very soon;)

          1. 5 stars
            Hi Si,

            I made sure to refrigerate for the required time, mounded them and preheated my oven, and it still spread. I’m wondering if perhaps my ovens temp is off? I’m definitely enjoying the cookies though:).

  56. Hello,

    -I want to make only chocolate chip cookie (no nuts)
    -I use convectional oven (so ı don’t put the dough in the fridge) ?
    -I use 1 cup and 1/2 cup and extra 1/4 cup flour (cake and all purpose flour)
    -Only bakes 8-9 minutes
    Do I understand correct or not ?

    Thank for your recipes…

    1. Dear Mehmet,
      For the no-nut version, use 3 cups total flour (1 cup cake flour, 2 cups AP flour) and 4 cups total semi sweet chocolate chips.Refrigerating dough for 30-45 minutes after shaping and before baking is recommended. If time is a factor and you have a convection oven, try a batch without chilling. Make sure your oven is pre-heated and bake 8-9 minutes.
      Let me know how you like them!
      xo,
      Si

  57. 5 stars
    I live in NJ and have stood on line to get Levain cookies may times before. I just made your recipe and I have to tell you that this recipe is EXACTLY like the Levain Bakery cookies!

    I made the version without nuts, and they held their shape and were perfect. In my oven I did have to bake for 13 minutes.

    You did an amazing job with this recipe. Thanks so much!

    Sandy

    1. Sandy,
      Thank you so much for your rave reviews of this recipe! If you read the post, I worked on this recipe for quite some time. I’m so glad to have your stamp of approval. Enjoy!
      Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo,
      Si

  58. 5 stars
    Made this with 1c finely chopped almonds and 3c choc chips Bs it was divine!! Refrigerated the dough first as suggested before baking. And baked tablespoonful sized blobs for approx 10-12mins. Again, can’t say enough about how amazing these were!!! Thanks for the recipe!!!

  59. 3 stars
    Divided the dough into 8 cookies and bake them at 400 as directed (11 min). There were completely burned in the bottom ): (I made the no nut version and doubled the amount of chips plus the extra flour). Each one weigh of each one was about 6.4 oz. Suggestions?

    1. Mack O,
      I’m sorry they were burned! Was the oven completely preheated before you started baking? Was the rack in the middle of the oven? If using a convection oven the baking time would be decreased. (Bake 4 cookies per pan, for 11 minutes on regular bake or 400 convection bake for 8-9 minutes). Do you have a way to check if your oven is cooking at a hotter temperature? Perhaps the next time you make them, you will need to watch the cookies and adjust baking times for your oven.
      Don’t give up. These cookies are worth the re-make!
      xo,
      Si

  60. 5 stars
    Have you ever had a cookie taste so good it brought tears to your eyes? Well, this cookie will do that. Bravo Si!! Your homework and note taking with the Bobby Flay show helped you hit a home run here.
    Wow. Just wow. I can’t stop sharing this recipe…and I received this from a friend! Keep sharing people! Let’s stop passing around those mediocre cookie recipes that leave you saying “ehhhh” and just share the good stuff.

    1. Lisa,
      Thank you for the two thumbs up! I’m so glad you love this cookie as much as I do. It was a quest for me to find the perfect Levain recipe, but well worth the effort. Let me know if you try the other Levain recipes I have posted!
      xo,
      Si

  61. 5 stars
    I made these this weekend and forgot to take a picture. They were eaten so fast.

    I like warm cookies, so I made the dough, then froze them, and cook the 2-4 at a time.

    I made minis (just under 3 oz.) from frozen, with a 10 minute thaw. 400 degrees, 11.5 minutes or so. I used pecans because I had them.

    Boy were they amazing!

    1. Sarah,
      Glad the recipe was a hit for you. I love pecans and I bet they tasted fantastic in this cookie.
      Thanks you for sharing your freezing/baking process. Warm Levain cookies are amazing!
      xo,
      Si

  62. I have been to Levain several times and it’s heavenly. Your recipe is so close it’s not even funny. I made one batch of 8 and now was asked to make them for my friend’s wife birthday tomorrow. I made mistake of not refrigerating mix for 45 mins after forming on first go around so they did flatten a bit but still amazing. If I replace walnuts with peanut butter should I add more flour?

    1. Brett,
      I have obsessed over this recipe and have received great reviews from happy cookie lovers. I’m glad you like it too! I’m worried the peanut butter won’t give the cookie enough structure to hold it’s shape. You may want to try peanut butter with a portion of your dough and see how it works. Please let me know! Thanks for reading ABK
      xo,
      Si

  63. So I know I’m new to this recipe but is there really no vanilla? I’ve never had chocolate chip cookies without vanilla.

  64. 5 stars
    I have made these no less than ten times in the last three months! After trying the recipe as posted the first few times, I got adventurous and switched out some of the chocolate chips for m&m’s and have subbed pecans/almonds for the walnuts and they have all been a success! Thank you so much for the recipe, it’s definitely a new family favorite!

    1. Kristen,
      Haven’t ever tried it with M&M’s! That’s going on my list to try soon.
      thanks so much for your review of this recipe!
      xo
      Si

  65. 5 stars
    In December i was diagnosed with a gluten and dairy allergy! It’s been hard to find good recipes to convert. This one however worked amazing!! I used smart balance butter substitute and 2 3/4cup Grandpas kitchen GF all purpose flour blend. Then I used Costco’s Kirkland brand chocolate chips (they are dairy free) did everything according to your directions and they turned out amazing! Next time I would do a full 3 cups of flour (my dough was a little stickier than the usual recipe) and try refrigerating the dough after shaping just to help a little with the structure but over all they turned out so so so so good. Also GF flour has a tendency to dry out pretty quick. I would recommend storing them in a bag and heat them up in the microwave a little before eating leftovers.

    1. Chrystal,
      Thank you so much for sharing your tips to making an amazing gluten free cookie! I’m sure the GF readers will love this. Who doesn’t love a wonderful Levain cookie?
      Thank you for reading ABK!
      xo,
      Si

  66. 5 stars
    This is so wonderful! My fiancé said it was better than Levain since he was able to have it warm fresh out of the oven 🙂 They are huge for sure! I would love to add salt flakes on top next time, I do love that salt taste but he doesn’t so it was perfect. I may have ordered my Mother cookies from Levain for her 60th Birthday for $40 including shipping…. I honestly considered cancelling the order after I made these! Thank you! p.s. she is a baker and very picky, I know these will win her heart over!!

    1. Aly,
      I’m so glad you and your fiancé enjoyed this recipe. I’d be honored if I also got the seal of approval from your mother as well!
      Thanks for reading ABK
      xo,
      Si

  67. These were UNBELIEVABLE. Thank you! New favorite recipe.it seems like you recommend to cook them THEN freeze. Can you freeze the dough instead?

    1. Maricela,
      Yes, you can form the dough and freeze on a cookie sheet, then remove the cookie dough balls when frozen and place in a zipper bag till you’re ready to bake. When you’re ready to bake, let the dough sit on the cookie sheet till they are refrigerator-cold, then bake. Deelish!
      xo,
      Si

    1. Becky,

      Yes, lots of readers have successfully used pecans in this recipe! Make sure to add two full cups.
      xo
      Si

  68. 5 stars
    Hands down the yummiest, biggest Cookie I have ever made!!! It stayed huge and fluffy and was PERFECT! I followed all your instructions and made the 3oz smaller version. Thank you!!!

    1. So glad you loved this cookie! It has become the crowd favorite in many homes! Thanks for your feedback and for reading ABK!
      happy baking,
      Si

  69. 4 stars
    Delicious! I did use pecans instead of walnut- I’m allergic to those. It’s so fun to have a crunchy outside and a soft doughy inside… are they supposed to be dough like? It was delicious to me!

    1. Alexa,
      I just use the paddle attachment for this recipe. I’m afraid this dough would break a whisk.
      Let me know how your Levain cookies turn out. This recipe is a keeper!
      xo,
      Si

  70. 5 stars
    Every single time I have made these cookies, everyone LOVES them!! Literally every single person that tries them asks me for the recipe. Good work. Thank you for blessing the world with amazing cookie recipes. 😉

  71. 5 stars
    I made these for a game night with friends and I didn’t have nuts or the amount of semi-sweet chocolate chips it calls for, so I substituted heath bits for the nuts and did a mix of semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips and they were so good!!! Everyone loved them! I also made them a little smaller than 6 oz so I didn’t cook them for the whole time and they turned out great! These will definitely be a make again cookie!

    1. Thanks Aubree! Love the idea of using Heath bits. I could eat a whole bag of those alone! Thanks for reading ABK.
      xo
      Si

  72. Just made these cookies. They were gorgeous and deilcious! All your helpful hints were awesome! I just happen to find your blog and can’t wait to try another recipe!

    1. Leslie,
      Thank you so much for your positive comments! I work hard to put quality recipes on my blog. Please let me know what you try next – I appreciate your feedback. Thanks for reading ABK.
      xo,
      Si

  73. 5 stars
    Hello,

    I was wondering what the best type of sugar would be to use? Normal white or granulated? I can’t wait to make these!

    1. Ashlee,
      From my research, white and granulated sugar have identical molecular structure and they will bake the same. Some sugars are made from sugar cane, while others are made from beets. So, use the sugar you have at home and enjoy these cookies! They are fantastic.
      Thanks for your question and thank you for reading ABK.
      xo,
      Si

  74. 5 stars
    I’ve lost count of the times I’ve made the original recipe with and without nuts, but after a special request I replaced the nuts and chocolate chips with (the same amount of) chopped macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips. They turned out perfect and were a huge hit. Thank you for this great recipe!

    1. Manda,
      Your white chocolate, macadamia twist to this recipe sounds fantastic! Thanks for your tips and I’m so glad you love this recipe.
      Thank you for reading ABK.
      xo,
      Si

  75. Just got back from New York and wanted to check out Lavains having seen them on the Food Network. Months ago, in anticipation of the up coming trip, I was looking for the recipe and happened onto your blog. Made your recipe many times and loved the results every time. Did not have time to go to the actual bakery when I was in NY so I had a dozen cookies sent by messenger to my hotel which worked great. I have to say that the Lavain cookie was good but your recipe knocked them it out of the park. Theirs was very sweet to me and cakey. I love the buttery taste in your recipe which was not there with the Lavain cookie. I was very surprised that I did not like the Lavains product more than I did. Would I buy it again? Maybe if I was in the neighborhood and bought one, I brought the booty back from NY to share with my family in AZ and they agreed. Your cookie is better but they did like the Lavains version too. Just wanted to share my experience of going out into the big world and finding that there is no cookie like homemade.

    1. Deb,
      Thank you for your very kind comments! It always feels great when I create a recipe that is enjoyed by so many! Thank you for reading ABK and again, thanks for your positive feedback.
      xo,
      Si

  76. 5 stars
    Ok, this is really incredible! Thanks for the recipe!

    I tried to do a lowcarb version and I think it worked pretty well: I ve used almond flour instead of Cake Flour and AP Flour and Xylitol instead of sugar. Chocolate chips 80%. It just works, but I need to add the extra flour and refrigerate it to avoid the flattening. The exterior does not get too crispy. Maybe I will try to use less butter next time

    1. Paulo, thank you so much for sharing your tips to making a low carb version. I’m sure readers who are more health conscious will love this. I’d love to hear how it turns out when you add more flour to the dough. There aren’t many cookies better than the Levain cookie!
      Thanks for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

      1. 5 stars
        Si, here I have a picture with the added flour, it is PERFECT now:
        https://www.dropbox.com/s/2vfjx7mhwgd93av/lowcarb_version.jpeg?dl=0

        3 cups almond flour in total. And here a small video:
        https://www.dropbox.com/s/au68zd3k0nqqw7g/lowcarb_video.mp4?dl=0

        You can see it is too soft and it is not crunchy in the outside, although the walnuts always help. Next time I will try a smaller amount of butter, since I am using 80% chocolates and almond flour: they are already too buttery.

        1. Paulo, thank you so much for sharing. Cutting the amount of butter might help with the texture, especially with the different ingredients you’re using. They look great and I’m so glad they turned out well for you!

          xo,
          Si

  77. 5 stars
    Great recipe, Si! My family loved the cookies. I made the three-ounce version (without nuts, adding the extra 1/4 cup AP flour) and they turned out great. Thanks for taking the time to add all of the tips to your recipe. The cookies that looked the best out of the oven were the ones I didn’t shape into smooth balls, but rather left them with nooks and crannies. Thank you!

    1. Thank you so much for sharing, Diane! I’m glad they turned out well for you. That little bit of extra flour can make all the difference. Thanks for reading ABK,

      xo
      Si

    1. Janice,

      yes, I developed a copycat recipe last year. Use the search bar and enter the name Levain Bakery Oatmeal Raisin Cookie and you’ll be linked over. Thanks for reading ABK Janice!
      xo
      Si

  78. 5 stars
    Just made these and they were delicious!!!!!! I also just found on Levain’s Instagram that after shaping them and weight each to 6oz, they “pop them in the fridge” before baking. Next time I’ll try that! It will probably help them hold their round shape a bit more. Mine didn’t flatten out too much but definitely were wider and not as tall as the real ones. Thanks so much for the recipe!!

    1. You’re welcome Natalie, and thank you for sharing! Refrigerating the dough usually enhances the texture of the cookie, but I haven’t noticed a difference with this recipe. The key to getting a perfectly crispy outside and gooey middle is to mound the dough balls high while baking them at a high temperature. Thanks for reading ABK,

      xo
      Si

  79. 5 stars
    This is hands down the best recipe for cookies! Just a quick question though, sometimes when I make them they have a very strong flour taste. Is there anyway to fix this this or could you advise what I’m doing wrong lol. Thank you for such an amazing recipe 🙂

    1. Thanks Ashlee, I agree this cookie recipe is one of the best! How much flour are you using? I usually use 1 3/4 cups of all purpose flour and 1 cup of cake flour, but I’ve heard people have a lot of success only using 1 1/2 cups of AP flour. Thanks for reading ABK,

      xo
      Si

      1. 5 stars
        Thank you for your reply!! I think the last batch I probably measured wrong cause I used the 1 1/2 plain flour and 1 of cake flour. I’m trying again tonight and will be more vigilant. Thank you again for this amazing recipe 🙂

  80. I just made these today and they are amazing!!!!! I’m all the way in Australia and they are similar to great cookies we can get at some fantastic eateries around here. Thanks so much.

    1. Thank you for sharing, Kathleen! I’m so glad you enjoyed them, and thanks for reading ABK all the way from Australia.

      xo,
      Si

  81. These look delicious! Do they still seem raw in the middle after cooling for an hour? I ate Levain fresh from the shop so they were still raw/warm. I want to make 6oz cookies that are thick like these, soft in the middle/crunchy outside when cooled. Some of my experiments have been too raw but maybe I needed to walk away for an hour before tasting lol!

    1. Hi Robin, those fresh Levain Bakery cookies are hard to beat! The cookies in this recipe turn out fairly gooey in the middle and crispy on the outside. You may want to let them sit for an hour before you serve them. Thanks for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  82. 5 stars
    I made these for the first time this past weekend and they were divine! The only difference is that I made them in 1 and 7/8 oz. and they turned out great!

    1. Thanks for sharing, Emily. I’m so glad you enjoyed them. These cookies are always so yummy, no matter what size you make them. Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  83. 5 stars
    My Cookie Monster son found LeVain cookies on the web, but we are in CA. Then we found your receipe here. It is delicious. A whole family loves it. Thank you for sharing with the great notes.

    1. You’re very welcome, Naomi! I’m so glad your son found the recipe. These cookies are hard to beat and seriously addicting. Thanks for sharing,
      xo
      Si

  84. Hi! Thanks for sharing this recipe! I’m making it right now, waiting for it to chill in the fridge, two balls of 6oz.

    I was measuring the cups of chocolate chips and saw that 1 cup was about 100 grams.. I added 300gr of chocolate chip cookies to a no nut dough, but I also used 1 3/4 AP flour. I’m not sure how much of the chocolate chips I had to put in, but I saw it was good enough. Lets see how they come out.

    It would be great that you had the recipe in grams so it for sure could be replicated exactly, whenever you have an opportunity :).

    Thanks for sharing alll those details, they for sure help a lot!

    1. You’re welcome, Sofia. I know you’ll love these cookies, and I’ll see what I can do about putting it in grams. Thanks for sharing!
      xo
      Si

    2. If you don’t mind could you tell me how much you used of each ingredient? I use grams too and sadly I’m struggling to convert the recipe.

  85. 5 stars
    What a dangerous cookie…. Oh my goodness! Sooo delicious. I subbed out the nuts with extra flour and followed your notes. They came out perfect!!!! The hardest part was waiting for them to cool.

    1. I agree Kaylynn, they are dangerously addicting, and one of my favorite cookies ever! The hardest part is always waiting for them to cool, but it’s definitely worth it. Thanks for sharing,
      xo
      Si

  86. 5 stars
    Hello,

    My husband and I just returned from New York for the first time and all he could talk about were the cookies we got from LeVain Bakery! They were the best cookies I think we have ever had in all of our travels! When I found your recipe I decided to make them this weekend. He was so excited.. and they were amazing!! I made the original and also with no nuts. Can’t wait to make them again!

    1. Thanks, Angela, these are some of my favorite cookies of all time. Those Levain Bakery cookies are hard to beat. I’m glad you found this recipe and thanks for your comment!
      xo
      Si

  87. 5 stars
    hi siii
    i dont have light brown sugar , can i use brown sugar instead of it? will it affect the cookie texture? pls reply, thankyou soo muchhh

  88. 5 stars
    Wonderful!! Made per recipe for no nuts with only chocolate chips except smaller in size. Easy, delicious, and beautiful cookie. This is a perfect and simple chocolate chip cookie. Your recipe is a keeper!

    1. This is definitely a recipe I’ll be making for a long time too, Kristie! Thanks for your comment and for reading ABK.
      xo
      Si

  89. Sorry if this has been answered before, but I’m a bit stuck on the no walnut portion.

    So am I adding an additional 2 cups chips (I’m actually using chunks chopped from a bar) AND the extra 1/4 cup AP flour, or is it one or the other?

    I’ve made these so many times and they still manage to flatten 🙁 Baking soda is fresh, so it can’t be that, and the butter (I use Kerrygold) is straight out of the fridge. I’ve tried using replacing some of the cake flour with AP flour 1:1, but never an additional amount.

    1. Hi Julie, since you’re only using chocolate chips, you want to put about 30 oz total of chocolate chips, which is 4 cups total. You are also adding and additional 1/4 cup of flour. To help with the dough baking well, I would refrigerate it after you have shaped the balls for about 45 min. Hope this helps and thanks for asking!
      xo
      Si

  90. 4 stars
    Not sure if my oven wasn’t strong enough or what, but the edges/outside were great, but the inside was still raw. Not sure what to do or how to adjust 🙁

    1. Hi Neira, maybe try to bake them on the lower the rack at 375 until the outside of the cookie is barely golden. Also, you could try refrigerating the dough for an hour or so before baking. Hope this helps and thanks for asking!
      xo
      Si

    1. Hi Joseph, you could try replacing it with unsweetened applesauce (1/4 cup per egg) or white vinegar and baking soda (1 tablespoon vinegar and 1 teaspoon baking soda per egg). Hope this helps and thanks for asking!
      xo
      Si

    1. Yes, Robyn, you can use pecans or more chocolate chips instead of using walnuts. Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  91. The cookie is DELICIOUS and I am so stoked to have my go-to chocolate chip hammered down. I do have one question, when making the no-nut version, it is clearly a suuuuper chocolately cookie with double the chips. Any thoughts on how to keep the form of Levain while producing a less chocolatey cookie? (I know, I’m off my rocker for even asking about less chocolate in a cookie… 😉 )

    Thanks so much!

  92. Followed the directions carefully, did the ones without the nuts and added the extra flour and they are completely raw on the inside, so bummed. I refrigerated for 30 min and cooked 11 min until outside rim was golden brown. I’m going to put them back in the oven but think they’re goners :(. Willing to adjust if you have ideas, maybe smaller would work.

    1. Hi Carol, I’m sorry to hear that. Did you have the cookies set on the middle rack in the oven? Sometime they bake different if it’s a gas versus an electric oven as well. You could also try making them a little smaller. Hope this helps and thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  93. 5 stars
    Hi!

    I just want to say THANK YOU for your hard work researching for this recipe! I made them as my first recipe when my boyfriend got me a stand mixer and they’re absolutely AMAZING! Now all my colleagues and friends ask for more 😉 you’ve made me the best baker of the office! 😀

    1. I’m so glad to hear that, Cyrielle! That’s why I love this recipe so much, it’s something anyone can make and make well. Thanks so much for sharing and for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  94. 4 stars
    Made these into 2.5oz, baked for 6 mins but put them in for another 2 mins on the top rack after letting them cool for awhile because they were way too undercooked still. These also spread a lot for me, next time I’ll fridge the dough first.

    1. Thanks for sharing, Kristie, hopefully they’ll bake a little higher when you refrigerate the dough beforehand.
      xo
      Si

  95. 5 stars
    I made these a couple weeks ago and they were such a hit. Not only did I think they were the most amazing cookies I’ve ever had, but they got the same recognition from boyfriend, roommates, and coworkers.

    I doubled the recipe, which proved to be a lot of work for my Kitchen Aid (which is already a size up from standard), so I could freeze some extras for later. Best decision.

    I followed the recipe word for word, except I used dark chocolate chunks in place of semi sweet chips. Also, I’m usually not a fan of nuts in baked goods, but I LOVED the walnuts.

    I will definitely be saving this recipe in the archives!

    1. I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Taylor! It’s definitely a must have for our family too, there’s nothing like a good homemade chocolate chip cookie. Thanks for sharing and for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

    1. Hi Gwen, I do cool my cookies sometimes before I bake them, it depends on if I’m making them ahead of time. Thanks for asking and for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

      1. 5 stars
        Omg meant to say BEST COOKIES EVER… they ARE literally perfect. Feels like I’m right back at Levain in NYC. I add different varieties of chocolate chips which is awesome. 12/10 would recommend. I tried 7 different cookie recipes the other day… this recipe won BY FAR

        1. I’m so glad to hear that, Gwen! This recipe is one of my favorites by far too and I love your idea of adding different kinds of chocolate chips. Thanks for sharing,
          xo
          Si

  96. 5 stars
    These cookies are the best! I used a regular oven at 400 degrees and had to bake closer to 16-18 minutes instead of 11. And this was for 3 oz portions. I know my oven is working okay because I just made a cake and that was totally fine. Curious to know if this has happened to anyone else or if anyone has insight (I’m in Northern VA).

    Thanks! So glad I found this recipe — delicious.

    1. 5 stars
      I baked mine for about 12 minutes which was perfect for me. I do also like my cookies very gooey in the middle so this time was perfect for my liking.

    2. Hi Jen, I’ve heard that these cookies take a few minutes less to bake sometimes, especially when they’re in smaller portions. I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe and thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  97. Hi Si! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
    I used crystal brown sugar, which gives a “crunchy” effect to the cookie. I could taste the sugar crystals, so it wasn’t so good.
    I can see that you use light soft brown sugar. In the part of the world where I’m from, the soft brown (light or dark) isn’t very common.
    So, in order to lose that crunchy crystal effect, what would you recommend I should do?
    Thank you in advance!

    1. Hi Helen,
      I understand brown sugar is not available in many countries. You can make your own if you are able to get a hold of molasses where you live. Add 1-2 tablespoons of dark molasses to 1 cup of granulated sugar and stir well. 1/4 cup of molasses to 1 cup of granulated sugar will yield dark brown sugar. Hope this helps!
      xo
      Si

  98. 5 stars
    Seriously the best cookies I have ever made!! My family swears I could sell them, they are that good. They turn out perfect and large every time!

  99. 5 stars
    I’ve made these a lot. I usually half the recipe and have had great success with that but the original full recipe dough has a better consistency. Either way they’re great cookies.

  100. 5 stars
    My favorite cookie recipe hands down!!!!! A fistful of goodness. I make them way too much.

  101. 5 stars
    Yum! I made these into 3oz cookies and they were still (delicious) monster-size cookies. I tried to save some for later but ate them all within a couple of days!

  102. 5 stars
    These are incredible! I’ve made them for my neighbors a few times and I’m a legend now haha! I love how easy they are and how impressive they look.

    1. they will flatten a bit, that will naturally happen when cooked! If you keep the dough high when forming, they will still be thick and gooey after baking.

  103. 5 stars
    Yum! These are our new favorites. Just found the recipe a month ago, and we’ve made them several times already. Once you read through allllllllll the instructions, it really isn’t difficult. We make them much smaller and cook for less time, and they are scrumptious!

  104. GLUTEN FREE OPTION: For all you celiac people out there you can make a version of this! Here is what I did. In place of all the flour I used Bob’s Gluten Free 1 to 1 flour. I used a total of 2 3/4 cup. No nuts – and I used only 3 cups of chocolate chips. I refrigerated the dough for 20 min. before cooking 13 min @ 400. They turned out as good as can be for a gluten free cookie! They were big and did not go flat! So happy I can now make some of these for my husband since I was feeling guilty every time I made them for kids who do not have Celiac.

  105. Can’t wait to try this recipe!!
    I know the recipe calls for butter – but if I need to make it non-dairy do you have any suggestions? Would replacing the butter with margerine work? ( in my usual cc cookie recipe I replaced 1 cup of butter with 3/4 cup margerine)
    Thank you!

  106. 5 stars
    I was dying at all of the pictures being posted of these cookies and so I had to make them! Went out and bought a cheap kitchen scale ($10 on amazon) and went at it. Followed the recipe, but did the smaller version of the cookie – 3.5 oz per cookie. My oven is a little wacky so the recommended times don’t always work out for us. We ended up baking them for 10 minutes and they came out perfectly. I don’t think they were as doughy as the pictures, but they were just right for us. Exceeded expectations!!! I’m already excited for when I get to make them again!

    1. I’m so glad to hear that, Sarah! You definitely have to watch these cookies as they bake because oven times can be so different. Thanks for sharing and for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  107. I watched you on the food nanny video and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about these cookies. I’m excited to try them. These cookies remind me of my favorite cookie when I lived in Seattle. If your ever up there you should go to the metropolitan market and get their “the cookie’. That’s what they call it and it’s pretty amazing. Has the nuts in it as well. My mouth is watering just thinking about that hot gooey goodness. Anyway thanks so much for this recipe. Looks like you put a lot of hard work into it.

  108. 5 stars
    This is an amazing recipe and I have made it many times but I just got a new oven with convection and it has been a game changer in how my cookies turn out!!! If you have a convection setting I would highly recommend using it! My family loves these cookies and we make them every couple of weeks.

    1. I agree Kathy, the convection setting makes such a difference for these cookies, especially for getting that golden brown crispiness on top. Thanks for sharing!
      xo
      Si

  109. 4 stars
    So excited to eat these cookies. They are cooling right now! I pulled them out when golden brown on top, baked for about 10 min. but the bottoms were a little burned (it seemed like the chocolate chips were burnt) I put another jelly roll pan in my oven upside down and baked them on top of that and they turned out great. NOW IF THEY CAN JUST COOL FASTER!!!!

  110. Am Bee from Thailand Thank you so much This is first time in my life to make cookies so i like very much its so nice and easy make me proud because my daugther and husband also my mom like I looking forward about other cookies from Leavin Bakery Oatmeal or peanut butter ^_^ ^_^ from you ♡♡ you make me fall in love cookie right now Big hug ♡♡

  111. i just came back from new york and i went (like everyone else) the day after i arrived at the bakery leaven … what a mistake i got back every day from the suite during the 10 day trip to fill my addiction. My favorites are double chocolate, then those with peanut butter and finally those with nuts and chocolate chips. Would you have these variations in your recipes ??? Thx a lot xxx

  112. I’m going to try this recipe but I’ll be heretical here and say it: I was not impressed with the Levain cookies. I was recently in NYC and made a point of going there to try out these “world famous cookies.” Maybe the Harlem location is baking a different cookie than the other locations, I don’t know, but there was no line. My daughter, who has never even heard of Levain, and I plunked down $4 each for a chocolate chip walnut cookie. She’s still puzzled as to why I *had* to go to Levain while in NYC. I’m puzzled over the fandom. We were both equally unimpressed.

    Dare I say it? It’s an oversize, undercooked chocolate chip cookie with walnuts. Undercooked does not equal gooey, people. It’s just undercooked.

    While I intend to try the posted recipe, it’s just because I’m still intrigued and I love to bake.

    1. I’m sorry to hear that, Julianne, but thanks for your comment and let me know how you like this recipe!
      xo
      Si

      1. May be heresy but after baking today (see my comments below), I agree. If you take them out when the recipe says, which is based apparently on the Levain recipe, they are in my opinion, underbaked. That’s why I put them back in for another 5. If you bake them until YOU feel they’re done, you might just love them. It was 15 minutes for me.

  113. 5 stars
    Excellent recipe! I baked them last night. I made them without walnuts and added the additional 1/4 cup of flour and 2cups of chocolate chips. I baked the 6 ounce for 12 minutes and the 3.5 ounce cookies for 8 – 9 minutes. Love them!

  114. 5 stars
    Also I added 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. I also stuck some caramels and small candy bar pieces in a few of them. Those came out nice and gooey! Thanks for posting your recipe.

  115. 5 stars
    This is one of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes. Maybe THE favorite. I love the crispy bite to the exterior with the chewy, gooey inside. Some notes on the recipe: I don’t put nuts in because my kids don’t eat them, so I use the 1 3/4 c flour increase as well as increase the chocolate chips to 2 1/2 cups (I haven’t added the 4 cups like she suggested, but this amount works fine for me). I also don’t make the ginormous cookies, I use a cookie scoop to make regular-sized (about golf ball size) cookies. The cooking time doesn’t change a lot for some reason? Maybe a couple of minutes less and see how your oven does. You should know these cookies SHOULD be a little golden on the bottom and top (I try not to get much brown at all on other chocolate chip cookies), the butter makes them brown a little and makes that nice crispy bite! Also, I don’t refrigerate the dough. No patience ;). Only possible negative, these are way better the day they are made. You lose that nice crisp outside when they’re left to the next day. Although you can stick them in a toaster oven for a little bit and get some of it back!

  116. 5 stars
    Wow, these are everything I hoped they’d be. My 10 year-old son and I made them using the homemade bread flour, no walnuts (extra choc. chips instead), and the half size. They were beautiful and delicious .

  117. 5 stars
    This is my 2nd time making these and I saved the best for last this Christmas. These are the absolute best cookies. I follow the recipe exactly and they were perfect each time. Thank you, Si, for a wonderful recipe! They are my go-to now.

  118. 5 stars
    I’ve made these twice and both times were a hit! They are pretty much identical to the real thing…and dare I say, maybe even better because you can eat them straight out the oven instead of from a display case! I put the dough in the fridge for about 15 mins before baking, I find that they don’t spread as much when I do so!

  119. 5 stars
    My family and I have been to NYC and we love Levain Bakery!!! I love this recipe, I do make the cookie smaller more like a normal size cookie & they turn out perfect!! Have you tried freezing them? I haven’t (they haven’t lasted that long yet!) I have a friend going to NYC & I told her Levian Bakery is a must!! I made her these cookies & I’m hoping when she goes this recipe will be a great comparison for her! She has already asked me for the recipe so that’s a great sign!!!

    1. Yes Sharyl, the Levain Bakery is a must if you go to NYC! And yes, you can freeze these cookies, I usually freeze a few after I bake them. Thanks so much for sharing!
      xo
      Si

  120. Hi! I’m interested in making these but was wondering If you could please provide the amounts of each ingredient in ounces?

    Thank you!!! Pumped to try these!!

  121. 5 stars
    I just baked a 1/2 recipe of these, making 4 ginormous cookies. I usually try to do this when trying new recipes just in case I’m not thrilled with the results. That was not the case with these cookies, they are completely off the hook. Cutting the recipe in 1/2 was easy with a good food scale (I use OXO’s) and the invaluable “Ingredient Weight Chart” from King Arthur. If you weigh out your ingredients instead of measuring in volume or ounces you can scale however you like.
    Anyway, I made 1 change to the ingredients (used pecans because I don’t like walnuts). I also learned a few things for next time based on “Bountiful”‘s wonderful and thorough directions:
    1) This is the only choc. chip recipe where I will use chips instead of chunks or cut-up bars. That’s because I’m going to want more distinction between cookie and chocolate than I got using a variety of chunks, which almost created a pudding on the inside.
    2) These cookies are so big they will want to break apart after baking so heed the advice to bring the dough together. I didn’t put on a clean surface, just brought dough together in the bowl with my hands. I also chilled it for a few hours before baking at 400 convection. Due to the chilling it took longer than 8-9 minutes to bake them, but maybe that’s because I didn’t like the almost unbaked dough in the middle. I put them back in the oven for 5 more minutes (15 total). They were probably more browned than recommended but the texture was amazing; gooey and tender on inside but crisp and chewy on surface.
    3) Adding a bit of flaked sea salt before baking is a lovely touch.
    4) I’m going to bake them again but now that I’ve astonished myself and wowed my family/friends with the sheer size, I’ll probably do 1/2 size cookies. 3 oz. portions of these cookies will probably still be spectacular, and the ingredients will go a lot further.
    That said, these are absolutely spectacular. I’ve never baked a cookie before that I had to eat with a fork, over a few hours. And loved every bite.

  122. 5 stars
    Hi! Terrific recipe. I’ve had Levain cookies before. Do you think they take any additional safety measures regarding the rawness of the dough? I could care less but some people make a fuss about raw flour or raw eggs since the cookie is pretty raw in the center. What are your thoughts on this? Some would say to cook the flour in the oven before but that is way too much work and I don’t believe they do this.

    1. Hi Michael, I don’t usually worry about this at all, the risk is fairly negligible. If someone is really concerned about raw flour, you can always toast the flour beforehand, but I agree that it is way too much work. And if raw eggs are a concern, then you can use pasteurized eggs. Thank you for asking!
      Si

  123. Just made these and they are absolutely delicious! My daughter and I are quarantined and she wanted a chocolate chip cookie. I chose your recipe and she was exchange she follows Levian in Instagram. We both thought these were wonderful! Thanks for sharing!

  124. 5 stars
    They are perfect, made my own cake flour and use my regular oven I don’t even have a mixer and they turned out amazing. All good, delicious. Thank you!

  125. 5 stars
    I am a BIG fan of Levain Bakery cookies (every time I go to NYC I have to hit up Levain’s… as often as possible). I have made this recipe a few times and it has worked out so well! They taste amazing and authentic.
    The only thing I sometimes vary with the recipe is not using as many walnuts. What I like to do is 3 cups of chocolate and 1 cup of walnuts (instead of 2 cups of each). I also like to do different kinds of chocolate chips… chocolate chunks… mini chocolate chips… I mix them all in!)

  126. 5 stars
    This is the recipe that brought me to the BK site. I have been cursed my whole life with flat cookies, and my friends could all make crackly-chewy perfect cookies. I followed the notes to the letter. I made my own cake flour. I mixed for the exact time stated, I used pecans, I was a total robot and didn’t free-lance like I usually do. They turned out perfect. My convection setting really cooked quick, so watch them like a hawk, starting at 4 minutes. These are on repeat. Also, I don’t dare make the big ones. I would eat the whole thing, so I just do the minis.
    ps, I did cave and use vanilla, because I just have to.

  127. 5 stars
    Hello ! What type of chocolate chips are you using for this recipe? What brand is it? I love the pic! Gonna try it soon 🙂

    1. Hi Cindy, I like to use “Guittard” semi-sweet chocolate chips, “Ghirardelli” is also a great brand. Thank you for asking, let me know how you like the recipe!
      xo
      Si

  128. 5 stars
    These are fantastic. I am a devout fan of Levain, and though we loved these, there is something a little different, maybe these are slightly less “crumbly,” they hold together more, which might have to do with my alterations: I halved the recipe, used the cornstarch addition instead of cake flour and made the cookies 5oz each instead of 6. I think I kept these in maybe a minute longer than I should have, because the bottom was toastier than I wanted. All in all these are amazing and I will definitely make them again.

  129. for the substitute for cake flour of 2 1/2 cups of AP flour… is this NOT including the AP flour already added in?

    1. Hi Spencer,
      If you’re just using AP flour, then 2 1/2 cups is the total amount needed for the recipe, you may need to add in another 1/4 cup if the resulting dough is too sticky. Thank you for asking and hope this makes sense!
      Si

  130. Any suggestions on trying to make these with a gluten free cup-for-cup flour. Have some allergies in the house but still want to make these!

    1. Hi Mallory,

      I have had several readers tell me they have made this recipe using Cup4Cup and had great success. As with any GF baking, I highly recommend making the dough the day before or early in the day and then letting the dough sit for at least 6-8 hours before baking. This allows the flour to absorb the wet ingredients, especially the butter and takes away some of the gritty texture you see with gf baking. Take a look at this recipe for more tips on gf cookie baking. If you haven’t tried ABK GF sugar cookie recipe, I think you will love that as well! Thanks for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si
      https://abountifulkitchen.com/gluten-free-sugar-cookies/

  131. 5 stars
    So glad I found Si’s blog a few years ago and since then these Levain Bakery cookies have been my go-to cookie recipe! I’ve never been to NY, but I have heard about Levain Bakery so I was VERY excited to make these cookies the for the first time and I feel like they are the same. I’ve never strayed away from chocolate chips but today we did white chocolate instead. Both are so good!! And we always do 1 3/4 cup AP flour..I’ve found that it makes the cookies extra thick. Anything less and I’ve found them to be flat.
    Thank you for sharing this recipe with us Si!! This recipe will be used by our family for years to come!

    1. Hi Daisy, this recipe has already been adapted to be made at a higher altitude, but definitely let the oven heat up for at least 15-20 minutes before baking. Also, I would refrigerate the dough balls after you’ve shaped them for at least 30 minutes. Hope this helps and thank you for asking!
      xo
      Si

  132. 5 stars
    Hi!
    Never tried Levain, but I’ve heard about them. Made this for the first time today and it is SO AMAZING! I found the video to be really helpful. Mine definitely didn’t look like yours, but I’m going to try again. Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes with the world. I also tried the cinnamon rolls and those were to die for, too.

    1. Hi Megan, I like to use Guittard or Ghirardelli chocolate chips. Thank you for asking and for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  133. 5 stars
    This is by far the best cookie recipe I have ever made. (I even messed up and wasn’t paying attention and didn’t put enough butter and it still turned out wonderful.) A 6oz cookie is not for the faint of heart, but this one is worth every calorie. I made my own cake flour since my store didn’t have any. The instructions were super easy to follow. The hardest part in the whole thing was waiting an hour to dive in!!

    1. Thank you Erin! I agree, a 6 oz cookie is for someone who is COMMITTED to chocolate chip cookies! Thanks for your comment and for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

    1. Hi Michelle, you can freeze the dough, I would definitely let the dough unthaw for a few hours before you bake it. Also, let your oven heat up for at least 15 minutes, the cookies may take a few minutes longer to bake. Thank you for asking!
      xo
      Si

  134. 5 stars
    Amazing every single time! I always make mind smaller so we have more since we have a big family. But they are so amazing! Not too sweet just sweet enough and the perfect crunch!

  135. 5 stars
    I have been searching and trying out chocolate chip cookie recipes left and right…and failing. I happened to come across your website, and this recipe is THE ONE! I have had Levain bakery cookies and these definitely remind me of them! I am so excited to find such an easy and successful chocolate chip cookie recipe…can’t wait to try baking the other flavors too.
    And your website has so many great looking recipes! Can’t wait to try them 🙂

    1. Thank you so much Michelle! I love hearing feedback and especially when a reader has tried the real deal at Levain Bakery. Thanks for reading ABK.
      xo
      Si

  136. 5 stars
    THIS WAS SO FUN!! I followed this recipe almost exactly. I live in Idaho where the elevation is a bit higher so I always bake for 2 minutes less than what recipes call for and adjust as needed. I baked for 9 minutes @ 400° for my first batch and they were golden brown. I wanted them a bit lighter so the next batch I made I baked at 385° for 9 minutes and they were exactly what I wanted! I grabbed my butter straight from the fridge and microwaved it for 12 seconds so I could easily cut through it. I had so much fun baking these and testing the dough for poison 😉 they were DELICIOUS!!!!!!

    1. Karin,
      Thank you so much for sharing the modifications you made, this is so helpful especially to other readers! Thank you for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  137. 5 stars
    My go to chocolate chip cookie recipe! I substitute the walnuts with more chocolate chips and make my own cake flour. Always turn out great!

    1. Thank you Corbin! So glad you love this recipe. And making your own cake flour is a great idea. Thanks for reading ABK, and happy baking!

  138. 1 star
    I haven’t made this yet because I can’t work out the conversation weight of ingredients. I have never used measuring cups I only know grams and use a scale. I’m in Australia and all measuring cups seem to be different sizes and I have looked up the conversations online and they are all telling me something different.

  139. 5 stars
    I have never been to the levain bakery but these cookies needed a try. OOOH my!! They were sooo gooood! I kept cutting off 1/8 of a cookie but could not stop returning for more. I think I preferred them at room temperature over fresh out of the oven! I used pecans as my nuts and wow! I don’t dare make them again :))))) (those are my double chins forming). Thanks for the recipe! Now to try another one of your Levain bakery cookie knock-off recipes, although I can’t imagine any being better than these!

  140. 5 stars
    These are seriously so good! Mine came out a little flatter than yours but still tasted amazing. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!

  141. 5 stars
    As someone who is OBSESSED with Levain cookies and equally as obsessed with baking, this recipe is such a win!! The texture is spot on and the flavors are so so close to the original – it really is the perfect “dupe”!!

    I don’t personally love walnuts (but i love the original bakery cookie and it’s perfect just as is) but since i was making it at home, i thought why not give it a try with pecans. And i used dark chocolate chips instead of semi sweet chips just because i really love dark chocolate haha. And it was soooo good!

    The recipe is seriously so good without any substitutions or changes but it’s always fun to experiment! You definitely need to make these!!

  142. 5 stars
    So yummy!!!!!! They are so fast and easy to make. They baked up beautifully. I’ll definitely be using this recipe to make for neighbors and friends. They are so yummy. Perfect when you are craving an amazing cookie but don’t want to pay a ton of money at a cookie shop!

  143. 5 stars
    I’ve been to Levain many, many times (lived right in the neighborhood for 6 years). These cookies are close to Levain, but there is something that’s slightly different with the texture. Even so, these are THE BEST homemade cookies I’ve ever made. Thanks!

  144. 5 stars
    This recipe is amazing!! I did the version without walnuts (so added extra flour and extra chocolate chips). Amazing!! I baked for 12 minutes. Don’t bake any longer, even if you think it needs more…don’t do it! They harden when they cool down (but are still nice and gooey in the middle!). As someone who lived a few blocks from Levain bakery for two years…I can attest that these are just as amazing as the real deal.

  145. I followed recipe nut cookies came out gigantic and took more than 11 minutes. What did I do wrong??!!😂 wish I could show you a picture!!!

  146. Haven’t been to Levain but have heard of their infamous cookies. I’m a former professional baker gone vegan. Searched the comments for vegan swaps (earth balance, applesauce, gf flour). Will try these with flax eggs and report back. Thank you for your commitment to reproducing these beauties!

  147. I tried this and it doesnt come out perfect U_U. I had to leave it in for another 10 minutes or so.

  148. We made these this morning and they were amazing. Thick and gooey and super good. One question, we did not use walnuts so we added the additional 1/4 cup flour (1 3/4 C total flour) and 4 cups choc chips (one of the commenters said that if you take out the walnuts you need to add additional choc chips and additional flour so we did both). However, It was a bit too many choc chips, if that is possible. If I wanted to cut it down to 2 cups choc chops, would I need to add more than 1 3/4 cup flour?
    Thanks for any help you can provide.

    1. Hi Kelli, I would try adding 1/4 cup of flour, so in total that would be 2 cups AP flour and 1 cup cake flour. If it’s still too sticky, add an additional 1/4 cup AP flour. Hope this helps and thanks for asking!
      xo
      Si

  149. 5 stars
    This was the best chocolate chip cookie I’ve ever had!! Loved it so much. I used all chocolate chips because my brother is allergic to walnuts and it turned out fantastic. Thanks so much!

  150. 5 stars
    Followed this recipe to a T and baked it for 11 mins, but turned off the oven and let the cookies sit inside for about 3 mins. I didn’t want a super gooey inside and the cookies came out great! The outside was golden brown and the inside was still soft and chewy. Next time I’ll try baking it for 11 mins then take it out of the oven immediately. Thank you for such a good recipe!!

  151. Hello, I hope your’e well, I’m trying this recipe and only have around 1/2 a cup of walnuts, should I half the recipe aswell or just make the whole thing, will the amount of the nuts affect the overall texture?
    Thank you

  152. Hi,

    Thank you for the recipe! I am wondering, should we be using room temperature eggs or cold eggs straight from the fridge?

  153. Hi, just a quick question about the refrigeration of the dough. If I were to refrigerate the dough for about a week and then bake them, would the end result still be the same?

    1. Hi Grace, from my experience, yes the cookies turn out the same, if not better after chilling for so long. Thank you for reading ABK!
      xi
      Si

  154. 5 stars
    Hello Si!

    Thank you so sooo much for sharing this recipe and for saving us lots of time trying to get it right!
    I loved your tips and how detailed your instructions are.

    I came up with a few questions that I couldn’t find in the post:
    – If I want to freeze the cookie dough then would you recommend more a ziplock bag or some other kind of container?
    – Also, After I froze them for a couple weeks and put then straight into the oven, they burned. For how long would you recommend me letting the frozen dough cool down before i put it in the oven?
    – For selling the cookies, would you recoomend a cookie plastic bag? Or wax paper + paper bag?

    Thank you so much!

  155. 2 stars
    The taste is good but 9 min at 400 was far too little time. The inside was raw dough. I saw another recipe that was 410 for 9-12 minutes. I think that would be more appropriate

    1. Thank you for your feedback, Irene, let me know how the cookies turn out at 410 degrees for 9-12 minutes if you make them again.
      Si

  156. 5 stars
    These are the most amazing cookies!!! Thank you so much for your generosity in sharing all of your delicious recipes. Hope things are going good on your Mission.

  157. Hey there,

    Im a big fan of Levain cookies. I tried using your recipe yesterday and excluded the walnut but it still came out flat even though I have added additional 1/4 flour. I used 1 cup of cake flour and 2 cups of all purpose flour in total but I still didnt get the same texture as yours. The bottom looks kinda burnt and a bit too soft in the center

  158. We love this recipe and keep coming back to it! We like to substitute the walnuts with 1 cup Heath bits and 1 cup chopped pecans. Sometimes there is spreading and we will be trying to refrigerate them first this time. Thank you for this great recipe!

    1. I love that idea of adding toffee bits and pecans, Tanya! Thank you for sharing and for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  159. Hi, I just made these yesterday ( saw them on TikTok) and they were fantastic.
    Would this recipe, without the chocolate chips, work for confetti/ sprinkle cookies?
    Or would that be more of a sugar cookie?

    1. Hi Celeste, I don’t think confetti/sprinkles would work very well in these cookies just because they wouldn’t supplement the volume of the nuts/chocolate chips. But I do have quite a few sugar cookie recipes that would be perfect with sprinkles or confetti! Thank you for asking and for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  160. 5 stars
    These were amazing!!! Crispy on the outside and had the chewy center. A new family favorite for sure!!! We did the recipe with no walnuts and the note was perfect to add extra flour and extra chocolate chips. We already can’t wait to make them again!

  161. Thank you for this recipe! I use it all the time and my family and friends LOVE them! I think my oven tends to run on the low side, so I have to bake them a little longer, and I make them a little smaller, but it might just be because I don’t like my cookies too under baked. 🙂 Thank you!

  162. Hey!!!! Thank you so much for this recipe and all your notes! I baked them and they taste amazing but they stayed like balls and didnt really flatten a little, they just look like a chocolate chip cookie ball 🙂 what can I do?

    1. Hi Natalia, I would try baking them on regular bake instead of convection if that’s how you baked them, I also wouldn’t refrigerate the dough if you want them to flatten out a little more. Hope this helps and thank you for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  163. 5 stars
    If I wanted to make a birthday cake flavor….would I just replace the nuts and chocolate chips with sprinkles and white chocolate chips? Or other things have to be changed as well?

    1. Hi A.R.,

      I think that will work! Just replace the chocolate chips with white chocolate chips. If you are not adding nuts, you will need to replace the volume the nuts would have added, as stated in the recipe, so you will need to replace the nuts with white chocolate chips. You can subtract the sprinkles amount from the amount of additional white chocolate chips. For example, use 3.5 cups of white chocolate chips and 1/2 cup of sprinkles. Let me know if you try this!
      xo
      Si

  164. Hi, when replacing walnuts on the recipe should I choose if I’m going to add flour or chocolate chips only? Or can I add both ingredients like 1/8 cup of AP flour and 1 cup of chocolate chips? Also, can I use regular salt if I don’t have coarse sea salt? Thank you in advance!

    1. Hi Anne,
      I’m sorry I don’t quite understand what you are asking? If you are replacing the walnuts on this recipe, you will need to replace volume, which is usually done by adding more chocolate chips. Sea salt is best, but if you only have regular table salt, that is fine as well! I just prefer the taste of sea salt.
      Thanks for reading ABK,
      xo
      Si

  165. can you give me the amount of the recipe with grams?i can’t measure the exactly amount if using cups,sometimes the ingredients can’t be full when measuring with cups.

  166. 3 stars
    I made this yesterday and it tasted good! It didn’t spread and came out looking chunky and lightly golden brown. I left it alone for 15 minutes, but it became cold by then. Also, the inside seemed more like a fluffy cake than a cookie? Did I not do something right?

    1. hmmm the inside is usually very gooey, not cake like. It sounds to me like you added too much flour. Make sure to use the flours specified, same with the amount of chocolate and nuts! Hope this helps,
      Si

  167. 5 stars
    Hi Si
    This cookies marvellous! I have one issue, the cookie outside is brown n crispy but it break easily as it is very soft inside. Is it normal or do i need to press more to form a ball? Thanks

  168. 5 stars
    I did your recipe however I did milk chocolate chips and semi sweet chips along with using pecans. OMG! these are awesome. I couldn’t even finish a whole cookie just half. I bake a lot about 4-6 times a week and was impressed by these and they tasted as if the cookie just came off the runway. So thank you my new favorite.

  169. 5 stars
    One of my favorite recipes! I’ve made it too many times to count and it is always a huge hit- my friends husband once hid them during a party to make sure he would have them all to himself. I do leave out the walnuts, but subbing in the double chocolate chips and making the flour adjustments (I used all-purpose) was super easy! Thank you for sharing this awesome recipe!!

  170. 3 stars
    I was so excited about this recipe and everything is great except after 11 and 15 minutes and cooking they are still so under baked in the center. Way more than the levain cookies. I keep having to reheat the oven and throw them back in. I know there is no issue with my oven because it’s strong with cooking everything else. I used regular bake, not convection. Any recommendations? This is my second batch and after 15 minutes, here I go again throwing them back in the oven (after they’ve cooled).

    1. Regards to IR:

      I’m not the creator however are you letting the cookies sit on the cookie sheet after you take them out. It has to be at least 20 to up to an hour. I find letting the cookie sit for an hour is better. The cookies continues to cook while they sit on their “sheet”. I hope this helps and i’ve tried both versions NUTS and NO NUTS … marvelous.

  171. 2 stars
    This is the second Levain cookie copycat recipe I’ve tried. The taste itself is good, but the cookie completely melts down into a pancake, and doesn’t retain that chunky appearance that Levain cookies are famous for.

    I wonder if using cornstarch helps keep that shape? The first recipe I tried uses cornstarch instead of baking powder and it kept its shape.

  172. 5 stars
    I’ve never had the real thing, but we love these cookies. We “discovered” this recipe during the pandemic and have enjoyed making them. We have baked the 6 oz and the 3 oz size cookies and they both turned out well. We usually put a timer on for 1 hour before we try to eat them so they can “set”, it is worth the wait. I always have pecans on hand so that is what I use and we love them. Thank you for another fabulous recipe Si!

  173. 5 stars
    I am planning to try this recipe this weekend, but I also do not like walnuts so I am thinking of replacing them with broken up pretzel pieces…. and maybe reducing the salt? Since it will be salty from the pretzels… thoughts?

    1. Hi Shelby, I think adding pretzels is a great idea! You can reduce the amount of salt, but I don’t think using the original amount will make the cookies too salty. Let me know how they turn out and thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  174. 5 stars
    You have great recipes! The Levain’s chocolate chip, oatmeal, chocolate cookies, your suggestion to have them bake when done to be approximately 3″ in diameter so they bake flat to use for ice cream sandwiches.
    Thank you!

  175. Lived two blocks from Levain in NYC Upper WestSide and LOVED these cookies. Since moving due to military move I was so happy when I found your recipe!!! We are now living in Belgium and I can’t wait to make these for my neighbors this holiday season! Thank you again! Your recipe brought a little bit of home to us being so far away 🙂

  176. Hello, I haven’t tried the recipe yet. I live in Utah where the attitude is about 6500 ft. Have you found that anything needs to be adjusted with this higher attitude?
    Thanks fir your hard work. Excited to try!!

  177. 5 stars
    I can’t even count the number of times I have made these. They are amazing!! My version is oatmeal chocolate chip, so 2 cups oatmeal instead of the 2 cups walnuts. They are perfect! Thank you so much for posting this!

  178. Hi Si,
    Good day. I just want to clarify if you sift the All purpose flour, cake flour, baking soda and baking powder? I am making 3oz cookies to give to my coworkers for christmas, 50 persons in total… And you say to bake the 3oz cookies around 5-6 minutes? Is that correct? hope to hear from you. Thank you!

    1. Hi Marie, I don’t sift the dry ingredients together, I add them straight into the wet ingredients. I live at a higher elevation, so it only takes about 5-6 minutes to bake the cookies, but you just want to bake them until the top of the cookie forms a crust, so you might have to cook them for longer. Hope this helps and thanks for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  179. 5 stars
    I made these in a gluten free version by subbing gf cake and AP flour. These are the BEST gf chocolate cookies I’ve ever made or tasted! They are outstanding when eaten same day, as sitting overnight brought out a bit of the grainy gf texture (don’t get me wrong, they were still outstanding for breakfast the next morning!!) I made them in the 3oz size and only baked a few. I froze the rest in 3 oz balls. I felt the need to bake them an extra 2-3 minutes, as they seemed a bit too raw. OMG, I’m done looking for a good gf chocolate chip cookie!! Thank you!!!

    1. Becca,

      I am so happy to hear this and also appreciate this feedback about using GF flour. I would love to know if you felt the cookie dough that was frozen turned out better than the cookies baked immediately? I have found that letting gf flour sit overnight in fridge (or freezer) before being baked helps the texture of gf cookies considerably!

  180. How should I go about changing this to make it a S’mores cookie? I want to place a mini s’more in the center. Would I be able to do this?

  181. Could I replace the walnuts and chocolate chips with dried cranberries and white chocolate chips to make white chocolate cranberry cookies?

    1. Just because I’m all chocolated out from Christmas, I subbed cranberries and raisins for walnuts and chocolate chips and there was no detriment to the recipe at all.

  182. 5 stars
    I just made these and WOW. It’s been a year since I first tried the actual version in NYC, so maybe my memory is a little fuzzy, but I think these are BETTER. Definitely my favorite cookie recipe I’ve ever made. Thank you!

    Also, super impressed by your dedication to figuring this recipe and technique out! Way to be committed!

  183. Hello, the recipe is amazing!
    Because in Greece the degrees of the electric stove have a maximum of 250 degrees Celsius. At what temperatures do you think I need to bake cookies?

    Greetings from Greece❤️

    1. Hi Konstantlna, I would try cooking them at 200 degrees Celsius, let me know how they turn out and thank you for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  184. 5 stars
    Made these yesterday and substituted pretzels in place of the walnuts, they were a HUGE hit! That added surprise of the salt was amazing. I did find that by refrigerating the dough (after I had formed it on the cookie baking sheets) for about 45 minutes really helped keep the shape of the cookies.

    1. Trina,
      We love this cookie with the pretzel addition or, better said, substitution! I think this is the preferred way for most kids to enjoy this cookie!
      Thanks for reading ABK
      xo
      Si

  185. 5 stars
    These cookies are absolutely amazing.
    I’m not a big walnut person so I did pecans instead. I did 1 cup cake flour 2 cups AP flour. I also only have a hand mixer so folding in the dry and wet ingredients + the chocolate chips and pecans worked perfect! (Instead of pulsing) Definitely make sure butter is straight from fridge & eggs! Don’t over beat! Mine came out thick and gooey!! New fan favorite in my house!

  186. 5 stars
    This is the last cookie recipe you will need. I’ve made all the variations of these several times with fantastic results! I use the cake flour hack and it works great. Thank you for your work on this!!
    Btw….is there a recipe for a sugar cookie or snicker doodle like this?
    Thanks,
    Bob

  187. I enjoy reading your posts, but wonder why you don’t specify weights for ingredients? You mention having a scale and using it to weigh the cookie balls in this recipe, why not weigh your flour and sugar etc.? And I was a bit confused by the instructions to “pulse” after beating the butter, sugar, and eggs. In the end I decided to go with another recipe, the results look pretty much like yours and the “real” ones. I will make them again, and incorporate some of your recipe, notably using walnut halves instead of chopped, I think that would work even better.

  188. 5 stars
    I have my own tried-and-true cookie recipe, but I wanted to change it up a little. Love this recipe! I used the suggestion to make my own cake flour, no problem at all. When change I did make a call and I can’t use walnuts, and I didn’t want to add 2 more cups of choc chips ( i like more “cookie” in cookies)… so I added 2 cups of oats. Turned out amazing! I also wanted a bit smaller cookies.. smaller even than the 3oz version. Did 1.5 oz and baked for 8-9 mins. Thanks for this recipe!! Its my new go-to!!

  189. 5 stars
    These cookies are the best! They turn out perfectly every time. When you substitute walnuts with pretzels, like you posted on Instagram, what amount of pretzels do you use?

  190. 5 stars
    I have made these cookies for over 2 years now , A LOT! Everyone loves them. Now when I think of having a cookie I can’t think of a better one than this one.
    I make each cookie about 3 oz and bake from frozen for 11-12 minutes. Delicious!!

  191. 5 stars
    Hi. I made this yesterday as well and this is really good. I just need to adjust the sugar a bit, cause its too sweet for me. Anyway, I sold each piece and it was sold out yesterday. My customers love them, but someone requested a crispier one.. Maybe one or 2mins more..it was soft inside and the walnuts are heavenly. I didn’t use a good quality butter, so I guess it will make a big difference. I’ll use a good one next time. 😊 Thank you for the recipe. I made money yesterday with this recipe 😁 I owe you one haha.. Anyway, like I said in my other comment, I’m from the Philippines, and haven’t tasted the real levain cookies,so I can’t tell if the recipe is close to the original. Nevertheless, thank you so much 😊

  192. 5 stars
    I’ve made this recipe three times now! Be sure to add full amount of walnuts or pecans! They taste good with all dark chocolate but I am a big milk chocolate person so I did 1/2 dark chocolate chips, 1/4 milk chocolate chips, and 1/4 roughly chopped dark chocolate bar and they turned out phenomenal. Also be sure to use cold butter and no need to refrigerate the dough before baking😊

  193. 5 stars
    i made these with vegan butter and they cane out beautiful and tasted amazing, i used regular eggs btw. can these be stored at room temp or is freezing the only option?

  194. 5 stars
    These are amazing! We’ve made them several times with unsalted butter and salted butter and we DEFINITELY prefer them with salted butter. They taste too plain with unsalted butter.

    1. Aileen,
      I’m so glad you are also a Levain fan. I worked hard to perfect this recipe! Great to know you preferred salted butter. It is an option if the dough seems too bland. Thanks for your input and thank you for reading ABK!
      xo
      Si

  195. 5 stars
    These are amazing! Totally satisfied my craving for Levain. I live in Michigan and had no issues with rising — I did have to bake them for a few extra minutes to get the bottoms browned. I took the liberty of converting the measurements into grams, so if anyone is looking for that, here it is:
    226g unsalted butter
    160g brown sugar
    99g sugar
    2 eggs
    120g cake flour
    180g-210g all purpose flour
    1 teaspoon baking powder
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
    256g walnut halves
    340g semi sweet chocolate chips

    1. Hi Kallan,
      Thank you for your wonderful review and thanks for converting this recipe to grams! I’m sure your information will help many of our readers. I’m so glad you loved these cookies as much as we do! Thank you for reading ABK!
      xo,
      Si

  196. 4 stars
    Love the recipe & looking forward to trying. but I’m a bit confused.
    It states to bake at 400, but also 400 in a convection oven.
    Shouldn’t the convection temp be lowered to about 375 ?

  197. 5 stars
    I’ve been making these for a couple years now. I make them small, (like normal, 12 to a cookie sheet size) and they turn out great. It’s the only choc chip recipe I’ll even entertain. They’re fantastic, and I get asked for the recipe all the time. THANK YOU!!

    1. Hi Amanda!
      Thank you for your positive feedback. Whatever size you choose, you really can’t go wrong with this recipe! So glad you liked it.
      Thanks for reading ABK!
      xo,
      Si

  198. Hi there! Just wanted to let you know that Leavine now sells their cookies frozen at Whole Foods. I saved your recipe because I wanted to make the cookies but after doing a bit of research I found that Levine is now selling their cookies at grocery stores!! Just bought a box and I can’t wait to try it!

  199. 5 stars
    I went on a hunt for a copy cat cookie recipe after seeing the bakery cookies featured on a tv show. Followed your instructions except used pecans, it’s what I had on hand. These were AWESOME, I’d love to send you a picture of the cookies but they did not last long. We made the “minis” and I did cook them a bit longer as mine were almost raw. Thanks for sharing, going to try the peanut butter next!

    1. Hi NOLAndrews!
      I’m so glad you found this recipe and love it as we do! Pecans are a wonderful addition to this chocolate chip cookie. Thank you for reading ABK!
      xo,
      Si

  200. 5 stars
    I have never experienced Levain cookies straight from NYC, but I did buy frozen Levain cookies to heat and eat. I thought they were incredible! Then, I made this recipe. I have gotten rave reviews from everyone. I had two of the frozen Levain cookies leftover and I made them the other day, and they absolutely did NOT compare to what I made at home with this recipe.

    This recipe is super easy. I thought there would be a lot of complicated steps and that it would require at least a day to make one batch. Nope! A super casual recipe and I appreciate all of the tips!

    Thank you!

  201. 5 stars
    The most beautiful I’ve ever seen!

    Would you be able to provide the recipe in (g)? On the other side of the world I feel that the measurements change a little!

    1. Hi Kylee,
      Yes! They are actually better after the dough is refrigerated or frozen! The only time I do not recommend freezing is when using pretzels in place of the nuts. The pretzels texture changes.
      XO
      Si

  202. 5 stars
    We just came back from New York this weekend. Although these aren’t exactly the same as levain, they are close and incredibly good!!!!

  203. 5 stars
    I feel like I just leveled up in baking now that I can make a perfect cookie thanks to your recipe. I have this favorite cookie recipe from growing up that uses part of a yellow cake mix. I love the flavor combo. Can I just do an exact exchange? E.g. remove 1 cup of flour and replace with cake mix? I assume it isn’t as easy as exchanging flour for cake flour, but a girl can hope!

  204. 5 stars
    Awesomeness 😎
    These turned out so well! I haven’t had Levain Bakery chocolate chip cookies, but if they are anything like this, wow! Thank you for the fabulous recipe! 😋

  205. Hello! When creaming the butter and sugar, should it be done til I reach the light and fluffy stage? Or just until they are incorporated? Bc i watched connie and pam’s YT video where they baked the walnut cookie and noticed the mixture was light and fluffy before they added the eggs.

  206. 5 stars
    Si, You wrote this “I believe the cookies are best when left to sit for about an hour after baking.” Do you mean to sit on the cookie sheet right out of the oven for an hour? So that makes the inside a little firmer maybe? Just want to make sure the inside is baked properly. Thank you.

    1. Hi Kathy,
      They can be left to sit on the cookie sheet, or on a cooling rack. I usually leave mine right on the cookie sheet to set up! And yes, the cooling time gives the cookie a chance to solidify. Hope this helps!
      XO
      Si

  207. 5 stars
    Hands down the best chocolate chip cookies. I make a batch of dough and get 2 dozen cookies from it. Everyone loves them!

    1. Hi Kathy! So glad you love these cookies. They’re one of our favorites! Thanks for reading ABK.
      xo,
      Si

  208. 5 stars
    So for the no nut version, do we add 2 cups additional chocolate chips and 1/4 cup of AP flour? So a total of 4 chocolate chips and 1/4 cup of AP flour?

    1. Great question, Dominina!
      For the no nut version, either add ¼ cup all purpose flour
      OR
      an additional 2 cups chocolate chips,
      OR
      coarsely chop pretzels to equal 2 cups and add pretzels instead of flour or extra chocolate chips. Hope this helps!
      xo,
      Si

  209. 5 stars
    I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made these cookies. SO MANY TIMES. And I can’t tell you how many people have been blessed by these cookies. It’s my go-to and i make them as gifts for people all the time. I even bought fancy cookie boxes on Amazon to make it really special. People go crazy for them and they are a hit EVERY SINGLE TIME. seriously these are the BEST and are fail proof. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I’m making them AGAIN for teacher appreciation week right now, and I just thought, I need to let her know how special these cookies are and how many people they have blessed. Thank you!!

    1. Chelsea,
      Thank you for your kind comments and review! I’m so glad you’re sweetening the world with these cookies! How kind of you to share the love. Thank you for reading ABK and thank you for your kindness.
      xo,
      Si

  210. 5 stars
    I’ve baked these so many I know the recipe by heart! I’ve shared with so many people! I make mine with 2 c semisweet and 2 c dark chocolate…no nuts. I refrigerate them overnight and bake!!!❤️❤️🤭🤭🤭

  211. Hi, have you tried this recipe with cake flour and bread flour and not A/P flour? Curious what is the difference as to why some use the cake and bread flour recipe over A/P flour? Do you use a kitchen scale to weigh the flour?

    1. Yes, take a look carefully at the recipe post. I explain the method in choosing flour and my experiments with using bread, cake and AP and the reasons why!

  212. 5 stars
    Si, I’ve made this recipe in the past and loved it. Last week Bob and I were in NYC and of course made a stop to Levain’s.. We bought one of each @$5 now and honestly none of them were as good as they have been in the past. Kind of disappointing. So, still craving the outcome I hoped for at Levains, I’m going to whip up a batch. I already know they’ll be delicious! Thank you!

  213. Hi! This looks awesome and really want to try this – but my daughter is allergic to eggs. Any suggestion for an alternative? Thank you.

    1. Neil,
      I have not tried an egg substitute in this recipe. Here is a substitute I have used with success in a pinch when I am out of eggs:
      1 egg ≈ 1 tablespoon chia seeds mixed with 2 to 3 tablespoons water

  214. Have you tried making these with GF flour? I used to bake these before a celiac diagnosis and I’m really missing them! 🙂

    1. Charlyce,
      I have not tried this recipe with gf flour, but I have had several people tell me they DO work using gf flour. I recommend Cup 4 Cup or Bob’s red mill.
      Hope this helps!
      XO
      Si

  215. 5 stars
    Just made these and we’re waiting. The dough was awesome (had a bite left over after weighing them. But the weirdest thing happened. On 400* convection, two flattened out a bit, one about halfway, and one stayed almost perfectly round! They weren’t even left and right, so it cant be the stove element; the round one and the mid-rise one were opposite corners and the flatter were also opposite corners. I’m sure they’ll be delicious, but I can’t figure it out.

  216. 5 stars
    These are 100% amazing! Truly, truly amazing. I don’t dare make them often, but I will definitely make them again!

  217. Hi, I’m thinking of making these next weekend and wanted to ask if I could make them and shape them a day before and place them in the refrigerator overnight and bake them in the morning.

    1. Hi Eman, Yes that will work! Just make sure to cover the balls of dough when refrigerating overnight! Enjoy!
      Happy Baking,
      Si

  218. Do you have gram measurements for your flour? I use 120g for each cup all purpose but I know there are slight variations.

  219. Hi Si!

    When baking cookies, do you use a specific type of pan? i.e. light vs. non-stick etc.

    Also, when cooling, do you let cool for 15 minutes on the hot pan or remove and put on racks?

    Thanks for the tips!

    1. Hey Jillian! I recommend using a light pan and leaving the cookies on the pan for the best results. Let me know how it goes after you make it!
      Xo,
      Si

    1. Hey Danica, I haven’t made this recipe gf yet, however, a few readers above posted their tips on making this recipe gluten-free. Let me know how it goes after you make it! You can also take a peek at the ABK Gluten Free Sugar Cookie post (URL below) for tips on gf cookie baking. If you haven’t tried ABK GF sugar cookie recipe yet, I think you will enjoy it!
      XO,
      Si
      https://abountifulkitchen.com/gluten-free-sugar-cookies/

  220. 5 stars
    Oh my word! These are amazing!

    I have never had Levain Cookies, and I made the smaller no nut version as my son does not like walnuts, and they were amazing. If this is what Levain cookies are about, I understand why they are legendary.

    I did bake them about 11 minutes so I could get that beautiful browning, and they were still gooey and raw-ish enough for me.

    This is a keeper! Next time I will make half with waln6and half without!

    Thank you!

    1. Liz, I am glad that the cookies turned out well for you! Arent they delish?! Thank you for your positive feedback!
      XO
      Si

  221. These cookies are incredible!! Always a crowd favorite. I love that they freeze and thaw perfectly.

  222. 5 stars
    These cookies are amazing! I first made your recipe a little over six years ago, and I got so many comments when I posted it on Facebook! It led to my friends and family trying this recipe and loving it just as much!

  223. 5 stars
    My sister brought me back the real thing last week because she knows how deep my love runs. I had to share with everybody so they didn’t last long. I was so happy to make these she find they were (almost) just as good. The walnuts are absolutely necessary! And you have to wait for them to cool a bit for the texture to be right. So yummy!

  224. 5 stars
    I was intimidated to try this recipe but am so glad I did. These cookies are truly gourmet! I made these during the holidays and will continue to do so as a new tradition.

  225. 5 stars
    This is the best Levain copycat recipe, hands down! I’ve had the real deal many times and it makes me so happy that I can whip them up in my own kitchen now that I don’t live in the NYC area anymore! I so appreciate all your time and attention to detail here. Thank you!

  226. I had my husband take home some of the original Levain cookies from NYC one time— it was so good. I knew I had to make them at home at some point since we don’t live in NYC. I am glad I found your recipe! I had to make it gluten free and it turned out the same! So good!

  227. 5 stars
    This is my absolute, all time favorite cookie recipe! They turn out so gooey and delicious, with the perfect balance of salt, chocolate and nutty crunch. I usually make 3.5 oz cookies and I’ve had great success freezing the dough balls to make a few at a time. Thank you so much!!

  228. 5 stars
    Even better than from the bakery. These cookies are tooooo delicious, although I rarely make them full size.

  229. 5 stars
    I love these cookies! Your story on getting the recipe spot on I have memorized. I follow all the tips you have said in other baked recipes to heart. But this recipe in particular is my favorite because it’s the first recipe I made of yours plus the one I use the most! I always have reserve cookie dough from this recipe on hand for dinner get togethers or for rainy days.

  230. 5 stars
    Hard to believe there could be a copycat recipe that tasted like the real thing. This recipe is fabulous. Cookies are delicious and enormous! I love how ABK gives her tips and tricks and reasons behind different ingredients. I have shared these with friends several times and they are blown away by the taste and texture. Thanks for your dedication in creating such great recipes!

  231. 5 stars
    This recipe is perfect! Gives me comfort for living on the west coast (so far away from a Levain bakery)!

  232. 5 stars
    After coming home from NY with my hubby I searched online for a recipe for these cookies and found yours! We were thrilled with the results and have made them many times since. Thank you for giving us a tangible reminder of our fun trip memories and a great recipe to make again and again!

  233. 5 stars
    These are now my signature cookie! EVERYONE asks me to make them! I like making mini one at 2.6 oz per cookie. I add 1 cup of milk and 1 1/2 cups of semi sweet! They are perfection! Thanks!

  234. 5 stars
    I cannot count how many times we’ve made these! They are our go-to homemade chocolate chip cookie recipe. The walnuts add a great crunch and wonderful flavor. These freeze really well but we still seem to raid the freezer frequently enough that a batch doesn’t last long around here! Such a great copy-cat recipe!

  235. These are so good! I’ve been to Levain in NYC and Boston. Honestly, these taste just as good as the real thing. So glad you made this recipe. Thank you!

  236. 5 stars
    My go to chocolate chip cookie recipe! Tried and true, and always comes out perfectly. I like it both with and without nuts.

  237. 5 stars
    Love the ooey gooey goodness of these! Definitely satisfies the chocolate chip cookie itch!

  238. 5 stars
    Whenever I get that craving for Levain, I use your recipe! I usually make them 3 oz and they are the perfect size for my kids to feel like they’re getting a splurge!

  239. 5 stars
    I love a good chocolate chip cookie and this recipe is to die for! Easy to follow and so delicious. The first time I made them I forgot the walnuts, but I loved the cookies so much without the nuts, I’ve never felt the need to add them!

  240. 5 stars
    These are the only Levain cookies I have tried. I don’t need to try any other. I don’t generally put nuts in my cookies but did for this one. They are so good. I love that the recipe gives the direction on how to leave out the nuts and still get the big, high cookie. I loved them even more the second day! Hard to make them last that long though.

  241. 5 stars
    When I used to make cookies, they were SO flat that the chocolate chips were taller than the cookie. Not only are these cookies delicious, the notes to making these cookies great are helpful for newbs like me.

  242. 5 stars
    My go-to cookie when I need to fancy-up my chocolate chip cookies. Who would have thought to add cake flour?!

  243. 5 stars
    Calling all GLUTEN FREE people to this recipe!!!! This is my go to gf chocolate chip cookie recipe. I follow it and substitute the flour for gf flour and I do add Kraft caramel bits to it and they turn out like a giant crumbl cookie. No more feeling deprived of all these cookie shops around AND they freeze well!! You honestly could sell these cookies for $5 a piece!!

  244. 5 stars
    These are dangerously delicious – a gigantic fresh out of the oven and loaded with chocolate chips! I love these – we make them for friends on game nights, and they’re always a crowd pleaser! Definitely recommend some milk or ice cream handy to enjoy properly 😉

  245. 5 stars
    These are absolutely divine and such a TREAT! I was hesitant to make them so big but they were phenomenal and I followed the recipe to a T. Even better with the walnuts—it’s a must! Thanks for recreating this one since I’ve never had the original!

  246. 5 stars
    I love this recipe! I always have cake flour on hand just in case I need to make these. I love the recipe as written and they absolutely compare to the Levain cookies in NYC.

    Since not everyone cares for nuts, a variation I make often for events is this: omit the nuts and double the chocolate chips, using Guittard milk chocolate chips. My family says this way is even better than Levain, though I am a sucker for the classic chocolate chip walnut version myself!

    I am always asked for this recipe and have shared it many times! The Tried and True chocolate chip cookies are my everyday go-to recipe, however,’if you need something special, these Levain cookies will be deliciously memorable!

  247. These cookies made me famous! Hands down incredible cookies! Thank you for this recipe!

  248. These have been a family favorite for quite some time now. Their big and the sound they make when you pull them apart after they’ve been cooking for a while (THE BEST PART). Oh and did I mention? They’re so delicious 🤤. Been making these for years now and my mom always requests them when it’s my turn to make the treat 😊 Must try recipe!

  249. 5 stars
    These are my all time favorite go to copycat Levain recipe. My family loves them and I have one friend who is always asking me to make them for her. They are delicious and come out perfect every time. My husband can’t get enough of them and he says they are even better the next day.

  250. 5 stars
    This is my favorite go to chocolate chips recipe. I love that it’s big and gooey inside and soft and crisp on the outside. I brought it to work to share with my friends and they asked if they can pay me to make more. It’s a keeper for sure. Thank you.

  251. 5 stars
    These never fail! I’ve made them a million times, a million different ways! I love pecans instead of walnuts. Or even a mix of only different choc chips and no nuts. Sometimes I’ll even chop up some Oreos and add those in addition to chocolate and white chocolate chips. The possibilities!!!

  252. 5 stars
    My neighbor makes these for me all the time because she knows I love them. She sometimes uses the butter straight out of the fridge and they come out great.

  253. 5 stars
    This is the only chocolate chip recipe I use now! I’ve never had a levain cookie before but I’m worried I might be disappointed that it might not taste like the ones in this recipe. I usually do no nuts in this recipe and add vanilla. Mainly I just like the smell of vanilla when it’s baking.

  254. 5 stars
    Do you bring eggs to room temp? Or add cold? As a rule I always do room temp but was curious how you do for this recipe. Thanks!

    1. Hey Nessah, No worries! Bread flour can work if that’s the only thing you have. You just need to use a little less when making cookies with bread flour. Id reduce it by 1/3 cup and then just add enough so that the dough isnt sticky. Let me know how it turns out.
      Xo
      Si

  255. 4 stars
    I followed your instructions to the tee, they turned out plum and beautiful, delicious … however the crust is not crispy, any idea why? Maybe my mixing the cold butter and sugar? When I added the eggs to the butter and sugar mix, they looked so clumpy and not smooth, does that sound right? TIA

    1. Hi Christine, The butter and sugar should be smooth, a bit grainy is ok, but ideally, the butter should be just soft enough to blend with the sugars smoothly. If not, it is a little too hard. The solution to this is to remove the butter from the fridge about an hour before baking or microwave just a few seconds until slightly softened. As far as the top of the cookie, if using a convection oven, the crust will get a bit of a crust that is from but not entirely crispy. This is a thick cookie and a crisp crust is not really what you’re looking for. I look for the top to be golden, with no wet spots remaining. Once this happens, usually at the 7 minute mark in my oven, I take the cookies out and let cool. The middle will be completely soft and gooey, and the top set. I hope this helps! Also, if the butter is a bit too soft, go ahead and make the dough, then set in the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes after shaped, before baking. Thanks for reading ABK!
      XO
      Si

  256. Hi! I’m sorry if this has already been addressed but what happens if I leave the dough in the fridge for a day? Will that change the texture/how much the cookie rises once baked?

    Thank you!

    1. Hi Anita, It will firm up the dough and help it to hold its shape a bit more. If it’s refrigerated more than an hour, you may need to add a couple minutes to baking time. Lmk how it goes!!
      Xo
      Si

  257. 5 stars
    We made these today and they are soooo good! Tastes just as good as the Levain cookies we had in NY. Crisp on edges and gooey in the middle. Thank you so much, BTW, I love all your cookbook. Your recipes are easy to follow and I like the extra tips and information.

    1. Cecelia, I’m happy that this recipe lived up to the Levain cookies you ate in NY! These cookies really are something else. Thank you for your sweet words and for reading ABK! 🙂
      XO
      Si

  258. 2 stars
    Thais recipe is not What expected
    They turned out horribly and they spread out. They turned out good once but not twice.
    And FYI TRY TO PUT THE MEASUREMENTS IN GRAMS TOO YOUR CLIENTS ARE NOT JUST FROM THE USA!

    1. Hi Maxime!

      Thank you for your feedback. That is a great idea; adding the measurements in grams would be a fantastic thing to add!

      Best,

      Si

  259. 5 stars
    I’ve made these a number of times per the recipe (minis) and they never disappoint. Yesterday, I tweaked it and made it with browned butter (let it cool and solidify), buttered pecans instead of walnuts (2 cups chopped pecans toasted with 2T butter), and I added 2T of Bourbon. Cooked 3 oz balls in convection for 5 mins. Delicious!

    1. Hi Allison,
      I love that you tweaked it a little and made it your own! Happy to hear that it turned out delicious.
      XO,
      Si

    1. Hi Jane,
      I’m guessing the texture will be slightly different with peanuts because of the difference in weight/volume. I looked up the weight of 1 cup of walnuts = 125 grams, 1 cup of peanuts approx 146 grams. Let us know if you experiment with the peanuts!
      XO
      Si

  260. 5 stars
    Could oatmeal be substituted for the walnuts to make an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie? Any guess as to how much I would add?

    1. Hi Angela,

      I recommend the walnuts because of the flavor and texture that it adds; however, oatmeal can be added. I would add the same amount of oatmeal as you would chopped walnuts.

      Have a great day!
      XO,
      Si