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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!

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.

f 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.

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. After dividing, round each portion into a smooth, even ball, then wrap them in plastic and refrigerate overnight. In relatively low-sugar/high-moisture doughs, an overnight rest will ensure the flour is fully hydrated, keeping the cookies thick and chewy. It also kicks off some Maillard browning, improving the flavor of the cookies as they bake.
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. Because these cookies are so impossibly large, the normal visual cues we use to judge doneness kind of fly out the window. I've found it helpful to use a digital thermometer to test the dough, which should clock in between 175 and 185°F (79 and 85°C) when the cookies are done. Those who prefer a slightly molten, fudgy center should aim for the low end of that range; edging higher will benefit those who enjoy a more thoroughly baked cookie. Once you've got an initial round of cookies under your belt (and in your tummy), you'll have a better idea of how to dial in the next batch. For that reason, and due to the sheer magnitude of these cookies, I highly recommend baking the dough on an as-needed basis. Due to their reduced sugar content, these cookies may be thick, but they don't retain moisture as well as other styles, so they'll also stale faster. So pace yourself, and save some dough for later. No matter how many cookies you bake, make sure they're no warmer than 100°F (38°C) before digging in. Any hotter than that, and the molten chocolate inside will render the cookies structurally unsound, and something of a burn risk. But when merely

  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.
• Recipe source uses 1 cup Cake Flour and 1 3/4 cup AP flour. You may try using 1 1/2 cups AP flour but the dough may 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.
• The easiest way to “turn down the volume” on spread in a cookie dough is to decrease the amount of sugar relative to the flour, as sugar is one of the primary factors governing spread in a cookie dough. With that change alone, most drop cookies will spread less as they bake, keeping the finished product nice and thick.
• 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.
• Aside from their incredible proportions, the distinguishing factor of a Levain-style chocolate chip cookie is the sheer quantity of chocolate chips involved. By weight, chocolate is the most abundant ingredient in the dough, and thus the most significant source of flavor. That can be a real problem if you're using cheap supermarket chocolate chips, which are often made with more sugar than cocoa solids—and low-quality cocoa solids, at that—plus artificial flavors. Fortunately, most grocery stores these days stock a decent array of high-quality chips, ranging from 55% to 70% cocoa solids, styles that contain more chocolate than sugar (i.e., more flavor and less sweetness). Once you know how to buy the right kind of chocolate chip, the real trick is to mix and match a few brands, which allows you to layer in a range of chocolate flavor profiles, from deep and earthy to tangy and bright. A blend of chocolate chips will give the cookies greater complexity of flavor, and texture as well, given the different sizes of chips and chunks on the market. With a mixture of chips, and less sugar than flour, these cookies may have a distinctive ratio of ingredients, but the ingredients themselves are quite familiar. Aside from the chocolate, there’s butter, brown sugar, plain or toasted white sugar, and eggs, along with walnuts (a signature ingredient in those Levain cookies).
• 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.

source: https://abountifulkitchen.com/levain-bakery-chocolate-chip-cookie-recipe/

https://www.seriouseats.com/super-thick-chocolate-chip-cookie-recipe