After multiple batches of cookies and a ton of sugar consumed, I have found the best cookie recipe for you to make. No, scratch that. It’s the ultimate chocolate chip cookie. No…wait. It’s literally your new favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe and you’re going to tell all of your friends about it. Seriously once you make these you’ll be forwarding the recipe to your mom, sister, grandma, Aunt, cousin, best friend, third cousin twice removed and tell them it’s the best giant chocolate chip cookie you have ever had in your life. Okay. Wow, the build up is getting intense! But, I promise. These cookies are life changing! And if you’re ever craving a Single Serve Chocolate Chip Cookie that tastes just like these, I’ve perfected that recipe for you, too! If you’ve ever been to Levain Bakery in New York, you’ll have a deep appreciation for this cookie. They recently released their Two Chip cookie which is more chocolate chips and no walnuts & this recipe has 2 cups of chocolate chips in it and no walnuts! Also, if you live in Fresno, California (where I am from!) you might be familiar with Crave Cookies here in town. They deliver warm, giant cookies straight to your door. It’s pretty amazing. My goal was to create my own cookie recipe for you (Kroll’s Kookies!) but using those two cookies as inspiration. There are plenty of other copycat Levain bakery cookie recipes you can find online & I wanted mine to be different. So, if you love a soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe that is giant, thick, loaded with chocolate chips and has the most gooey warm center ever, you’ve found the right blog post.
All-Purpose Flour: Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and be sure it’s leveled. Do not scoop the flour out of the container/bag with your measuring cup because you could end up with 50% more than you need. Spoon and level by using a spoon to scoop the flour into the measuring cup and use the back of a knife to level off the top of it. Cake Flour: Cake flour is finer, softer and lighter than All-Purpose Flour and I find using a mix of both cake flour and All-Purpose results in the perfect cookie. You can find cake flour in most grocery stores, usually on the top shelf.
Corn Starch: Seems weird to add cornstarch to cookies, right? But cornstarch is key to giving cookies that delectably soft center that’s just to die for. It also helps to keep the cookies thick and GIANT! Baking Powder: leavening agent for the cookie.
Baking Soda: Another leavening agent but about four times as strong as baking powder. Salt: Don’t ever forget the salt! Salt is so great in baking because it intensifies the body’s ability to taste the sweetness of the sugar. Yum! We want that. Butter: Cold, unsalted butter is used in this recipe. Not melted or frozen or room temperature. Cold butter straight from the fridge. This can be a confusing step in many recipes and possibly recipes have conflicting opinions on this, but this cookie is best with cold butter. Light brown sugar: I recommend light brown sugar in this giant cookie recipe as opposed to the dark. However you can use either! I use more brown sugar than granulated white because it results in a more moist, soft and chewy cookie. Granulated white sugar: Even though we’re using more brown sugar than white, the white is still necessary. It helps these giant chocolate chip cookies spread a little bit so they don’t look like baseballs! 1 whole egg (egg yolk + egg white): at room temperature. Using room temperature eggs can help result in a lighter and fluffier cookie. 1 egg yolk (just the yolk, no white): Another way to promise a super chewy chocolate chip cookie is to use an extra egg yolk! The extra egg yolk adds richness, soft tenderness, and binds the dough. Milk Chocolate Chips: We love this cookie with milk chocolate chips best, but you can use any chocolate you prefer: dark, semi sweet etc.
You could even make them with half chocolate chips and half walnuts, yum! This recipe also does not include vanilla extract because rumor has it Levain Bakery doesn’t add vanilla in theirs. However, you can always add in 1 tsp. vanilla. I’ve tested and it’s delicious!
Use a mix of both All-Purpose flour and cake flour: I’ve tested without cake flour and the cookie is more dense. It’s still delicious, but I just love the cake-y center when using a combination of both flours. Optional step to double up the cookie sheets: Double panning is a tip to slow the heat to the bottom of the cookie. To do so, simply flip a cookie sheet upside down. Then, place another cookie sheet on top of it (so the bottoms are touching). Place your cookies on top of the top sheet and bake your cookies!
Pull the cookies out before you think they are done (10-12 min for most ovens): The cookies will continue to cook a little once you pull them out of the oven and let them cool. Plus, I personally want a super gooey and soft center and if you do too please do not over bake these beauties! Let the cookies rest: If your cookies are turning out too gooey, let them rest longer. I recommend at least 15 minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. They are even better if you let them sit and enjoy the next day. Your cookies aren’t ruined, just let them rest! No need to chill the dough: Many cookie recipes out there say it’s key to chill the dough, but not for this recipe. We don’t have time for that, haha! Add an extra egg yolk: It’s just science. Adding in 1 whole egg (egg + white), plus an extra egg yolk (with no white) results in a chewy, delicious, amazing cookie. Make each cookie GIANT: 6 oz. to be exact. Using a food scale is easiest but you can also eyeball it. I like to pinch the tops of the cookies to keep them nice and tall. Do not flatten them or use a cookie scoop or disher to scoop out onto your cookie sheet. You can make the cookies smaller. Adjust baking time as needed. No cake flour? No problem. I tested this recipe using a “homemade cake flour” recipe. It resulted in a very similar product and I thought it was better than the 100% All-Purpose cookie. To make homemade cake flour, you’ll need 14 Tbsp. All-purpose flour and 2 Tbsp. corn starch. Mix these together and sift them twice to get them fully mixed and aerated. This will make ~1 cup flour. You only need 3/4 cup for this recipe. Once again, I have also tested this recipe using 100% All Purpose Flour. The cookie seemed more dense, but still resulted in a delicious cookie recipe. I still recommend using cake flour or “making” cake flour if you can’t find it in stores.
Can I double the recipe to make 12 large cookies?
Yes, you can double the recipe. Be sure to follow the measurements exactly, use a large enough stand mixer for all of the dough to fit. You can also use the original recipe and make smaller cookies.
Can I make these if I don’t have a stand mixer?
Use a hand-mixer on low speed if you do not have a stand mixer. What can be better than soft chocolate chip cookies?! Happy baking!
