Break into a soft giant double chocolate cookie as big as you hand! These Levain Bakery-style double chocolate cookies will be the highlight of your day.
Why you'll love them
These are soft, deeply chocolaty cookies studded with chopped walnuts. They're so easy to make and require zero chilling. The outside is chewy while the inside is deliciously fudgy.
These cookies are inspired by the giant Levain Bakery double chocolate cookies, only better thanks to using two types of chocolate so you get pools of melted chocolate in every bite.
These are so soft and stay soft pretty much forever as long as you keep them in an airtight container. They're almost a cross between a cookie and a brownie, and that is definitely something wonderful.
They're the perfect companion to my favorite chocolate chip cookies for those who want some extra chocolate in their lives.
Key Ingredients
The ingredients we need are ones you'd expect from a double chocolate cookie, but the ingredients you use and how you use them make a huge difference in getting the perfect bite.
- Cocoa powder - I like to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder whenever possible, but these cookies need unsweetened natural cocoa powder. I prefer to use natural cocoa powder. In fact, this recipe uses only baking soda, so it requires natural cocoa powder because of its acidity.
- Sugar - You should use a mix of both granulated and brown sugar for this recipe for the best texture and flavor. Dark or light brown sugar works. You can also make your own brown sugar.
- Chocolate - A mix of chocolate works amazingly in these cookies to provide more depth and texture. I like to use semi-sweet chocolate chunks and chopped dark chocolate bars.
- Cornstarch - A touch of cornstarch in the cookie dough helps to keep the cookies thick and soft. You can skip it, but it really benefits the final texture.
- Walnuts - The walnuts add a nice texture and depth to the cookie. But if you have an allergy, or just don't like them, then feel free to leave them out! If you are into the nuts but don't have walnuts around, chopped pecans or even pistachios would work, too.
Expert tips
I've spent many years baking thousands of cookies in my life and studying cookie science to the point where I wrote a cookbook on the subject, and I wanted to share some of my tips for making the best double chocolate cookies ever.
- Measure your flour correctly. In most cases, when someone comments that their recipe does not come out well, it is due to how they measured their flour. When you are preparing your flour, you want to give it a quick fluff, then spoon it into the measuring cup. Simply scooping and packing in the flour can leave you with up to as much as ¼ cup extra flour which can drastically change your cookie. If you want to be even more precise, I recommend using a kitchen scale.
- Pay attention to the type of butter. You should aways use unsalted butter so you can control the amount of salt in the cookies. The style of butter is also important. European-style butter has a higher butterfat ratio. It results in a delicious butter, but it can leave your cookies overly rich and sometimes greasy. American style butter has a lower butterfat ratio which helps encourage spread and crisp edges. My recipes are always developed with American unsalted butter.
- Don't skip the cookie scoop. These cookies are meant to be huge. Evenly divide the dough into 10 portions. I like to make 10 mounds, and then add on top of them until all the dough is used, then shape into large balls of cookie dough. Using cookie scoops help make sure each cookie is the exact same size which is essential for making sure that the cookies are all baking perfectly each time.
- Pay attention to doneness. Unlike brown butter chocolate chip cookies, you can't really tell doneness by how golden brown the edges are. Instead, you may need to use other cues to test for doneness. The most reliable way is to give the edges a quick tap with your finger. If it feels set, it is ready. The centers will look underdone still which is exactly what you want. The cookies will continue to cook when you remove them from the oven from the residual heat from the baking sheet. That residual heat will give you just enough to set the cookies and leave you with the best, fudgy chocolate centers ever.
Recipe FAQs
The cookie dough for these Levain Bakery-style giant double chocolate cookies does not need to be chilled. Saying that, you can chill or freeze the unbaked cookie dough to save for another time. I recommend dividing the dough into balls before storing them away in an airtight container.
You should store these in an airtight container for up to a week. You can store them in the freezer for up to a month.
In Need of More Cookies?
You'll probably want to try my cookies and cream cookies or my s'mores stuffed cookies. These brown butter snickerdoodles and coconut chocolate chip cookies are personal favorites. If you are a peanut butter fan, you might enjoy my 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies or my no-bake chocolate peanut butter cookies. Don't forget you can check my archives for all the cookie recipes I've ever made!
Double Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup natural cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups chocolate semi-sweet and dark mix
- 1 cup walnuts chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Mix together the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Add the butter and both sugars to a mixer and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 - 4 minutes.
- Add the eggs and vanilla to the mixer and beat for another minute to combine.
- Beat in the flour mixture until just combined. Be careful to not over mix.
- Fold in the chocolate and walnuts.
- Portion out your dough into 10 equal sized balls of cookie and separate at least 2 -inches apart.
- Bake for 12 - 15 minutes, or until the edges are just set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Judy says
These chocolate cookies look amazing. I'm going to make them as bars, as I am too lazy to make cookies. I am intrigued by the use of cornstarch. I'll toast the walnuts before baking to bring out the flavor. My hubby will love these. Thanks so much.
Pernille says
Yes please!!!
Thanks for such an inspiring blog!