Since 1995, Levain Bakery on the Upper West Side has been selling monstrous 6-ounce cookies — crisp on the edges, gooey at the center, packed with chocolate chunks that melt with every bite. The line out the door never ends. These thick "puck-style" cookies have set a new standard: today, an entire generation of Paris bakeries offers its own take on the XL New York-style cookie.
We tested several dozen recipes to understand what truly separates a classic cookie from a Levain-style one. The verdict: it's not just about size — it's about technique, resting time, and a short bake at high heat. Here is the exact recipe.
What makes a "New York" cookie?
Three characteristics set a Levain-style cookie apart from a classic one:
- Size: 120 to 170 g (4¼ to 6 oz) per cookie (versus 40–60 g / 1½–2 oz for a standard cookie)
- Thickness: these cookies present as thick discs, 4–5 cm (1½–2 inches) tall — not flat rounds
- Extreme textural contrast: caramelized edges, a gooey — almost raw — center, half-melted chunks throughout
Technically, it comes down to:
- A high fat-to-flour ratio (butter + eggs) for richness and tenderness
- A short bake at very high heat (200 °C / 390 °F, 12–14 minutes)
- Tall, dense dough balls that hold their volume in the oven
- A long dough rest (24 hours minimum) to develop deep flavor
How this differs from our soft cookie recipe
On a déjà une recette de cookies moelleux on the blog. The New York version stands apart by:
| Cookies moelleux | New York cookies | |
|---|---|---|
| Weight per cookie | 80 g (2¾ oz) | 150–170 g (5¼–6 oz) |
| Flour-to-butter ratio | Standard | Richer |
| Resting time | 1–12 hours minimum | 24–48 hours — non-negotiable |
| Baking | 10 min at 200 °C (390 °F) | 14 min at 200 °C (390 °F) |
| Target texture | Uniformly soft | Crisp outside / gooey inside |
| Chocolate chunks | 250 g (9 oz) | 350 g (12½ oz) + nuts |
The New York version is richer, more generous, more spectacular — and yes, a bit more expensive to make.
The ingredients that make the premium version
The chocolate chunks (350 g / 12½ oz — don't skimp)
A true Levain cookie is loaded with chocolate. Plan on 350 g of chunks for 8 cookies of 150 g each — nearly as much chocolate as dough.
The best approach: blend two chocolates for contrast:
- Callebaut 811 (55% dark) : 200 g — melts beautifully but holds distinct pieces
- Callebaut 823 (33% milk) : 150 g — oozy and indulgent
For an even more visual result, roughly break a couverture chocolate bar with a knife — the irregular pieces create unexpected mouthfeel effects.
The nuts (the Levain signature)
A true Levain Bakery cookie always contains nuts. Their signature choice is pecans or walnuts. Classic French walnuts work beautifully — plan on 100 g (3½ oz) for 8 cookies.
Toast them for 8 minutes at 150 °C (300 °F) before adding to the dough — it brings out their full aroma.
The butter
Cold AOP-certified butter, diced — not softened, not melted. This is the key difference from a classic cookie: cold butter creates pockets that melt during baking, giving the dough its distinctive flaky-yet-tender texture.
The sugars (vergeoise + white)
An even higher proportion of vergeoise brune (a moist, molasses-rich dark brown sugar) than in a standard cookie. We go 70% vergeoise / 30% white sugar. The vergeoise retains moisture and delivers that signature gooey center.
The flours (the secret)
For XL cookies that hold their shape, we blend two flours:
- 70% T55 all-purpose flour (structure and tenderness)
- 30% T65 bread flour (higher gluten content to support the height)
Without the T65, the cookie spreads and flattens instead of holding its puck shape.
Step-by-step recipe (makes 8 XL cookies, 150 g / 5¼ oz each)
Method
Step 1
Cut the cold butter into the sugars
Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (not the dough hook, not the whisk), mix the cold diced butter with the vergeoise and white sugar at medium speed just until the mixture resembles coarse, shaggy crumbs — visible chunks of butter should remain. Do not cream: you want the butter incompletely blended, because those pockets will create the signature texture during baking.
Step 2
Add the eggs and vanilla
Add the whole eggs, the extra yolk, and the vanilla extract. Mix for 30 seconds, no longer. The dough should stay somewhat rough and uneven.
Step 3
Incorporate the dry ingredients
In a separate bowl, whisk together both flours, the baking soda, baking powder, and the pinch of fleur de sel. Add to the mixer bowl and mix on low speed for 10 seconds maximum. Some streaks of flour should still be visible.
Step 4
Fold in the chocolate and nuts
Remove the bowl from the mixer. Fold in the chunks and nuts with a spatula or by hand. The dough will be dense, chunky, and rustic — exactly as it should be.
Step 5
Shape the dough balls
Divide the dough into 8 portions of 150 g (5¼ oz) each. Shape into tall balls — not flattened — pressing the dough upward so each ball is taller than it is wide. This is what gives the finished cookie its thick, puck-like profile.
Step 6
Rest for 24 hours
Refrigerate for a minimum of 24 hours, ideally 48 hours, wrapped individually or on a plastic-wrapped tray. This rest is non-negotiable: the butter re-solidifies (preventing spreading), the flavors deepen, and the moisture distributes evenly throughout the dough.
Step 7
Bake hot and fast
Preheat the oven to 200 °C (390 °F), conventional heat (no fan) — fan mode dries out the cookies. Place 4 dough balls per baking sheet, well spaced. Bake for exactly 14 minutes, no more. When they come out, the cookies will be puffed and golden at the edges but pale and apparently underdone at the center — that is precisely what you want.
Step 8
Rest on the pan
Do not move the cookies straight from the oven — they are fragile while hot. Let them cool 15 minutes on the baking sheet. Residual heat continues the bake, setting the center while preserving its gooey character.
How to enjoy them
A Levain-style cookie is best eaten warm. After 15 minutes of resting, it is still slightly hot, the chocolate is flowing, and the crumb yields under your teeth while the exterior stays crisp. That is the moment to dig in.
If the cookie has cooled completely (after several hours), give it 15 seconds in the microwave to revive that molten center.
Mistakes to avoid
- Creaming the butter as you would for a classic cookie. The coarse, crumbly mix is the very foundation of the New York texture.
- Skipping the 24-hour rest. Without it, the cookies spread flat.
- Overmixing the dough. Overdeveloped gluten means tough cookies instead of tender ones.
- Shaping flat balls. Flat balls make flat cookies. Tall ball = thick cookie.
- Baking longer because they look underdone. At exactly 14 minutes, they are done. The bake continues off the heat.
- Transferring the cookies straight off the pan. They will break. At least 15 minutes of resting on the sheet, always.
Storage
New York-style cookies keep for 3 days at room temperature in an airtight container. They dry out faster than classic cookies — a tip: tuck a slice of sandwich bread into the container to maintain moisture.
Raw dough balls keep for 72 hours in the refrigerator, wrapped, or 2 months in the freezer. Bake directly from frozen: add 3 extra minutes (17 minutes total at 200 °C / 390 °F).
Popular variations
Triple chocolate
Ajoutez 20 g unsweetened cocoa powder Valrhona into the dough. Replace 100 g of T55 flour. Keep the chunks. Intense, dramatic dark effect.
Pistachio and white chocolate
Replace 150 g of milk chocolate chunks with 150 g of white chocolate chunks (Valrhona Ivoire). Replace 100 g of walnuts with 100 g de pistaches concassées. A bold visual and flavor contrast.
Peanut butter and chocolate
Add 80 g of peanut butter to the dough (replacing 40 g of butter). Keep the chunks. Rich, deeply American.
Intense dark chocolate
Drop the milk chocolate chunks entirely. Use all 350 g in dark chocolate (Valrhona Guanaja 70% or Cacao Barry 60%). For serious dark chocolate lovers.
What it costs
Eight XL cookies (150 g each) come to roughly €14–€20 depending on ingredient quality — €2 to €2.50 per cookie. Compare that to the €4–€5 charged per XL cookie at Paris's New York-style bakeries. The homemade math speaks for itself.
Where to find the right ingredients
At G. Detou, 58 rue Tiquetonne, Paris 2nd arrondissement:
- Callebaut 811 and 823 chunks (dark 55%, milk 33%)
- Chocolat Valrhona Guanaja for the intense dark chocolate version
- Pecans and classic walnuts
- Pistaches entières unsalted, for the pistachio version
- Madagascar bourbon vanilla extract
- Fleur de sel from Guérande
For vergeoise brune, T55 and T65 flours, your local Parisian grocery store will have everything else you need.
G. Detou's tip
The Levain Bakery-style cookie comes down to three rules: chocolate chopped with a knife rather than chips (for those dramatic molten streaks), very cold dough (24 hours in the refrigerator minimum), and a short bake at high heat (200 °C / 390 °F, 14 minutes). The center must stay pale — almost raw. On rue Tiquetonne, we sell whole Valrhona Caraïbe 66% bars in 3 kg blocks — you chop them yourself with a knife, which costs less than pre-made chips and tastes infinitely better.
FAQ — New York-style cookies
Insufficient resting time (less than 24 hours), butter that wasn't cold enough when mixed, or dough balls shaped too flat. Check all three.
Yes — keep the same chocolate-to-nut ratio, shape balls of 100 g (3½ oz), and bake for 12 minutes. You'll lose a bit of the wow factor, but the results are still excellent.
Completely normal. Straight from the oven, the cookies are fragile and scorching hot. As they cool on the pan for 15–20 minutes, they firm up and turn tender. Never move them straight off the sheet.
Creaming incorporates the butter fully into the sugars, creating a smooth, homogeneous emulsion. The cut-in (sablage) method, by contrast, leaves pockets of butter that melt during baking, producing the flaky-yet-gooey texture that defines the New York style. Opposite technique, opposite result.
The cookies will spread more and rise less. The T65 bread flour provides the structure needed to maintain 4–5 cm (1½–2 inches) of height. You can use T55 alone, but you'll sacrifice some of that dramatic profile.
Allow 30 minutes of prep + 24–48 hours of resting + 15 minutes of baking. The hands-on work is quick — the waiting is the hard part. Start two days ahead for a stress-free bake day.
Yes — let them cool completely, wrap individually in plastic wrap, then freeze. Thaw at room temperature for 1 hour, or microwave for 20 seconds to bring back that molten center.
Yes, but vergeoise brune delivers a more pronounced caramel-molasses depth that is much closer to the true New York style. With standard dark brown sugar, the cookie will taste lighter and less distinctly "Levain."
Levain-style New York cookies are the kind of recipe that makes it very hard to go back to regular cookies. They're not particularly complicated — just patient: 24–48 hours of resting, 14 minutes in the oven, and 15 minutes of willpower while they cool on the pan.
Retrouvez notre soft cookie recipe (the more classic version), and our guide to chocolate chips and chunks.
At G. Detou, we always carry the right chocolates and the right nuts — and more often than not, there are a few cookies out for tasting too.