chocolate chip cookies - levain???

[dfwtheatreguy]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 1:25am

ohmuhgosh, am watching food network and they are profiling Levain Bakery and their massive, almost spherical, chocolate chip cookies.

i googled to try and find the recipe. does anyone know where i could find it or what the secret to creating a similarly giant decadent cookie (that is nice and soft, not doughy, on the inside and crisp on the outside).

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 1:27am

WHEREISTHATBAKERY? LOL

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 1:28am

Sounds yummy!

If you find the recipe, be sure to share!

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 1:52am

df-You might not find the recipe because that's probably their secret. I went to their site-they'll ship cookies to you. they're on the upper w. side of manhattan. Now you have me interested in going in there!

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 1:55am

Cool! They're right in my 'hood!

Maybe I'll go pick up one of those cookies this week!

[IAMWHATIAM]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 11:01am

Levain's cookies are amazing - I'd place them in both the worth the calories and worth the trip categories. But as good as the cookies are, I actually think that Levain's best product is pain au chocolat.

[CJR]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 11:04am

I was watching that Throwdown last night. I do love their cookies!!!!

I also loved the Throwdown that came on after the Levain one. With the guy from Chocopologie here in Norwalk. I love love LOVE that place!!!!

[Craig]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 11:37am

Each cookie is a meal

And their 'secret' is not just their recipe - but also their oven and how they cook the cookie.

They're great - but if you can visit in person, it's best because they're still warm when you go into the store :)

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 12:27pm

I agree with IAMWHATIAM.

Prob the best cookies EVER. The choc chip and the choc choc chip are insanely delicious.

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 12:29pm

This might make it worthwhile to venture past 14th Street!

[postergirl]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 1:36pm

Yes, they're great! On 74th just east of Amsterdam - down a few stairs.
Probably the best way to try to simulate them at home is to use your favorite recipe, but make them huge (at least 1/4 cup) and bake them until just barely done. They aren't browned on the outside and just cooked inside. I'd also bake them at a lower temperature - maybe 300.

[sidwich]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 6:30pm

I used to live around the corner from the Levain Bakery, and I'm going to go against the grain and say that I don't like their chocolate chip cookie at all. The bakery is chock full of good stuff (love their bomboloncini, brioche rolls, etc. and their hot chocolate is out of this world), but I find the flavor of the chocolate chip cookies curiously flat.

Most people love them, though.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 6:38pm

I'll be in NYC in a couple of weeks and will definitely try them then. By the way, one of the judges in the throwdown (Nick Malgieri) was one of my teachers in pastry school.

[nygrl23]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 10:09pm

Ever have one of those dictionary moments in which you look up a word, and then you see the word repeatedly in the newspaper, hear it on the news, etc.?

I read this thread this morning, then went to class on the UWS. After class I walked east on 74th, and passed Levain Bakery. Never noticed it before, but now I wanna try those cookies!

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 10:13pm

Why didn't you go in, silly?

[nygrl23]

Posted: 2/11/08 at 11:16pm

Was tired from class and errands in the 18-degree weather, so I skipped it. How about this weather? It's so cold, ah, i'm too tired to think of a punchline.

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/12/08 at 3:18pm

postergirl is on the right track with the lowered temp and longer cooking time--I would also subsitute either cream cheese (my choice) or shortening in place of ALL the butter in the recipe. You want to use about half the butter required and substitute the rest of the fat with one of the alternates. This will keep the cookie softer longer. I also use a small proportion of whole wheat flour as part of the flour in the recipe--about 1/3-1/4 whole wheat--it makes them a bit less crumbly.

Please make sure that when you measure your flour you put the flour in the measuring cup with a spoon--don't scoop out the flour with the cup out of the bag--this compresses the flour and gives you more than you need.

You can also refrigerate the dough until it is VERY cold and this will help it be softer and chewier. I also add a bit more salt and twice the vanilla.

Technically, the cookies only have to hit 140 degrees to be "safe," so don't hesitate to take them out early as postergirl said--you want the tops to still be quite soft when you take them out.

And now Miss Brini will demonstrate making rumaki....

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/12/08 at 3:46pm

All I can say is how impressed I am by your culinary knowledge, lildogs! I"m going to try to remember those tips! you are going to make someone a good spouse!

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/12/08 at 4:08pm

well, thanks, but I work in the summers as a cook, usually for summer camps--so I've made a TON of them (always from scratch, thank you). I'd usually make a octo-batch (yeah, 8 times the recipe) every Sunday.

I HIGHLY suggest using the low-fat cream cheese as a fat substitute--it's also a way to lower the fat without affecting the texture too much.

I've already made someone a good spouse--they just get tired of the Little Edie impressions.