These big fat double dark chocolate cookies are a decadent, homemade, slightly-fudgier version of the famed Levain double chocolate cookies.

The answer to every last chocolate craving, these enormously delicious double chocolate cookies are incredible. A bit intense? Yes. But totally worth it? Also, yes.

Double dark chocolate cookie broken and stacked on top of each other.

If you’ve seen Levain bakery cookies in person (or just around the internet), you’ll quickly notice that their fame comes largely because of size. The cookies are notoriously huge, often slightly underbaked, and loaded with chocolate chips.

My version of these big fat double dark chocolate cookies produces a cookie that is less cakey and slightly fudgier than other knockoff Levain bakery recipes.

They are easily one of my favorite cookies ever. Major brownie-vibes-in-a-cookie happening here.

Double dark chocolate cookie split apart - super gooey inside.

The cookie dough starts with:

  • cold butter
  • brown sugar
  • granulated sugar

The cold butter is essential to produce the right texture for these cookies: lightly crisp on the outside but soft and gooey on the inside.

Also, bonus, no need to plan ahead or mess with softening butter. Hallelujah.

Because the butter is cold, it will have a tendency to flip and fly around a bit as it first starts mixing, so be sure to cut the butter into pieces before adding it to the mixer and start the mixer on low speed.

Hang in there and trust the process, because with time (4-6 minutes), the butter and sugars will turn into a thick, creamy, well-combined mixture.

Creaming brown sugar and butter in kitchenaid mixer.

What Kind of Chocolate Chips to Use

I’d like to state here (mostly for my posterity, because leading by example matters) that the only appropriate chocolate chips to use in this recipe are semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips.

They are double DARK chocolate chip cookies, after all.

However, also for my posterity (because kindness and inclusivity matters, too), if you choose to use milk chocolate chips, that is a very personal decision and I will *try* and not judge you for it.

For a PB version: try subbing in half (or all) of the chocolate chips for peanut butter chips. Yum!

My favorite chips to use are Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips.

Bittersweet chocolate chips in cookie dough.

Mix the dough just until no dry streaks remain.

It will be thicker than a traditional chocolate chip cookie dough.

You can scoop and bake the cookies right away. No need to refrigerate the dough!

Double chocolate cookie dough in kitchenaid mixer.

To accommodate the fact that these cookies are meant to be huge, the dough is divided into 4 to 4.25 ounce portions.

You can go even bigger than that, if you’d like. Traditional Levain cookies use a whopping 6 ounces of dough for each cookie.

Scoop of cookie dough on scale weighing 4.2 ounces.

Leave the dough craggy or pat into a somewhat lumpy dough ball. They don’t need to be pristinely rolled into perfect balls.

Double chocolate cookie dough ball on parchment paper.

How to Fix Cookies that Flatten Too Much

Bake the cookies for 9-10 minutes until the outside is shiny and set and the inside is still somewhat soft.

These big fat double dark chocolate cookies should bake up…very big and fat.

A lot of different factors can impact how a cookie will turn out exactly, such as: exact oven temperature (most ovens vary), how we each measure ingredients, how long the dough was mixed, brand and variety of brown sugar and butter, and more.

So don’t panic if your cookies come out of the oven a little flatter or a little puffier than what you were hoping. Here are some tips to help!

For a thicker/puffier cookie, try:

  • adding another 1/4 cup flour to the dough (it helps to bake one single “tester” cookie first to see how it will bake so you can still alter the dough a bit)
  • increasing the oven temperature by 10-15 degrees F
  • chilling the dough (if doing this, I recommend scooping the dough into balls before chilling)

If your cookies are TOO puffy, try reducing the oven temperature by 25 degrees and/or next time measuring the dry ingredients with a lighter hand so there is less flour in the dough.

Baked and puffy double dark chocolate cookie.

Even if I did start out with the intention for these cookies to be Levain knockoffs, I’m certain they won’t pass any official test. They’re a bit smaller and a lot fudgier (and less cakey) than most other variations.

And that’s ok by me, because they are incredible. Like, one of my favorite cookies in the history of ever.

And also, rumor has it (ahem) that if you refrigerate the gooey, slightly under baked cookies overnight, the chilled cookies are actually, almost, probably, most definitely the most delicious thing you’ll eat all year. (They freeze well, too – YES SO MUCH DANGEROUS INFO RIGHT HERE IN THIS PARAGRAPH.)

Hundreds of you have made and loved this recipe over the years, too!

Ellen: OMG! Love the deep chocolate gooey richness. I can’t believe how well they turned out. Nine minutes and they looked just like your pictures!! Pretty darn excited about this recipe. Thanks so much! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hannah: I’m sort of famous for my cookies, and I have created a family of cookie snobs. That sounds ridiculous, but it’s true. My toddlers have been known to take a bite of a sub-par cookie and refuse the rest (kind of makes my mom heart happy). But these cookies. OH these cookies! People are talking about them a week later, so it’s safe to say they’re absolutely fantastic. Like a gooey brownie in cookie form? ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Double dark chocolate cookie split apart - super gooey inside.
  • Smaller Cookies: the cookies can definitely be made smaller. If you do so, adjust the time as needed (and understand the gooey level may be minimized a bit)
  • Cake Flour: the cookies won’t turn out the same if using just all-purpose flour. If you don’t have cake flour on hand, here’s a quick and easy way to make cake flour yourself.
  • Cocoa Powder: I have made these using Dutch-process cocoa, Hershey’s special dark cocoa powder, and natural, unsweetened cocoa powder. My favorite versions are when using the special dark or Dutch-process cocoa. But any variety will work (the cookies will be less dark and rich with regular natural, unsweetened cocoa powder and you may find the cookies spread less when using this cocoa powder).
  • Cold Eggs + Cold Butter: it’s important that the butter and eggs are cold so these cookies hold their shape and don’t flatten. It takes a while for the butter and sugars to mix together, but it’ll happen. It’s also a reason a stand mixer is best for this recipe.
  • One Last Plea for Milk Chocolate? No and no. I’m glad we had this talk. However, peanut butter chips thrown in the batter are goooooood.

See me make the big fat double dark chocolate cookies over on Instagram. 😋

Double dark chocolate cookie broken and stacked on top of each other.

Big Fat Double Dark Chocolate Cookies

4.68 stars (337 ratings)

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (227 g) cold salted butter straight from the fridge, cut into tablespoon-size pieces
  • 1 cup (212 g) lightly packed light or dark brown sugar
  • ½ cup (106 g) granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, cold from the refrigerator
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ¾ cups (249 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 ¼ cups (143 g) cake flour
  • ½ cup (50 g) dark or Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder (see note)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 ½ to 2 cups (255 to 340 g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line two half sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the cold butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Start the mixer on low (the butter will fly around a bit since it's cold) and gradually increase to medium speed. Mix for 4-6 minutes until the mixture is creamy and very well-combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
  • Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined and the batter is light in color, 2-3 minutes.
  • Add the flour, cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together (and so the dry ingredients don't fly everywhere).
  • When just a few dry streaks remain, add the chocolate chips or chunk and mix just until combined and there are no dry spots.
  • Scoop very large balls of dough (about 4-4.25 ounces for each cookie) and place several inches apart on the prepared baking sheets (five cookies per half sheet pan).
  • Bake for 9-10 minutes until set on the outside but still soft in the middle. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheets to cool for 5-7 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. These cookies are amazing warm (with ice cream), chilled, or at room temperature.

Notes

Update: I’ve updated this recipe recently so it’s even more foolproof against flattening cookies (and I also made them a bit more chocolate-y). If you’re looking for the original amounts, they are 1 1/2 cups flour (213 g), 1 cup cake flour (114 g), and 43 grams cocoa powder. If you want the cookies even thicker/puffier, increase the flour by another 1/4 cup.
Flour: if you are measuring with cups and not using a scale to weigh the dry ingredients, make sure to fluff up the flours and cocoa powder before measuring. I fluff, scoop, and level.  
Cocoa: I used Hershey’s special dark cocoa for this recipe. I highly recommend a dark/Dutch-process cocoa. Natural, unsweetened cocoa powder will work, as well, but the cookies won’t be quite as rich and dark – also you may find the cookies spread less when using natural cocoa powder.
Butter and Eggs: it’s important that the butter and eggs be cold (counterintuitive to most cookie recipes, I know). Just go with it. It takes a while for the butter and sugars to mix together, but it’ll happen. It’s also a reason a stand mixer is best for this recipe.
Tutorial: here’s a quick tutorial on making your own cake flour. If using cup measures (instead of weighing the ingredients), don’t pack the flour (cake or all-purpose) into the measuring cup. Fluff the flour, scoop in the cup gently and level off.
Serving: 1 cookie, Calories: 578kcal, Carbohydrates: 72g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 31g, Saturated Fat: 18g, Cholesterol: 83mg, Sodium: 411mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 41g

Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe (inspired by lots of knockoff recipes online)