Like Levain Bakery - Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip

If you want some big gooey chocolate cookies then this is the recipe for you. It's like the previous Levain Bakery recipe I posted that I found on modernhoney.com. They are sooo good! The recipe calls for dark chocolate baking cocoa and I bought Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder for these cookies, which was great. It's harder to tell when these are done because you can't see if they are starting to turn brown, but I make 5oz cookies and bake them for 12 minutes and they turn out perfect. Give them a try and don't be afraid to put that HUGE blob of dough on the cookie sheet.

Like Levain Bakery - Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip
modernhoney.com
1 cup cold butter cut into small cubes
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup dark baking cocoa
1 cup cake flour
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp cornstarch
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

 1. Preheat oven to 410 degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together cold cubed butter, brown sugar, and sugar for 4 minutes or until creamy.
3. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each one.
4. Stir in cocoa, flours, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Mix until just combined to avoid over mixing. Stir in chocolate chips.
5. Separate dough into large balls (about 1/2 cup of dough or 5-6 oz) and place on prepared cookie sheet. You will fit 4 cookies on one large cookie sheet. The dough makes 8-10 extra large cookies.
6. Bake for 10-12 minutes (I bake mine closer to 12) or until golden brown on the top. Let them rest for at least 10 minutes to set.

Sugar Cookies

It's about time I get this recipe on here! This is my favorite recipe for roll out sugar cookies. I just used it this week to make stained glass cookies and it worked great! It's very easy dough to work with. Top with your favorite frosting or not at all. 

Sugar Cookies
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 tsps vanilla

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg, and vanilla and beat until well combined.
3. Add the flour mixture and mix until dough comes together.
4. Divide the dough in 1/2 and wrap each ball in a piece of plastic wrap. Press down to form a disk. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
6. While dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 375°F.
7. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured flat work surface to about ¼-inch thickness, using extra flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Use cookie cutters to create desired shapes, and transfer to parchment covered baking sheet
8. Bake at 375°F until puffy but not visibly browned, about 7-8 minutes (depending on thickness). Let cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
9. Repeat with remaining dough.

Frost when cooled. Makes about 24-36 cookies.

Kneaders Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

I had a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie at Kneaders last week. When I got home I decided to look up a copycat recipe, and what did I find??? THE ACTUAL RECIPE from the KNEADERS WEBSITE! So here it is straight from the source. They are soft and cake-like. You're welcome.

Kneaders Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

kneaders.com 
1¾ cups butter, softened
¾ cup white sugar
2 cups brown sugar
3 eggs, slightly whisked
2 cups pumpkin puree
4 cups flour
1 TBSP baking powder
1 TBSP cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In an electric mixer on medium speed, cream together butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until butter starts to lighten and mixture becomes fluffy. Add eggs and pumpkin puree. Mix for one minute on low speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients to evenly distribute the leavener. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on low speed for one minute. Fold the chocolate chips in by hand.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll into 2-inch balls, or use a cookie scoop. Place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 15-17 minutes. They are done when a toothpick comes out clean in the center.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days, or freeze up to 3 months. Makes about 40 cookies

Like Levain Bakery - Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

I went on my first trip to NYC last month and had LOTS of yummy food! One of the BEST things I had were the cookies from Levain Bakery. We went to both locations and bought all 4 kinds of their giant $4 cookies. The chocolate chip walnut was my favorite. As soon as I got home, I went through cookie withdrawals. Sooo...I googled a copycat recipe and found this one. Thank you Melissa at Modern Honey for making my at home Levain cookie dreams a reality. She put in lots of work to figure out this recipe and I am reaping the rewards. One recipe makes 8 cookies, so do yourself a favor and double it. They do great in the freezer!

Like Levain Bakery - Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

modernhoney.com
1 cup cold butter cut into small cubes
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp cornstarch
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 cups chocolate chips
2 cups walnuts roughly chopped

1. Preheat oven to 410 degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together cold cubed butter, brown sugar, and sugar for 4 minutes or until creamy.
3. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each one.
4. Stir in flours, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Mix until just combined to avoid over mixing. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.
5. Separate dough into large balls, 5 oz each,  and place on prepared cookie sheet. You will fit 4 cookies on one large cookie sheet. The dough makes 8-10 extra large cookies.
6. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown on the top. Let them rest for at least 10 minutes to set.

Mine on the left, Levain on the right

 Levain Cookie #1

 New Levain Location

Levain Cookie #2

 Original Levain Location

Earth Day Cookies

Celebrate Earth Day with these sugar cookies! You can add food coloring to any sugar cookie dough, or use my recipe below.

Earth Day Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Blue food coloring
Green food coloring

1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla.
2. Gradually blend in dry ingredients. Mix until dough comes together.
3. Divide dough about in half making one half slightly larger than the other. Add blue food coloring to the larger half and green food coloring to the smaller half to get desired color. You can mix it in with the mixer, stir it with a spoon, or even knead it in by hand.
4. Once the food coloring has been mixed in, pull a few small pieces from each color of dough and roll them into a ball with your hands. It should be about tablespoon sized. Place balls on ungreased cookie sheets.
5. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Let stand on cookie sheet 2 minutes before removing to cool on wire rack.
Makes 2 1/2 dozen

Snickerdoodles

Out of chocolate chips? That's ok. No brown sugar? No problem. You've got everything you need to make snickerdoodles! I have tried a few different recipes for snickerdoodles over the years, and this is my favorite. They don't end up flat like many others I have tried and are chewy. You do need one irregular and interesting ingredient called cream of tarter. It's white and powdery and you can find it with the spices at the grocery store. It gives the cookies their signature tangy flavor and prevents the sugar from crystallizing which makes them chewy. Save a little extra time for refrigerating the dough. Give them a try!

Snickerdoodles

adapted from beyondfrosting.com

1 cup unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cream of tarter

3 TBSPs sugar
2 tsps cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and 2 cups of sugar on medium speed until well creamed. Add eggs and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
3. In a separate bowl,  whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar. Slowly add into batter and mix until combined and dough forms.
4. Refrigerate the dough for a minimum of 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.
5. In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon.
6. Using a cookie scoop that is about 2 TBSPs, scoop cookie dough into balls. Roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture and place on prepared baking sheet.
7. Bake at 350° F 10-12 minutes. Allow cookie to cool on the baking sheet for several minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Spritz Cookies

I have an old Pampered Chef cookie press tucked away in my pantry, and sometimes I forget it's there! I needed to make a treat for a cub scout pack meeting last week, with practically no ingredients on hand, and I remembered my cookie press. So here's the Pampered Chef Spritz Cookie recipe that I used. It calls for vanilla extract, but I like to use almond. It's an easy dough to work with, not too sticky. I divided it in half and added green food coloring to make some trees and wreaths. I sometimes have a hard time getting the dough to stick to the pan instead of stay on the press. I found that using just the right amount of dough is what makes it work for me (which is 1 and a half clicks of my trigger). A cold pan is supposed to help with that too. Spritz cookies aren't just a Christmas cookie even though that's how I think of them. My press has all different shapes, even a 4 leaf clover and pumpkin. If you don't have a press and want to try these, just roll them into tsp sized balls and press them down a little with your thumb. Happy baking.

Spritz Cookies

Pampered Chef
1½ cups butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla or almond extract
3½ cups flour
Colored sugar or sprinkles (optional)

1.  Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed of the electric mixer about 3 minutes or until creamy, scraping down the sides as necessary. Add the egg and vanilla; beat well.
3. Add the flour; mix on low speed just until blended, scraping down the sides as necessary. (The dough will be soft; do not refrigerate.)
4. Fit the cookie press with the desired disk and fill it with the dough. Press the dough onto the cookie sheet 1" apart.
5. Decorate the cookies with colored sugar or sprinkles, if desired. Bake 10-12 minutes or until the edges are light golden brown. Cool the cookies 2 minutes on the cookie sheet, then remove cooking rack. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Makes about 6 dozen cookies.

Pecan Pie Bars

Happy Pi day! These are so good! Pecan pie is my absolute favorite pie and these bars are very similar. They don't have the gooeyness of the pie, but still have all the flavor. The crust is kind of like a cross between a shortbread cookie and a pie crust. I like them better the 2nd or even 3rd day. I also like to freeze them wrapped individually. My kids pull them from the freezer to take them in their school lunch, and they are thawed by the time they eat. Now go make some pie!

Pecan Pie Bars
adapted from theslowroasteditalian.com
Crust
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, softened
6 TBSPs sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 tsps vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
Topping
1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
2 TBSPs heavy cream
Pinch of salt
1 pound pecans, chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. For the crust, beat the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, until light, approximately 3 minutes.
3. Add the eggs and the vanilla and mix well.
4. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the batter with the mixer on low speed until just combined.
 5. Press the dough evenly into an ungreased 9x13 inch baking pan, making an edge about 1 inch up the sides like you would a pie crust . It will be very sticky; sprinkle the dough and your hands lightly with flour. Bake for 15 minutes, until the crust is set but not browned. Allow to cool.
6. For the topping, combine the butter, corn syrup, and brown sugar in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan.
7. Cook over low heat until the butter is melted, using a wooden spoon to stir. Raise the heat and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.
8. Stir in the heavy cream, pinch of salt, and pecans.
9. Pour over the crust, trying not to get the filling between the crust and the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the filling is set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
10. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold. Cut into bars and serve.
These freeze really well!

Chocolate Orange Fudge

These flavors together are one of my favorite combos! Orange extract gives this fudge it's orange flavor. I added the orange slice pieces on top just for fun. This is the easiest fudge to make, really! You can change it up by substituting a different extract like this Chocolate Peppermint Fudge or this Chocolate Fudge with nuts.

Chocolate Orange Fudge
3 cups (18 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
Dash salt
1 tsp orange extract
Candy orange slices for garnish (optional)

1. Line 8 or 9 inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan.
2. Melt chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt in heavy saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat. Stir in extract. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Place pieces of orange candy on top, if desired.
3. Chill 2 hours or until firm. Remove from pan by lifting edges of foil. Cut into squares.

Mini M&M Cookies

I go through phases with cookie recipes. This is the one I have been making recently. 3 times in the last month to be precise. :) Twice with m&ms and once with mini Reeses' pieces. I like to freeze the leftover dough in balls and then bake them when needed, straight out of the freezer. All you have to do is add 2-3 extra minutes to the bake time. The cornstarch in the recipe acts as a tenderizer. It also works without the oats, and you can of course substitute chocolate chips.

Mini M&M Cookies

2 cups flour
2 tsps cornstarch
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
2 tsps vanilla
1/3 cup quick oats
1 cup mini m&ms, or other add in

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
2. In medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
3. In mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined.
4. Add flour mixture and to creamed mixture, and stir until combined. Stir in oats and m&ms.
5. Using a TBSP sized scoop, drop dough onto prepared pan.
6. Bake on cookie sheets for 8-10 minutes. Let cool for 2 minutes on pan then transfer to wire rack.
Makes 2 1/2 dozen

Cake Mix Cookies

These cookies have endless possibilities! I made some for Valentine's Day with a strawberry cake mix and chocolate chips, but there are so many potential combinations! I got 30 cookies from this recipe and they were gone in 3 days. Can't tell you how many I ate...or won't. ;) One of the tricks with these is to shape the dough balls a little taller than normal on the pan, almost like a cylinder, before baking to make sure that they don't get too flat. I'm planning on trying some different cake mixes and I'll post more pics as I do.

Devil's Food and Mint Chips

Cake Mix Cookies

adapted from sallysbakingaddiction.com
1 box (18.25 oz) cake mix, I used Pillsbury
1 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
1/3 cup canola oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1.  Preheat oven to 350F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix and baking powder. Set aside.
3. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, and vanilla by hand.
4. Add the egg mixture to the cake mixture and stir to form a dough. Continue mixing until egg mixture is incorporated and no dry cake mix remains. Gently mix in the chocolate chips.
5. Drop rounded balls of dough (about 2 TBSPs) onto prepared baking sheet, keeping the ball more tall than wide. Top with a few more chocolate chips, if desired.
6. Bake for 10 minutes. Do not let the cookies brown. Cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies

Strawberry and Semi Sweet Choc Chips

Chocolate Peppermint Fudge

This recipe is the same as my Foolproof Chocolate Fudge recipe, but with minor tweaking. Can't have Christmas without it.

Chocolate Peppermint Fudge
Adapted from Eagle Brand
3 cups (18 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
Dash salt
1 tsp peppermint extract
Crushed peppermints or candy canes for garnish (optional)

1. Line 8 or 9 inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan.
2. Melt chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt in heavy saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat. Stir in extract. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle on crushed peppermint, if desired.
3. Chill 2 hours or until firm. Remove from pan by lifting edges of foil. Cut into squares.

Halloween Candy Cookie Bars

What do you do when you've got mountains of chocolate candy bars sitting around? Make cookies, of course! After I pried some candy from my children's hands this afternoon, I chopped it up and used it in my Thick and Chewy M&M Cookie Bars recipe. Actually they were very willing to share and thought it would be fun to put their candy into the cookie bars. So now...we've got candy and cookies. :)

Recipe Here

Chewy Molasses Cookies

I tried to find a molasses cookie recipe last winter that I liked an couldn't quite get there. I decided to combine a few ideas and came up with this recipe. Dark brown sugar to enhance the molasses, and butter for even more flavor. They turned out so great! 

Chewy Molasses Cookies
4 1/2 cups flour
3 tsps baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsps cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses
1/3 cup sugar for dough balls

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
2. In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger.
3. In mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars until well blended. Add eggs and molasses and beat until combined.
4. Stir flour mixture into creamed mixture until combined.
5. Pour 1/3 cup of sugar into a small bowl. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and then roll balls in sugar.
6. Bake on cookie sheets for 10-12 minutes, until they start to crack on top. Do not overbake or they won't be chewy. Let cool for 2 minutes on pan then transfer to wire rack.

*I like to roll all the dough into balls and then keep extra unbaked balls in the freezer until needed. Then when baking, just add 2 extra minutes to the bake time.

Peanut Butter Ritz

I have been trying to keep it low key this Christmas with my baking and candy making. I haven't made much except for some Cranberry Orange Bread and a few cookies. One new thing I did try however, was these peanut butter crackers. I got the idea from a cook book I own called Eat More Dessert by Jenny Keller. I love this cookbook! It has such cute and easy dessert ideas for parties. I also love it because I was able to go to a book signing and she autographed my book. :) I won't post her recipe, because I'm sure she would like you to buy the book, but I'll give you the basics. I spread some peanut butter between 2 Ritz crackers and then dipped it in melted almond bark. I also tried it with green and red. You could make these for any occasion really, and they are extra cute with a little piped on design on the top.

Mini Reese's Cup Cookies

I tried something a little different with my cookies last week. I made one of my regular dough recipes, and baked it in mini muffin tins with mini Reese's cups. These Reese's cups are the unwrapped kind (see pic at the bottom) and are a little smaller than the regular mini Reese's cups. They also have mini Rolos, Snickers bites, and a few others that would be yummy too.

Mini Reese's Cup Cookies
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 8oz bag Reese's minis

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray. Cream butter and sugars until well blended. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until light and creamy.
2. In medium bowl whisk together flours, soda, and salt. Stir flour mixture into creamed mixture until combined. Dough will be stiff.
3. Using a cookie scoop (1 TBSP), place balls of dough into mini muffin tin. Press a mini Reese's cup into the center of each ball of dough.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes or until edges are slightly golden. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes in pan. Remove from pan and continue cooling on wire rack. If any of them stick to the pan, run a knife around the edge. Makes about 60 cookies.

Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

This is a cookie recipe that I remember my mom making when I was a kid. I recently rediscovered it while going through a recipe box. It's a simple cookie made extra tasty with the addition of rum extract. If you don't have the rum extract though, you can just add a little more vanilla.

Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp rum extract
2 tsps water
2 1oz squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup oats
1/2 cup pecans (optional)
Extra sugar for tops of cookies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease or line cookie sheets.
2. Combine shortening, sugar, egg, vanilla, rum extract, and water; mix well.
3. Add melted chocolate and mix until combined.
4. In a separate bowl add flour, salt, and baking soda, oats, and nuts (if using); whisk to combine. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the shortening mixture. Mix until just combined.
5. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place on cookie sheet about 2 in. apart. Dip a glass in sugar and flatten the tops of the dough balls slightly.
6. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes on cookie sheet, then remove to cooling rack.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies