The New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies
This recipe for chocolate chip cookies, posted by The New York Times in 2009, has taken many food blogs by storm. Not a traditional chocolate chip cookie at all, the recipe uses a combination of bread and cake flours to achieve a chewy, yet delicate texture. The dough is packed full of dark chocolate (no semisweet chips here!) and then is left to chill in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours (talk about a practice in patience!). Once you’re ready to bake these babies, a whopping 3½ ounces of dough is rolled into a ball for each cookie, and then sprinkled with sea salt. These huge, gorgeous cookies look like they walked straight out of a high-end bakery, and taste even better!
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The New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250 g) minus 2 tablespoons cake flour, (8½ ounces)
- 1 ⅔ cups (208.33 g) bread flour, (8½ ounces)
- 1¼ teaspoons (1.25 teaspoons) baking soda
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) baking powder
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) kosher salt
- 1¼ cups (283.75 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature, (10 ounces )
- 1¼ cups (275 g) light brown sugar, (10 ounces )
- 1 cup (200 g) plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, (8 ounces)
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 ⅓ cups (600 g) dark chocolate chips, at least 60% cacao content, (20 ounces)
- Sea salt, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Sift together the cake flour, bread flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a large bowl and set aside.
- Cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed until very light, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, then add the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low, gradually add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the chocolate chips.
- Press plastic wrap against the dough and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, up to 72 hours.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat.
- Scoop 3 1/2-ounces of dough, roll into a rough ball (it should be the size of a large golf ball) and place on the baking sheet. Repeat until you have six mounds of dough on the cookie sheet. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer the parchment or silicone sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then transfer the cookies onto another cooling rack to cool a bit more, until just warm or at room temperature. Repeat with remaining dough (or keep some of the dough refrigerated for up to 3 days, and bake cookies at a later time). Store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
THANK YOU for sharing. This is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve ever tried. My husband and I LOVE THEM! This will be our new “go to” cookie and I don’t think I’ll share this recipe. ; ) The sea salt is the perfect topping for a salty/sweet mix which is one of my favorite combos.
Loved the sea salt and chocolate combo. Made big beautiful cookies. Going to make all three recipes from the throw-down and let my son decide at Thanksgiving!
Given my choice of chocolates, dark chocolate definitely is my preference, so I could not wait to try this recipe. These cookies are absolutely fantastic, no question. I baked mine for 19 minutes (choosing the in between number), but I probably would back this off to 18 minutes in the future since the edges got a little crispier than I would have liked. Loved the sea salt with the dark chocolate; this was a very nice flavor combination.
One thing I will say is that the size of these cookies (“small baseball” is probably more appropriate than “large golf ball”) is completely unrealistic. They are very much a bakery type of cookie, and they come in at about 440 calories per cookie! This cookie is not something that I would consider just grabbing as a snack; it is truly a dessert. I will make these again in the future, but it probably will be for an occasion and not just to have around the house as a snack. I ended up keeping four of them at home and taking the rest in to work–where they were met with rave reviews, of course!
Thanks for the great recipe!
These were indeed fantastic! We used good quality semi-sweet chocolate chips because we are not big fans of dark chocolate. I made some of the cookies with the sea salt and some without. I don’t think there was a consensus as to which were better- both ways were awesome. The recipe made 23 HUGE cookies for us.
hi! i tried this before and it is really awesome! but I am out of cake flour now, can I use cake flour substitute (7/8cup AP flour + 2tbsp cornstarch)—weighing the same as 8 1/2 oz? Do you think it will cause some difference in the texture? thanks!!
Hi Chel, Yes you could use the substitution. It might affect the texture a little bit, but I don’t think it would do so enough to not be worth it!
Hi Michelle! I did this using the cake flour substitute, and it did not affect the texture at all… and I tried 24hrs and 48hrs chill time, and I have to say, the 48 hrs is the best for these cookies.
Yesterday, I baked the Thick and Chewy CCC (from CI), which was the favorite cookie recipe of my husband, and guess what.. he did not even eat the entire cookie.. He wants this recipe now, NYT CCC, and he said this is the best chocolate chip cookie he ever tasted.. Now I have to eat all the cookies here… too bad!
Definitely not a bad problem to have! :)
Eager to try these, would you mind to share if you mail ordered your chocolate chips or did you have luck finding them in a local store? Thanks,
Emily, don’t know if you’re a member of BJ’s. If so, or if you have a friend who is, they carry bags of excellent Ghirardelli double chocolate bittersweet chips. They’re jumbo sized chips, which are just perfect for this recipe. They’re sold in a 3 pound bag. If you’re not near a BJ’s, maybe Costco or Sam’s has them. Hope that helps.
Hi Emily, I purchased Ghiradelli Bittersweet 60% cacao chocolate chips at my local grocery store. They are larger size than traditional chocolate chips.
I made these and everyone raved about them. Thanks.
Just got done baking up a dozen.
HELL, to the yes. Yes, YES, YESSSSSSSSSSS! (Thinking here of the deli scene in “When Harry Met Sally.”)
As much as I loved the Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies and thought it was “the one,” this one edges it out, even with my dough-making screw up (see my earlier posts.)
The Holy Grail, indeed!! Think the ne plus ultra, mostest-of-the-most, brass ring, died-and-went-to-heaven chocolate chip cookies. Poetry in all its melty, oozy, gooey, chewy glory.
Now, Michelle, please don’t tell me you don’t have another recipe that can top these; my head will explode! You’ve already made me rethink the humble chocolate chip cookie to the point of blowing my mind.
This is the HOLY GRAIL of chocolate chip cookies! I have been searching and baking. Baking and searching. THIS. IS. IT!
I absolutely love your website, and all your recipes. They are absolutely dead on, I have never made one of your recipes and been dissapointed. Thank you so much for the C.C. cookie throw down!
These are the biggity bomb.
xoxoxoxo
Did anyone else find that their dough was very stiff, almost crumbly, before refrigeration? When baking, did you flatten the dough balls, or did they flatten themselves pretty much during baking? Thanks.
Good question. Has anyone flattened the doughballs before baking? Inquiring mind wants to know! Sorry, age and knowledge of yellow journalism is showing.
No need to flatten- the balls flatten on their own while baking into the prefect thickness.
Love this recipe.
Michelle, I just finished making the dough and setting about the difficult task of sitting on my hands and waiting until late tomorrow morning to bake/taste test them. One question, though. The dough was a little more on the crumbly side of any other chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve ever made. I’m presuming this is because of the relatively low ratio of fat to flour(s). Perhaps this is why the dough needs to ripen for 24 hours, to allow for even moisture absorption/distribution? (Just ruminating out loud…) Did you notice that the dough was pretty stiff when you made this recipe? I used Ghirardelli bittersweet double chocolate chips, which are extra large. I noticed a very high proportion of chocolate-to-dough, as well. Is that right? I’m doubting myself, although I weighed the ingredients to ensure precision. Just hoping for a little reassurance – can you tell?!
OK. Mystery solved!! I was watching TV tonight, when it popped into my head that I had to log on here and recheck the recipe for the amount of butter. All of a sudden, I had misgivings. Not sure why. Well, sure enough. I had misread the butter amount, thinking it was 10 TABLESPOONS, not 10 ounces! So I immediately took the dough from the fridge, broke it up (no easy task!) and put it back in the mixer bowl with another softened stick of butter. Good thing I have the heavy duty KitchenAid (the 6 qt manual lift bowl) Even so, it had a rough go getting started up in the midst of that thick dough. But I got it going, and it slowly worked in the extra butter.
It’s back in the fridge now, and I guess I’m going to have to give it some extra resting time before I bake. BTW, my dough is no longer crumbly. It’s just about the consistency of what you’d expect a chocolate chip cookie dough to be. Amazing what the right proportions will do…
I don’t know what kitchen god it was who put this thought into my brain some 9+ hours after the fact, but that’s one of the many things I love about baking/cooking. It’s one of those great metaphysical mysteries that can be pondered but not explained.
Good thing no explanations are ever needed – I bake, therefore I am. Life is good.
OMG I DID THE SAME THING!! I even weighed out all the other ingredients, but I guess I’ve just never seen anyone list butter as a weight instead of by the tbsp. and I just looked right over it. I came straight here after I was done though cause something said to me, “This just ain’t right.” I’ve been making chocolate chip cookies for so long that I could do it in my sleep and even though this is a new recipe, I didn’t think the dough should be that consistency. Luckily, it’s only about 1/2 stick difference or so and I put it in within minutes. It was still hard to work in, my poor Kitchenaid was struggling, but I know I’ll have to make this recipe at least one more time before I know for sure how it turns out.
I have a home based baking business and several year’s ago I bought a Jacques Torres cookie. It was the best and I was determined to find out how they were made. After a little searching, I found it and called them “my secret recipe” cookies. Lately I have seen the recipe posted on a lot of blogs so I guess I will have to drop the “secret” part…the secret is out! I find them best using high quality chips that you can get at Whole Foods and other more specialized stores.
Hi Michelle!
What is the purpose of mixing cake and bread flours? Why not just use AP flour?
Hi Marie, I responded to this comment over on the throwdown post, but I’ll copy and paste it for you here:
My guess would be to get the benefits from each type of flour, which you can’t necessarily get by just using all-purpose flour. The bread flour gives the cookies a chewy texture and structure, while the cake flour ensures that the interior crumb is tender and not necessarily crispy.
LOVE this recipe. I’ve made two of the other recipes, but never the Alton Brown. I guess I’ll have to try that one soon.
I’ve made these and they are delicious and by the way this is the recipe that Jacque Torres uses in his store in NYC, I believe that is where the paper got the recipe, but anyhow I would highly suggest going to Jacque Torres website to buy his chocolate it’s pretty amazing in these cookies.
I thought the New York Times recipe was Jacques Torres recipe?
Hi Diane, Yes, on the New York Times page they indicate that the recipe that they have published has been adapted from a Jacques Torres recipe.
These truly are the best chocolate chip cookies! My husband was in love and so was I! My 3 year old really liked helping me make these but she wasn’t a big fan on the sea salt sprinkle. I made a few without it, just for her. :) The salt adds a different element that really makes these cookies so good. I believe this is my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe from now on.. well, at least until I get another inclination to look for a better one!
My husband is a huge chocolate chip cookie fan and I’ve been making the Cook’s Illustrated recipe for years. I want to try this one — but have one question. I like to weigh my flour to get the most accurate amount and I’m wondering why the measurements are different when it comes to the flour, but the weight is the same? Is that correct? Thanks!!
Hi Dee, The volume is different from the weight because the two flours (cake and bread) have different properties. Bread flour has a higher protein and gluten content, therefore weighing more. Which is why you don’t need as much of it to reach the same weight as the cake flour. Hope this makes sense! If you have a scale, definitely use the weights, it’s the best way to bake!
Thanks for taking the time to reply. After I thought about it I figured that must be it. I’m definitely trying this recipe this weekend and I’ll let you know what I think. I have been dedicated to my Cooks Illustrated recipe so I’m excited to see how they turn out! By the way, I love your blog and thanks for the Halloween ideas!
Okay .. so these are my new favorite. Fantastic recipe. I was worried the kids wouldn’t like the dark chocolate chips but they loved them. One thing I noticed, I was using the scale and when I weighed the sugar, one cup read 9 oz. Wasn’t sure why, but I just went with one cup. Came out great.
I saw someone mention Jacques Torres’ Chocolate Chip Cookies on one of these cookie posts (might have been the actual throwdown page) and I just watched the video segment from when they had him on the Chew. His recipe is exactly the same as this NYT cookie but he makes sure to use the huge chips. And now that I go to the NYT page, it does say that their recipe is “adapted from Jacques Torres” although I can’t tell what is different. So you actually made Jacques’ cookies, I guess! Will have to try these for sure. I have everything except the chips…must buy soon!
So, the sea salt scares me. How does it effect the flavor of the cookie? It can’t be salty, right?
Thanks for sharing the recipe. I’m dying to try it.
Thank you times a million for posting the throwdown! I’m a HUGE Cook’s Illustrated fan and that’s the recipe I’ve been relying on. I’ve always meant to try the NYT recipe but, like you, I never wanted to wait a day! This settles it though, I’m gonna give it a shot.
Thanks!
I, too, have an old stand-by recipe for chocolate chip cookies that I just LOVE, but the blend of flours in these cookies intrigues me. I’ll be making these the next time I bake. Thanks!!
I don’t typically like homemade chocolate chip cookies, they just never tasted as awesome as I thought they should. That is, until I found this recipe. These are AMAZING, especially fresh out of the oven. I brown one stick of the butter and let it cool some before mixing it in, making them even more fabulous.
The combination of flours and chilling at least 24 hours makes these cookies absolutely delicious! I bring them with me whenever I meet up with friends or go to a party and everyone always asks for the recipe. Definitely worth making!!
My go to chocolate chip cookie recipe is Southern Living’s “All Time Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie”. I have yet to find a better one. But I will have to try this. They look perfect!
They sure look good! :)
I noticed a big difference in the taste by refrigerating 48 hours!
What was the difference?
That’s it, I just HAVE to try this thing now! I normally chill my dough at least overnight anyway for any cookies I make so this really isn’t a biggie to me. Interesting about bread & cake flour – two opposite ends of the spectrum, rolled into one! You have me sold with the pics!
Can’t wait to try the winner of your “throwdown”!