Levain Bakery Copycat Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

I first heard about Levain Bakery in New York from the website Picky Palate. I now have another reason to visit New York. Supposedly their cookies are the ultimate. I found a copycat and they are awesome. They are so huge. This recipe only makes a dozen but they are almost like little cakes, not cookies. In my opinion they are pretty impressive. Hopefully someday I'll make it to New York to compare. If anyone goes, I'll pay you to bring me a cookie back!

Levain Bakery Copycat Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies (**Yields 1 dozen cookies)

Ingredients

2 sticks ‘cold and cubed’ unsalted butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar - not packed too hard. Just spoon it in the cup(s) and press down lightly when full, sweeping off any extra that runs over.
2 eggs
3 1/4 to 3 1/2 cups All Purpose flour - Spoon and Sweep method. (feel the dough, it should be moist, kind of like cold cookie dough in a tube.. but not super sticky, so you can portion the cookies with your hands)
3/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
3/4-1 teaspoon baking powder ( I don’t fill the tsp fully, hence the 3/4 tsp)
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 cups good quality semisweet chocolate chips or chunks (I usually use half semisweet and half milk chocolate)
1 cup walnuts (Toast the nuts for more flavor, if desired and/or use any kind of nut you like. I love macadamias in these)


Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1. In bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle, cream together butter and sugars until well blended and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time.. and beat until well incorporated.
2. Add flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and mix until just combined. Gently fold in chocolate chunks and nuts.
3. Transfer dough to clean work surface and gently mix dough by hand to ensure even distribution of ingredients. Divide into 12 equal portions, **about 4 oz each..
4. Place each on sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake in the preheated oven 16-23 minutes depending on how gooey and raw’ish you like the middles (I bake mine at 375 for 18-20 minutes, as I prefer a less raw interior), until very lightly browned, taking care not to overbake. Let cool on rack and store what you don’t immediately eat, in an airtight container. To freshen them after a few days (if they last that long), give them a quick nuke in the microwave for 5-10 seconds.

They also have a dark chocolate peanut butter chip cookie I want to try. I'll let you know if they're good.