Simply by Maha
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DessertThick Levain style chocolate cookies studded with peanut butter chips
American · Dessert

Copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie

If you love thick, chunky bakery-style cookies, these are for you. Rich chocolate cookie dough packed with peanut butter chips and baked into oversized cookies with crisp edges and a soft, gooey center.

5.0 (3 reviews)
30m
Prep
15m
Cook
45m
Total
12
Serves
medium
Level
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How to Make Copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie

  1. Cream the butter and sugars
    In a mixing bowl, mix the cold butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together until no large chunks of butter remain.
  2. Add the wet ingredients
    Add the egg, egg yolks, and vanilla, then mix until combined.
  3. Mix the dry ingredients
    In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, sifted Dutch-process cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cornstarch.
  4. Combine the dough
    Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, half at a time, mixing just until combined. Do not overmix.
  5. Fold in the peanut butter chips
    Gently mix in the peanut butter chips until evenly distributed throughout the dough.
  6. Shape the cookies
    Divide the dough into 6-ounce balls and shape them into tall, chunky mounds rather than flattening them.
  7. Freeze the dough
    Place the cookie dough balls on a tray and freeze overnight.
  8. Bake
    Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the frozen cookie dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving space between each one. Bake for 20 minutes.
  9. Cool
    Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a bit before moving them, so they can set properly while staying soft in the center.

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5.0 (3 reviews)

About Copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie

This is my take on the famous Levain Bakery style cookie, the chocolate and peanut butter one. It is a huge, thick, dark chocolate cookie with a soft peanut butter chip and gooey centre. The outside sets with a slight crust while the middle stays underbaked and fudgy, which is exactly what makes these cookies so loved.

The two things that make a Levain style cookie work are size and temperature. You make them big, around 170g of dough each, and you bake hot so the outside sets fast while the inside stays gooey. Cocoa powder gives the dough that deep brown colour and chocolate flavour, and peanut butter chips melt into soft pockets through the middle.

These are an indulgent, special-occasion cookie, not a thin everyday one. Be ready for a serious cookie. Below I will walk you through getting that signature gooey centre without leaving them raw.

Per serving
  • 560Calories
  • 9gProtein
  • 30gFat
  • 66gCarbs
estimated

Copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Tips and Notes

Why you'll love it

  • Huge, thick, bakery-size cookies that feel like a real treat.
  • Deep dark chocolate flavour from real cocoa.
  • Soft peanut butter pockets melting through the gooey centre.
  • A set, slightly crusty outside against a fudgy middle.
  • No mixer needed for fancy results, just cold butter and a bowl.
  • They taste just like the bakery version for a fraction of the price.

Ingredient notes

Cocoa powder: use a good unsweetened cocoa for that dark colour and chocolate depth. Dutch-process gives a smoother, darker result.

Peanut butter chips: these are the signature mix-in. If you cannot find them, use chunks of a peanut butter cup or swirl in spoonfuls of firm peanut butter instead.

Butter: cold, cubed butter is important here. It keeps the cookies thick and tall and gives that craggy outside.

Flour: enough flour to keep them sturdy and thick. Spoon and level or weigh it, since these cookies depend on holding their shape.

Dark chocolate: chopped dark chocolate or chips alongside the peanut butter chips builds that double-chocolate richness.

Tips & tricks

Make them big, around 170g of dough each, and keep the tops rough and craggy. The size is what gives you a set outside and gooey middle.

Chill the shaped dough mounds for at least 30 minutes before baking so they hold their tall shape.

Bake hot at 200C (400F) for around 9 to 11 minutes. The high heat sets the outside while the centre stays underbaked and fudgy.

Pull them when the outside looks set and cracked but the centre still feels very soft. They are meant to look underdone in the middle.

Let them rest on the tray for at least 10 minutes. They are extremely soft when hot and need that time to firm up enough to lift.

Storage & make-ahead

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. The thick centres keep them soft for days.

Freeze raw dough mounds on a tray, then bag them, for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen and add a few extra minutes.

Warm a cookie in the microwave for about 20 seconds, or in a 160C (325F) oven for 5 minutes, to bring back that just-baked gooey centre.

Variations

Swap the peanut butter chips for white chocolate chips for a dark chocolate and white chocolate version.

Press chunks of a peanut butter cup into the tops before baking for extra melty pockets.

Add a handful of chopped roasted peanuts for crunch alongside the soft chips.

Use half milk and half dark chocolate for a sweeter, less intense cookie.

Copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie FAQs

The large size is the whole point. Making them big lets the outside set and crust while the inside stays gooey and underbaked. A smaller cookie would bake through and lose that fudgy centre.
Bake hot at 200C (400F) and pull them when the outside is set and cracked but the middle still feels very soft. They finish on the tray, so resting them is what takes the centre from raw to gooey.
Chopped peanut butter cups work well, or you can drop small spoonfuls of firm peanut butter into the dough and fold gently so it stays in pockets rather than mixing all through.
The butter was probably too warm or the dough was not chilled. Use cold cubed butter, chill the shaped mounds, and bake hot. Cold dough plus high heat keeps them tall.
Give them at least 10 minutes on the tray. They are very soft and fragile straight from the oven and need that time to set enough to lift without falling apart.
Yes. Shape the dough into mounds and chill for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Bake straight from cold, adding a few minutes if baking from frozen.
Aim for around 170g of dough per cookie for the true oversized result. If that feels too large, you can go smaller, just shorten the bake time a little.
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