The ultimate bakery-style chocolate chip cookie made right at home! Based on the popular Levain cookies but made with gluten free ingredients and no long wait time required.
If you’re head over heels for the popular Levain bakery-style chocolate chip walnut cookies but can’t get your hands on a fresh one anytime soon, you’ve come to the right place. Like many, I feel in love with Levain cookies in NYC for their gooey almost underbaked center and crispy exterior. It’s unlike any cookie I’ve ever enjoyed and I just HAD to make a copycat version at home.
After multiple test, I finally created the best gluten free copycat Levain cookie recipe so everyone can take part in the ultimate cookie experience. They’re just like the real thing but without the freezing cold line and you can make them in the comfort of your own home. A win-win if you ask me! Trust me, these will become your new favorite cookie recipe!
Jump to:
What you'll love about these copycat Gluten Free Levain Cookies
If you’re in club chewy, gooey center, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate chip cookie, you will love these copycat Levain cookies. Here are a few other reasons why they might become your new favorite cookie:
- They taste just like the real deal
- No hours of waiting outside in line
- Made gluten free but you can’t tell
- They’re made in just one bowl
- Giant cookies that can easily be shared (or not)
What you'll need for Levain Copycat Cookies
- Gluten free flour - I used King Arthur's Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour in this recipe. It already has xanthum gum in it which makes these cookies soft and chewy, just like the real thing!
- Corn starch - The secret to the classic Levain cookies is cake flour. We can easily create our own gluten free cake flour by adding a little corn starch into our flour. This will make the cookies super thick!
- Grass-fed butter - I used grass-fed butter in this recipe but vegan butter will work as well. Use cold butter cut into smaller pieces.
- Coconut sugar + Cane sugar - Both of these sugars together create the perfect caramel sweetness to the cookie with a crispy outside.
- Chocolate chips - I used a combination of semi-sweet and dark chocolate chips in these cookies which creates a really decadent chocolatey flavor! Feel free to use one or the other if you prefer though.
How to make Levain Cookies
These cookies are SO easy to make! Almost too easy if you ask me. You will need is a mixing bowl and a hand mixer or stand mixer and a cookie scoop and kitchen scale if you have one.
Step 1 : Beat the butter with the coconut sugar and cane sugar. First, beat together the butter with the coconut sugar and cane sugar until creamy. The color will look darker than typical cookie dough due to the coconut sugar. This is best done with a hand or stand mixer.
Step 2 : Whisk the dry ingredients together. In a small bowl, add the gluten free flour, corn starch, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt together. Whisk well with a fork or whisk.
Step 3 : Fold the dry ingredients. Slowly add the flour mixture to the bowl and fold into the batter. The dough will be on the thicker side. I recommend using a mixer still or a stiff spatula. Mix until no flour clumps remain.
Step 4 : Add in the walnuts and chocolate chips. I like to chop the chocolate chips and walnuts before adding them to the batter. This further breaks them up so you're sure to have a little bit of each in every bite! Fold into the batter to disburse.
Step 5 : Measure 6-ounce cookies. Real Levain cookies are 6 ounces of batter!! Because I wanted these gluten free Levain cookies to be as close to the real thing as possible, I measured out the dough into 6 ounce scoops. Yes, it's A LOT of cookie dough but so worth it!
You should be able to get 5 6 ounce cookie dough balls out of the batter.
Step 6 : Chill the cookie dough. To prevent the cookies from spreading too much and keep them tall and thick, chill the dough balls in the fridge for at least an hour before baking. You can also chill the bowl of batter in the fridge but it may be a little harder to scoop after it has chilled.
Step 7 : Bake! Bake the cookies in the oven at 400 F. Keep in mind this temperature is higher than normal cookies. We want a higher temperature to get that crispy outside. Because they are baked at a higher temperature though, be sure to keep an eye on them to prevent over baking.
These gluten free Levain copycat cookies are meant to be slightly under-baked when you pull them out of the oven. Allow the cookies to cool down for about 15 minutes before enjoying. This will allow them to bake a little more on the baking sheet.
Tips for making Levain Copycat Cookies
- Contrary to most cookie recipes, make sure your butter is cold and cut into small pieces. This is how the cookies maintain their height in the oven.
- Use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the butter and sugars together and don’t try to mix by hand. You need to use an appliance to really whip air into the butter.
- Don’t skip the corn starch! Cake flour is the magic ingredient in Levain cookies and we make our own with just a little bit of corn starch.
- Like most cookies, don’t over mix the flour. Only fold the dry ingredients until they’re about 90% of the way incorporated and then add the mix-ins and fold a few more times. Over mixing can result in dry, dense cookies.
- For best results, weigh the cookies into 6 ounce balls. This is how you get the classic Levain look! If you don’t have a kitchen scale, use a ½ cup measuring cup or eyeball the dough and split it into 5 equal pieces and form a ball on the cookie sheet.
How to freeze Levain Gluten Free Cookie Dough
This dough is great to prepare ahead of time and freeze for when the cookie craving hits! Prepare the dough in the same manner as described above. Go ahead and scoop out 6 ounce cookie dough balls, place them in an airtight ziplock bag, and store them in the freezer.
When ready to enjoy, remove a cookie dough ball and allow it defrost for about 20 minutes before baking. The dough doesn't need to be room temperature but you don't want it to be rock hard either. I found allowing the dough to sit on a baking sheet while the oven preheats is the perfect amount of time to take the chill off the dough.
Storing Copycat Levain Cookies
To store these cookies, place them in an airtight container once they have cooled down. They will keep for 5 days out on the counter. I highly recommend warming them up in the microwave for about 10 seconds when ready to enjoy! They will soften up a bit and the chocolate will melt too.
Levain Cookie Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can replace the walnuts with any other type of nut or use another ½ cup of chocolate chips.
Corn starch is going to give you the best results. But if needed, you can substitute with arrowroot starch or tapioca flour.
First you have the elevated classic flavor combination of chocolate chip walnut (their most popular flavor), then you have the giant 6 ounce size, and you also have the gooey perfectly underbaked center with a crispy exterior holding it all together. What’s not to love?
The 6 ounce size is needed in order to get that ooey gooey center while allowing the exterior to get crispy in the oven.
For more cookies, check out my:
PS : If you make this recipe, be sure to leave a star review and comment below! Also be sure to follow along with me on Instagram and Pinterest to stay up to date on all tasty recipes here at The Fit Peach!
Recipe
Copycat Levain Gluten Free Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup grass-fed butter - (cut into pieces)
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- ⅓ cup cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 ½ cup King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour
- 2 tablespoon corn starch
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, beat together the butter, coconut sugar, and cane sugar until creamy. Add the vanilla and egg and egg yolk to to the bowl and continue to mix well.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour, corn starch, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt. Add the flour mixture slowly to the mixing bowl and mix just until the flour is incorporated.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. Measure 6 oz cookie dough scoops and place on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the fridge to cool for at least an hour.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 F and remove the baking sheet from the fridge. Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 12 - 14 minutes until the outside has turned a golden brown.
- Let the cookies sit for at least 10 minutes before serving.
These are soooo good!! Thank you so much for this recipe <3!!!
I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Hi, I don't have cane sugar, can I use white sugar?
White sugar will work as well!
These look amazing! I don’t have coconut sugar. Can I substitute an equal amount of cane sugar?
Hi Jennifer! Cane sugar will work as well yes!
Hi! I just wanted to thank you for these WONDERFUL cookies! I have been GF for 10+ years and always struggled to find a good chocolate chip cookie recipe. I have tried dozens and dozens of recipes, but they always turned out thin and flat. This is hands down the best one i have ever tried! My search is over! thank you so much for the hard work you put into your recipes!
Hi Erin! This is so sweet, thank you for your kind words! I'm so glad it's your new go-to ccc recipe 🙂
These were amazing! I love levain cookies and these were a fabulous gluten-free version! A word of caution..they are HUGE so be sure to have someone to share them with.
They look amazing but a readymade gluten free flour is not available where I live, can I substitute it with almond flour or oatmeal or a combination of both ? Or do you have any recommendations ?
Thank you ..