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    Home » Cookies

    Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

    By Mike Johnson ⁠— April 15, 2020 (Updated September 9, 2022) — 36 Comments

    4.79 from 28 votes

    A copycat recipe for the deliciously massive Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies. They're crispy on the outside and soft & gooey on the inside!
    Jump to Recipe Leave a Comment

    This post may contain affiliate links. Read my Disclosure page.

    Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

    This Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies recipe is pure chocolate heaven!  It’s the ultimate make-at-home version of the popular cookie sold in NYC and definitely lives up to the hype.

    After posting my Copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe, I got quite a few requests asking how to make the chocolate version!  And since there are few things I love more than chocolate and peanut butter (see: Small Batch Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting and Peanut Butter Brown Sugar Layer Cake with Chocolate Fudge Buttercream), I figured why not also post this recipe here!

    If you aren't a peanut butter fan (and if so, I don't wanna even KNOW about it), you can replace the peanut butter chips with milk, semisweet, or dark chocolate chunks, which will give you a Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe. That's right... you're getting 2 for 1 here, people!

    Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
    Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
    Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
    Print Recipe
    4.79 from 28 votes

    Copycat Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

    A copycat recipe for the deliciously massive Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies. They're crispy on the outside and soft & gooey on the inside!
    Prep Time10 minutes mins
    Cook Time15 minutes mins
    Total Time25 minutes mins
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: Chocolate Chip Cookies, Cookies, Copycat Levain Bakery Cookies
    Servings: 4 cookies
    Calories: 754kcal
    Author: Mike Johnson

    Ingredients

    • 115 g unsalted butter cold and cubed
    • 110 g dark brown sugar
    • 50 g granulated sugar
    • 1 large egg cold
    • 2 tablespoon cocoa powder
    • 2 tablespoon black cocoa powder
    • 65 g cake flour *
    • 95 g all-purpose flour
    • ½ teaspoon cornstarch
    • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt
    • 170 g peanut butter chips
    Metric - US Customary

    Instructions

    • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using an electric hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until combined and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the egg and mix until well incorporated.
    • Add the cocoa powder, black cocoa, flours, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt, and use a rubber spatula to gently fold until just combined. Fold in the peanut butter chips.
    • Separate the dough into four large, 6 oz hockey-puck-shaped cookies about 1.5 to 2-inches thick, then place onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
    • Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
    • Bake for 14-15 minutes or until the cookies are puffy and the exterior appears set. Let them rest on the cookie sheet for at least 10 minutes to fully set before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

    Notes

    *Using cake flour makes a more tender cookie but you can substitute all-purpose flour if that's all you have!

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1g | Calories: 754kcal | Carbohydrates: 95g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 38g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Cholesterol: 110mg | Sodium: 483mg | Potassium: 169mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 57g | Vitamin A: 768IU | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 3mg
    Did you try this recipe?Tag @mikebakesnyc and use the hashtag #mikebakesnyc!

    MikeBakesNYC LLC owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this website unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my Disclosure page. This post may contain affiliate links.

    Filed Under

    CookiesSmall Batch BakingChocolatePeanut Butter
    « Copycat Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies
    Homemade Oatmeal Creme Pies »

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    Comments

      4.79 from 28 votes (20 ratings without comment)

      Rate this Recipe + Leave a Review Cancel reply

      If you made this recipe, I'd love for you to leave a rating + review below to let me know how you liked it! If you have any questions, please feel free to leave those below too!

      Thanks,
      Mike

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Halima

      May 09, 2022 at 7:36 pm

      Made these are they came out sooo good. They were soft, thick and chocolatey. Just like the picture. Thank you for sharing. Your recipes are very reliable. They always turn out great.

      Reply
    2. Anonymous

      February 06, 2022 at 1:18 pm

      Definitely use the cake flour... Makes the cookie that much better

      Reply
    3. Alissa O

      September 28, 2021 at 10:10 am

      Measurements are grams. Do you have them in cup amounts? Not sure how to convert.

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        September 28, 2021 at 10:49 am

        I post my recipes in grams as it's the most accurate way to bake and it's how I develop them; cups are not only inaccurate but they vary in volume worldwide! In any event, if you look at the recipe card underneath the ingredients list, you can click "US Customary" and it'll convert to the less accurate volume measures

        Reply
        • Rachel

          January 15, 2022 at 5:54 pm

          @Michael Johnson, I don't think you were sassy enough in your reply

          @Alissa, a good investment would be a scale. I love it and it has been a lifesaver so many times. You can get one for around $20 that works well and will lasts a long time

          Reply
          • Michael Johnson

            January 15, 2022 at 7:41 pm

            Nothing sassy about my reply to Alissa actually, you’re just reading into it. Please don’t tone police me on my own website lol. Thanks!

            Reply
    4. Kaye

      March 11, 2021 at 11:15 pm

      Hi Mike! How do I make sure that the peanut butter chips are melted just like the ones in your pictures? Which type and brand of chips should I use? Thanks so much for this recipe! I've tried the chocolate chips version of this and it's the best out of all the copycat Levain recipes I've tried.

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        March 13, 2021 at 11:18 am

        I use Reese's peanut butter chips and never have an issue with them melting! 🙂

        Reply
    5. Corrinne Goldberg

      November 23, 2020 at 10:27 pm

      5 stars
      Awesome recipe. I accidentally left out the white sugar and still LOVED these. They were plenty sweet. I had added some dark chocolate chips as well as the peanut butter.

      I also wanted smaller cookies so used a scooper and pressed each down a bit. Baked for 12 minutes and they were PERFECT!!

      Can't wait to try other recipes.

      Reply
    6. May

      October 28, 2020 at 4:13 pm

      Hi, it says 65 CUP cake flour and 95 CUP all-purpose flour under the metric measurement. Is it safe to assume that those are supposed to be 65g and 95g?

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        October 28, 2020 at 5:18 pm

        Extremely safe assumption! 🙂

        Reply
    7. Kay Griffin

      October 18, 2020 at 10:55 pm

      5 stars
      Love these cookies! I have made these half a dozen times and they never disappoint. I used Valhrona dark cocoa (which I use all the time). I have made these with butterscotch chips too and we liked those even more. Thanks for the fabulous recipe!

      Reply
    8. Malula

      September 01, 2020 at 9:28 pm

      Hi Michael , This cookies look Amazing and I wanna do it, but in my country they don’t sell light brown sugar, can you think that maybe can i use light brown sugar and muscovado?

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        September 02, 2020 at 10:24 am

        You can use granulated or caster sugar as indicated and then muscovado sugar to replace the dark brown sugar!

        Reply
    9. Evi

      July 29, 2020 at 12:26 am

      Hello, do you flatten the dough before baking? Mine comes out unflat. Thankyou

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        July 30, 2020 at 10:40 am

        I would recommend watching these IG story highlights to see a step-by-step of exactly how I made the ones you see in this post: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17881249345577716/

        Reply
    10. Sara Sanders

      July 17, 2020 at 3:46 pm

      5 stars
      Completely Delicious! I unfortunately didn't have black cocoa powder but I will next time they are made in the Nugget Kitchen. Thanks, Mike!

      Reply
    11. Lalita

      July 04, 2020 at 5:02 pm

      5 stars
      These are delicious! I couldn’t find peanut butter chips but did find really mini chocolate covered peanut butter cups (super mini) and used those instead. Went with smaller size cookies and just adjusted the time with no bad results - still soft and delicious. Next time, will make size outlined so I can state I only ate one cookie. Thank you so much for the recipe.

      Reply
      • Cat

        July 13, 2020 at 4:29 am

        5 stars
        Lalita, do you have any tips on how you went with the smaller size cookies? What size/temp/time did you bake them at?

        Mike, thank you for this recipe, it was absolutely delicious! Tried baking these after making the "original" flavoured copycat Levain cookies which were also amazing!! Hoping to make some half size versions to share around at work 🙂

        Reply
        • Jess

          August 17, 2020 at 7:43 pm

          Cat, I just made the recipe exactly as-is, but made 8 cookies and baked for exactly 10 min ?

          Reply
          • Cat

            August 20, 2020 at 4:11 pm

            Thanks so much for the tip Jess!

            Reply
    12. Vicky

      July 03, 2020 at 9:19 pm

      I tried your original copycat chocolate chip Walnut cookies and they were amazing. Best texture of a copycat recipe I've tried. I would love a Red Velvet version with cream cheese and a cookies N cream version!

      Reply
    13. Pam Lamp

      June 26, 2020 at 8:32 pm

      5 stars
      I wanted you to know I made these today! First time I've used black cocoa powder. I used chocolate chunks instead of the peanut butter chips. And I used my mixer to mix in the dry ingredients - rather than fold them in. These cookies are WONDERFUL! Can't wait to have them with coffee tomorrow morning too. Thanks so much.

      Reply
    14. Cheshta

      June 23, 2020 at 1:32 am

      Hey , I don’t have peanut butter chips . can I substitute peanut butter for regular butter ?

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        June 24, 2020 at 2:25 pm

        Unfortunately, no! The only substitute for the peanut butter chips would be another type of chip like chocolate, butterscotch, or cinnamon!

        Reply
        • Cheshta Jindal

          October 04, 2020 at 3:07 am

          Can I use flax egg instead of regular egg?

          Reply
          • Michael Johnson

            October 05, 2020 at 10:31 am

            I'm not sure; I don't test my recipes using flax eggs, sorry!

            Reply
    15. Jenny

      June 22, 2020 at 9:24 pm

      These look amazing. Do you have any recommendations for cocoa powder and black cocoa powder?

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        June 24, 2020 at 2:24 pm

        I really like King Arthur Flour's black cocoa! And I usually get my Dutch-processed cocoa powder from either KAF, Guittard, or Anthony's Goods (Amazon).

        Reply
    16. Amanda

      June 17, 2020 at 5:45 pm

      5 stars
      These are UNBELIEVABLE. Simply put this recipe is a masterpiece !!!!

      Reply
      • Megha

        December 22, 2020 at 8:35 am

        What can I use instead of black cocoa?

        Reply
        • Michael Johnson

          December 23, 2020 at 12:01 pm

          You can replace the black cocoa with an equal amount of regular cocoa powder!

          Reply
          • mike

            June 21, 2023 at 8:40 pm

            Will there be any noticeable difference in taste if not using the Black Cocoa powder? I would sub Hershey's Special Dark cocoa instead. Thanks.

            Reply
            • Mike Johnson

              June 21, 2023 at 9:07 pm

              The special dark cocoa is a Dutch-processed cocoa so it won't be a huge taste difference!

    17. camila

      June 07, 2020 at 8:22 pm

      5 stars
      I just made these! I gotta say, they were absolutely phenomenal!!!
      I didn't change a single thing in the recipe, followed it to a T, and the cookies came out like some of the BEST cookies I've ever had!!! This recipe is a keeper

      Reply
      • Michael Johnson

        June 08, 2020 at 8:26 am

        SO GLAD! <3

        Reply

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