Bouchon Bakery: Chocolate Chunk Cookie

Cookie Profile

Flavor: Chocolate Chunk Cookie

Ingredients: Flour, sugar, butter, baking soda, salt, dark brown sugar, blackstrap molasses, chocolate, eggs

Price: $3.50

Calories: 350-450 Calories

Three-word Review: Dark Chocolate Heaven

Score: 9.0

About: Bouchon Bakery

Bouchon Bakery is the product of famed chef Thomas Keller, an 11-time James Beard award winner and chef of two three-Michelin-Star-rated restaurants. Keller is the master of American and French classics. He, like other chefs, have revitalized classics from his youth to a more modern and grown-up version. Keller, whose restaurants Per se and The French Laundry are focused on fine dining and speak only to a fraction of the population, opened Bouchon Bakery because he feels pastries and breads are universal and should be shared by the masses. Learning the craft of bread and pastry making in France, Keller has brought the techniques to America in an incredibly tasty and satisfying way. The Michelin-starred Bouchon Bakery offers both savory and sweet options, but – for our sake – we want the sweet. Everything from adult Oreos and Nutter Butters to quite possibly the best Sticky Bun this world has ever tasted. Bouchon Bakery is one of the best bakeries in New York City.

For the Chocolate Chunk and Chip Cookie, Bouchon focused on mastering the basic techniques. They make sure the consistency of the butter is perfect before adding sugar. They also put an emphasis on mixing other ingredients such as how much to mix the eggs and when to mix the flour. The creation of this cookie is almost a perfect science. I don’t think Thomas Keller would have it any other way.

Chef's Note

Bouchon Bakery, like most, uses unsalted European-style butter. The higher butterfat content gives the recipes a much better flavor. They also use Valrhona and Guittard as their chocolates of choice. For the Chocolate Chunk and Chip Cookie they use Valrhona Guanaja 70% or Guittard 72% chocolate. They also use Kosher salt.

Experience

Our experiences at Bouchon have all been positive. Because of the many locations you get your run-of-the-mill service. It’s pleasant, employees are polite but there isn’t much of a neighborhood vibe or anything that sets it apart. The bakery is always very clean with a lot of staff to handle higher volumes of people. Food selection is great. We love Bouchon bakery and we think you will too.

Review

Appearance

The cookie is large and flat with a golden-brown exterior and a dark chocolate tint to it. The cookie is darker on its edges with a softer color towards its center. Chocolate bubbles out of the dough like cooled lava while tiny speckles of melted chocolate leave little puddles throughout the exterior.

Touch

The cookie is dense with good weight. It has a fairly dry exterior with firm, crispy edges, but softens up harmoniously as you make your way towards the center. To the touch, the cookie has your classic not-too-buttery feel to it, however, it does leave a little buttery residue, traces of chocolate and scattering of crumbs on your fingertips.

Smell

Chocolate dominates the smell of the cookie. You smell a light, buttery aroma with a sweet sugary fragrance but both smells are locked down by the dark chocolate notes that steal the show and intoxicate your senses.

Taste

The first bite reflects the way the cookie felt. You instantly feel the crunchy edges on your teeth as the cookie crumbs fall on your lips. The crunch is then followed by the softer dough. The cookie is loaded with chocolate – because you can never have enough of it, ever – but the dark chocolate isn’t overly intense or bitter. It’s balanced tremendously well with the sweet flavor of butter, sugar and the dark-chocolate bitterness. This is your traditional, classic chocolate chip cookie done to perfection. It’s simple but impeccably crafted.

What to Tell Your Friends

It’s a classic chocolate chip cookie done to perfection. This is the cookie you remember grandma making you but were never able to emulate yourself. It’s loaded with chocolate and has a classic crunchy, chewy bite. It’s perfect by itself or, if you want to get crazy, make an ice cream sandwich out of it.