Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies with Vanilla Crème Anglaise
A proper chocolate chip cookie should require two hands.
It should have deeply golden, rippled edges, a center that remains just soft enough to bend, toasted walnuts tucked into the dough, and great molten pockets of chocolate that refuse to behave themselves while the cookie is still warm.
Why You Will Love These Cookies
Brown butter depth: nutty, toasty, caramel-like flavor in every bite
Two kinds of chocolate plus toffee: chips, molten chopped chocolate and buttery Heath crunch
Bakery-style texture: rippled golden edges and thick, soft centers
A dessert, not just a cookie: served warm with cold vanilla crème anglaise
At a Glance
Makes 16 very large cookies | Time: about 2 hours, plus at least 9 hours chilling and cooling
Why These Cookies Work
Brown butter is one of the foundations of the cookie. As the water cooks away, the milk solids toast and develop flavors reminiscent of hazelnuts and caramel—and every bit of those dark, toasted solids goes into the dough. Nonfat milk powder adds extra milk solids and reinforces those caramelized dairy notes.
Two forms of chocolate make a more interesting cookie. Chips hold their shape and give structure, while chopped bittersweet chocolate melts into irregular pools and streaks. Heath toffee bits add pockets of buttery crunch, and deeply toasted walnuts, crushed into a mix of big pieces and small fragments, keep their character in a dough this rich.
Then comes patience. Resting the dough overnight lets the flour hydrate and the flavors develop, and it firms the dough so these very large cookies keep thick centers. Shaping them into tall, rough mounds rather than smooth balls gives thicker middles and irregular, bakery-style edges.
The Tap, and the Crème Anglaise
Partway through baking, once the edges have set but the centers are still puffed, one firm tap of the tray collapses the middle slightly and encourages those rippled edges.
And the crème anglaise turns a great cookie into dessert. It’s a pouring custard—never as thick as pastry cream—silky enough to flow around a slightly warm cookie. Hot and cold is the point: the chocolate stays soft while the custard stays cool and silky.
Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies with Vanilla Crème Anglaise
Makes 16 very large cookies | Time: about 2 hours, plus at least 9 hours chilling and cooling
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Chip Cookies
1⅓ cups packed (264 g) dark brown sugar
1 cup (198 g) granulated sugar
18 tablespoons (256 g) unsalted butter (real butter; plant-based spreads won’t brown)
4½ cups (638 g) all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons nonfat milk powder
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2½ teaspoons kosher salt
3 cups (315 g) walnut halves, deeply toasted
1 packet Heath Bar toffee crumbles
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 cups (340 g) semisweet chocolate chips, preferably Ghirardelli
2 cups (340 g) bittersweet chocolate (about 70% cacao), roughly chopped
Flaky sea salt, for finishing
For the Vanilla Crème Anglaise (serves 8; double it to serve all 16 cookies)
1 cup whole milk
½ cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste
5 large egg yolks
¼ cup granulated sugar
Small pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
Brown the Butter
Place the brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl.
Melt the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, then keep cooking, swirling and stirring often, until the milk solids are deep golden brown and the butter smells richly nutty.
Immediately pour the brown butter, including all the toasted milk solids, over the sugars. Whisk until combined, then let cool for about 5 minutes.
Make the Dough
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, milk powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Crush the toasted walnuts lightly on a cutting board, leaving a mix of substantial pieces and smaller fragments.
Add the eggs and vanilla to the butter and sugar and whisk until smooth, thickened and glossy.
Add the flour mixture and fold gently with a spatula until only a few traces of dry flour remain.
Fold in the chocolate chips, chopped chocolate, Heath crumbles and walnuts just until evenly distributed.
Shape and Chill
Line two baking sheets with parchment. Divide the dough into 16 equal portions, using a digital scale for consistency.
Shape each portion loosely into a tall, rough mound rather than a smooth ball, and arrange on the trays with space between them.
Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 8 hours and preferably 12 to 24 hours. Once thoroughly chilled, cover lightly. The dough keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Make the Crème Anglaise (While the Dough Chills)
Set a clean bowl in a larger bowl of ice water and rest a fine-mesh sieve over it.
Warm the milk, cream and vanilla bean paste in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until steaming but not boiling.
Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks, sugar and salt in a medium bowl until smooth and slightly lighter in color.
Slowly pour about half the hot milk into the yolks in a thin stream, whisking constantly, then pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and reaching into the corners, until the custard lightly coats the back of the spoon and a finger drawn through it leaves a clean line, about 175°F to 180°F. Don’t let it boil.
Immediately strain into the bowl over the ice bath. Stir occasionally until cool, then cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
Bake
Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line another baking sheet with parchment and place 4 chilled cookies on it, leaving plenty of room for spreading. Keep the rest of the dough in the fridge. Sprinkle the tops lightly with flaky salt.
Bake one tray at a time for 18 to 22 minutes in total, rotating the tray halfway through.
At about 14 to 16 minutes, when the edges have set but the centers are still puffed and soft, carefully lift the tray and give it one firm tap against the oven rack or a heatproof surface. The centers will settle and the edges will start to ripple.
Return to the oven and bake until the edges are deeply golden and the centers still look slightly soft.
Repeat with the remaining cookies, 4 at a time, using a cool baking sheet for each batch.
Cool and Serve
Leave the cookies on the baking sheet for at least 15 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. For the best texture, let them cool for about 45 minutes in total.
Place a slightly warm cookie in a shallow bowl or on a dessert plate, pour the cold crème anglaise around it, and finish with a tiny pinch of flaky salt if you like.
Tips for Success
Keep Every Bit of the Brown Butter
The dark toasted milk solids at the bottom of the skillet hold much of the flavor. Scrape them all into the sugar.
Watch the Butter Closely
Keep the pan moving toward the end. The difference between beautifully browned and burnt is a matter of seconds.
Toast the Walnuts Deeply
They should smell distinctly nutty with a little bitterness at the edges. Pale walnuts disappear in a cookie this rich.
Don’t Pulverize the Walnuts
Irregular pieces give better texture.
Shape Upward, Not Outward
Tall, rough mounds make thick centers and irregular bakery-style edges.
Use a Cool Baking Sheet for Each Batch
A hot tray starts melting the base of the dough before it reaches the oven, so the cookies spread more.
Go by Appearance, Not Just the Clock
Ovens vary. The edges should be deeply golden and the centers still slightly underdone.
Don’t Rush the Cooling
These large cookies keep setting long after they leave the oven. Move them too early and the centers can collapse.
Use the Spoon Test for the Custard
175°F to 180°F is a guide; a clean line through the custard on the back of a spoon is what really matters.
Never Boil Crème Anglaise
Too much heat tightens the eggs and eventually scrambles them. Gentle heat and constant stirring give the silkiest custard.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Burning the butter: pull it as soon as the solids are deep golden and nutty
Skipping the overnight chill: the cookies spread thin and lose their thick centers
Using pale walnuts: they taste flat in a dough this rich
Overbaking: the centers should still look slightly soft
Boiling the custard: it will curdle
What to Serve with These Cookies
Cold vanilla crème anglaise
A scoop of vanilla ice cream
A glass of cold milk
Coffee or espresso
How to Store
Cookies: keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days; warm briefly in a low oven before serving.
Crème anglaise: cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Freeze the dough: freeze the shaped mounds for up to 3 months and bake from frozen, adding a few minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make fewer cookies?
Yes. Halve every ingredient for 8 very large cookies, or bake 8 now and freeze the rest of the shaped dough.
Why brown the butter?
Browning toasts the milk solids, giving the cookies deep, nutty, caramel-like flavor.
Do I have to chill the dough overnight?
For the best result, yes. At least 8 hours lets the flour hydrate, deepens the flavor and keeps these big cookies thick.
Can I leave out the walnuts or toffee?
Yes. The cookies will be a little less rich and textured, but still excellent. Pecans work well in place of walnuts.
What is crème anglaise?
A light French pouring custard of milk, cream, egg yolks, sugar and vanilla, cooked gently until it just coats a spoon.
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Recommended Equipment
Make this recipe easier with the right tools: Cast Iron Skillet, Digital Scale, Silicone Spatula, Rimmed Baking Sheet, Precut Parchment, Chef Cooling Rack, Sauce Pan, and Instant Read Thermometer.
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