We’ve got the recipe for the famous Her Place chocolate chip cookie
The warm chocolate chip cookie that My Loup and Her Place Supper Club chef Amanda Shulman presents at the end of every meal is the stuff of legends—and now we have the recipe for it.
You’ll likely need to plan ahead to make these wonderfully thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies from Her Place and My Loup chef-owner Amanda Shulman, but trust us, they’re worth the effort. They’re one of our 8 show-stopping slam-dunk cookie recipes for this year—all contributed by local bakers, restaurant owners, and even one from a cheese shop.
Get one cup’s worth of sourdough starter discard in order first. You can make your own starter, of course, but several Philly bakeries, including Lost Bread and Mighty Bread, will give you a hunk of theirs for free so you can grow it. (Or take a shortcut and ask your homemade bread-baking neighbors.)
Citric acid helps bump up the sourdough flavor, but it’s optional. Shulman’s recipe calls for a ton of chopped chocolate (3½ cups’ worth), so buy a handful of bars. Chocolate chips are easy and they work, but we wish we had gone with chopped, because it distributes more evenly and has a more striking appearance.
Note that in the cookies in the lead image, we used chocolate chips rather than the chocolate bars that Shulman calls for in the recipe, which gives the cookies a slightly different appearance. Below, a photo of what the cookies look like with chopped chocolate instead:
Also, if you think you’ll make this recipe, brown the butter, let it cool, and set it aside in the fridge so you’ll be ready. Like we said, there’s planning involved — would you expect anything less from one of Food & Wine’s best new chefs? — but these might be the chocolate chips of the year. Plus, baking them is a surefire way of trying Shulman’s food without vying for a near-impossible reservation.
You can download the recipe here. And check out seven other stellar cookie recipes from Philly bakers in our annual cookie recipe round-up.
Buy it instead: Shulman plates up a smaller version of this cookie (served warm) at the end of every meal at Her Place at 1740 Sansom St.
Yields 40-ish cookies
230 grams (2 sticks) unsalted butter
220 grams (1 cup plus scant tablespoon) white sugar
220 grams (1 cup plus 2 teaspoons packed) light brown sugar
1 pinch citric acid (optional)
385 grams (3 cups plus 3 tablespoons) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
3 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon vanilla paste (or extract)
245 grams (1 cup) sourdough starter discard
600 grams (3½ cups) 60% dark chocolate, chopped
Flaky sea salt for garnish
In a medium saucepan, brown the butter over medium, until it smells fragrant, nutty, and the milk solids at the bottom have browned. Keep a close eye on it so it doesn’t burn. Transfer to a bowl or a container. Let cool until no longer melted and nicely tempered; this can be done well in advance.
In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, mix the cooled butter, both sugars, and a pinch of citric acid on medium-high until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and continue to mix 2 to 3 minutes longer.
Add the sourdough starter and mix on medium until incorporated, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl once.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the mixer gradually and mix on medium, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl once or twice. Mix in chopped dark chocolate.
Wrap the bowl in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or up to 3 days. (The dough keeps 2 months in the freezer.)
When ready to bake, heat the oven to 350°F. Scoop and roll the dough into 50-gram balls (about 2 generous tablespoons), spacing the dough evenly apart on a lined sheet pan. Top each with a pinch of flaky salt.
Bake at 350°F, rotating the pan after 8 minutes. Bake for another 4 to 6 minutes, until edges are set and center is gooey. Cool on a wire rack.
