The first time I had these salted dark chocolate olive oil cookies was at Levee Baking Co. here in New Orleans. Christina is a friend and has always inspired me. Her bakery has some of the absolute best breads and pastries here in the Big Easy. Funny enough, I actually didn’t get into making my own sourdough until she came over one day and brought me some of her starter. It was then that my life changed forever because she taught me a basic sourdough bread recipe. Since then, I have been making sourdough 2-3 times a month and I absolutely love it. But that’s not why we are here today. We’re here to talk about a cookie. A salted dark chocolate olive oil cookie to be exact. Drooling yet?
WHY YOU’LL LOVE THESE COOKIES
Going back to when I first had this cookie, upon my first bite my eyes rolled into the back of my head and I squealed. My mouth was overwhelmed with a crispy, chewy texture that was rich and oh so chocolatey. Large chunks of flaky salt melted onto my tongue, intensifying the flavor. It was decided at the moment to be my favorite cookie ever. And it still is.
KEY INGREDIENTS
Luckily, Christina agreed to let me share her recipe on the blog for all of you! I did make just a few tweaks because you know I can be fussy if I don’t have my way, but the recipe is very similar to the one she currently serves at the bakery. I added some coffee because Ina Garten taught me that trick when I was a teenager (it brings out the flavor of the chocolate in a big way.) Also added just a dash of almond extract because I just can’t help myself. You don’t really taste it but it’s definitely there.
A FEW MORE TIPS
What else… oh yeah, I like to make mine on the bigger, thinner, crispier, and chewier side. So I like to divide the dough into 12 big cookies and bake for 16 minutes. Of course, you could go smaller but I think these work really well when they are big and impressive. I also decided to omit the chocolate chips but I have made that an option in the notes. This just depends on how much you like chocolate! Lastly, don’t skimp on the flaky salt. It’s what makes the cookies.
Big thanks to Christina from Levee Baking Co. for letting me share this chocolate olive oil cookie recipe. Definitely give her a follow on Instagram, her feed is gorgeous.
WANT TO TRY OTHER SEASONAL TREATS?
ENJOY THESE SALTED DARK CHOCOLATE OLIVE OIL COOKIES!
If you do make the recipe, let me know, and please leave a comment below. It greatly helps the health of my site and makes me oh so happy to read. If you post this on social media please tag me, I love to see what you all are up to! Thank you for being here and happy baking, y’all.
-Timothy
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed (regular or golden) You could totally add some different toppings here. The original recipe has pistachios but I've also tried using walnuts and it was fabulous. Crushed up peppermint sticks would make for a lovely holiday addition!
Ingredients
¼ cup full-fat oat milk
2 tablespoons black coffee (left-over or cold-brewed)
2 cups all-purpose flour (280 g)
¾ cup cocoa powder, dutch-processed
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
¾ cup olive oil
2 cups sugar (vanilla infused if you have it!)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon almond extract
Flaky salt, for topping cookiesInstructions
notes
If you'd like to make these cookies even more chocolatey, add ¾ cups of dark chocolate chips to the batter when mixing.
I find that these cookies taste better after the dough has had a good amount of time in the fridge. I usually will bake off half of the dough after 2 hours of chill time and then bake off the rest over the next 2-3 days. I've even baked them off after 4 days of being in the fridge and they were outrageous
95 comments
I’ve been following you for a while on IG. I finally found the courage to leave a comment. Just wanted to say thank you for you contribution to the culture. Your content inspires and makes me think that one day, I can go all out plant based too! Keep up the excellent work!
You are so sweet. Thank you so much!
So many people comment on food blogs saying “This looks delicious!” or “I can’t wait to make these!” Let me tell you, I legit could not wait. I LOVE these cookies from Levee, so when they shared your post on Instagram, I braved the holiday grocery stores for ingredients. These are perfect! I subbed unsweetened almond milk for oat, and I also added a few dark chocolate chips, but otherwise I did everything as written. I definitely second your suggestion to slightly under-bake them to keep them gooey/chewy. My first batch I did a full 16 minutes in the oven. They were crispy and chewy fresh out of the oven, but they dried out a little when they cooled. Throwing them in a sealed container helped soften them back up to a perfectly chewy texture.
Yay!!! I’m so glad you like them!
these are the PERFECT COOKIE. I made mine with only 1 & 1/2 cup of sugar and subbed half the flour with almond flour. It worked so well. You could really even take the sugar down to 1 & 1/4 if you prefer less sweet desserts. I also topped with crushed peppermint- big christmas hit in my household.
Cool! I wonder what they taste like compared to the original? I’ll have to try this!
I made these at the holidays for my family. We cut them into snowflake shapes. I followed the recipe exactly and they were the best cookies we’ve all ever had! They’re like a brownie almost but better. The Maldon sea salt was wonderful on top! Excellent
Amazing! Love that! Thank you for the sweet comment.
Huge hit with my vegan fam!
I made these last night as dessert for our New Years Eve dinner. Chocolate decadence! I added chocolate chips, so they were extra chocolatey. On the first batch I baked, I put the sea salt. Later in the evening, I baked up the 2nd batch and had leftover chopped peanuts (from the shitake lettuce wraps) so used those as a topping. I can’t decide which I like more, so maybe the solution is to load them up with both! My oven must run hotter than yours, because they were ready to come out after around 13 -14 minutes. They were crispy on the edges, chewy in the middle. Perfection!!
Yay! I am so glad you liked them and we’re able to put your own spin on them. Happy cooking and thanks for the love!
Wowzers! These are amazing! Perfect cookie. (I went for crispy/chewy).
I am so happy that you like them! Thank you for the love!
I’m sorry to say these cookies were bad. Somehow, even with all of the sugar, vanilla, almond, coffee, and salt, they had very little flavor. Also, mine flattened so much that they looked awful, too.
That’s so odd… I’ve had over a dozen people on Instagram send me pics (where the cookies look great) telling me how perfect they are and how much they love the flavor. I’ve also had a good handful of comments on the blog saying how great they are, as well. Hard to imagine that with all of these flavors and a hefty sprinkling of salt on top that flavor is the issue. Can’t help but wonder if something went wrong… But oh well! Looks like these cookies just aren’t for you.
Hey!
Can’t wait to make these cookies, I’ve been dreaming about them! I have three bags of cacao on hand, but no dutch process cocoa… how important do you thing the dutch process is in this cookie?
Loving so many of your recipes, thanks for being here!
~Shawn
You can use regular cocoa powder! It shouldn’t change things too much. Happy cooking!
I’m so mad at you for posting this recipe. You posted this on December 22. Since then we have made (and consumed) 3 batches. It is only January 4 and there are only two people in my house — that’s way too many cookies! Basically, you have ruined my life.
Just kidding — these are the best cookies I’ve ever baked at home and I’m in love.
Haha! You are not the first person to feel this way. I am so glad you like them. Happy cooking!
Oh my god. WHAT?! These are bomb. I followed the recipe except swapped macadamia nut milk since that’s what I had and omitted almond extract bc hubs is allergic. They are absolutely perfect. I’m kinda scared that I know about them though bc they are so good I don’t know if I’ll ever stop making them. Bye bye self control! Thanks for the recipe, I guess ?
Haha! I guess there could be worse problems to have? Thanks for the love and happy cooking!
I am back to say that I made these again with 1/2 tsp peppermint extract and crushed peppermint AND chocolate chips inside and I think this is it. This is Nirvana. My life is different now. I hope you all can join me on the peppermint side. It’s good over here.
Ohhhh!! That sounds like a fabulous idea. Will try!
These are great! I’ve made them twice. The second time the batter turned out a bit more dry…not sure why but they were still great once baked (just difficult to shape). I always make these when I have some non-vegan guests to please. I get pretty nervous when i have to bake for several people, but these cookies never disappoint!! Thanks for the great recipe.
These are def the perfect cookies to make for guests. What a treat! Thanks for the love and happy cooking.
Holy frackin sheet, dude! I just came here to say THANK YOU! These cookies are insane. I made a double batch to bring to my in-laws and my friends who just had a baby. Everyone (and I do mean everyone) was obsessed. My brother-in-law even stole 2 to bring to his Tinder date (and he told her that he baked them, because he’s just that kind of guy).
These are flawless – Crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside. So flavorful. So balanced. I made them exactly as written, except I somehow missed the part where you mentioned almond extract – Woops! I’ll add it next time. And trust me – there will be a “next time” real soon. Husband already asked me to bake another batch for his coworkers.
If you’re reading through reviews trying to decide whether or not these are worth making, just do it. Seriously. You’re gonna fall in love.
Yay!!! Thank you for making me laugh. I needed this today! I am so thrilled you liked the recipe and I love that you shared them. Happy baking!
oh my god, these are divine! I left the dough in the fridge and baked them on the fourth day and they turned out just perfect! Maybe a tiny bit too crunchy, but that’s my oven. And totally negligible with that taste. I might also try using peanut butter one of the next times I make them, because somehow peanuts seem a perfect match with the dark choc and salty taste. NOM! Thank you SO much for sharing this recipe! <3
Yay! I am so glad you liked these! Thanks for the comment and happy baking!
Wow, I just made these and they are the BOMB! Thanks for all of your great recipes! I also love your Insta posts 🙂
That’s awesome to hear!! I am so happy you like them. Thank you for the love!
Soooooo good! Thank you so much! This cookie is not only GORGEOUS, it is so yummy! I used brown sugar and flax seed oil instead of olive b/c that’s all I had on hand but still, so good!
Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for the love.
Not gonna lie, I was a bit skeptical at first but after reading all those amazing reviews I knew I HAD to try them. Someone in the comments recommended to use less sugar if we preferred less sweet desserts so I halved the amount bc I prefer the taste of chocolate without a lot of sweetness (I’m a savory kind of gal lol) and I definitely don’t regret my decision. I added some 90 % dark chocolate chips and omg. Those are literally the best cookies I’ve ever had. I’m munching on cookie #3 as I’m typing this ?
This is so lovely to hear! I am thrilled that you like them. Thanks for the comment.
These are fantastic cookies and I have already made two batches this week! I used half the amount of sugar and they still came out sweet and chocolatey. I used all purpose flour for one recipe and almond flour for the second as I ran out of APF. The almond flour made them flat and more chewy, but still amazing. I found this website after reading about the famous Levee cookies in a magazine and I am so happy I found this recipe. The photographs on this website are phenomenal and so inviting. I went down a rabbit whole just looking at all the food photos 🙂
This is so awesome to hear! I am so happy you like them and were able to customize them to your liking. Thank you for leaving a sweet comment. I really appreciate it!
I’ve made these cookies countless of times and love doing different variations with different mix ins. They are so delicious. My family is always asking me to make them. One of my go to cookie recipes 🙂
Well that is just so lovely to hear! Thank you so much for letting me know. I love these cookies, too.
So. Made the dough. Let it sit in the fridge overnight. Took it out and tried to make the lovely, little round cookies like in the picture and the dough completely crumbled and fell apart. So instead I baked slab cookies. While not very pretty, they taste quite nice. I wish I could share a picture with you of my not very pretty cookies. Happy Christmas!
Hi there! I am so sorry you had issues. If you have any dough left, I would place it in a bowl and add en extra drizzle of olive oil and another splash or two of oat milk. Mix until it is not so crumbly. I am very concerned about this and will be testing the recipe again in the next few days to see if I can troubleshoot. I will update you.
Hi there! I wanted to report back. I tested this recipe again and the dough was cohesive and pliable. It does harden in the fridge so it can be a bit crumbly with forming them into a ball to bake off but it should still be manageable. I will email you a video of the dough I tested!
Hi, again Lisa! I wanted to report back: I recently re-tested the recipe as written and followed it to a T. I didn’t have any issues with the dough and I recorded a video and emailed it to you to show you what it is supposed to look like. Did you get the email? LMK and hope you are well!
A sincere THANK YOU for this recipe. I do not get to bake a lot of vegan treats these days. I had time to make these for a family gathering of vegans and non vegans – everyone loved them (especially my 1.5 yr old grandson and my 75 yr old dad!) We will be making these for all special occasions to come. The cookies were PERFECT! following the recipe on the first try and so much bigger than I thought they would be – not complaining just pleasantly surprised! (I did sub powdered egg replaced for the ground flax egg because that is what we had)
Awesome! So happy you enjoyed them!! Thanks for the love.
OMG I have found my perfect cookie!!! These are the absolute best and I will be making them again and again. Although I didn’t know each cookie would be as big as my face. But who’s complaining…. Thank you!!
I am so happy you liked them!! Thanks for letting me know!
I’m hoping to make these tomorrow but don’t have flaxseed – any ideas for substitutions?
I haven’t tested this recipe with any other kind of binder but my first rec would be chia seeds and then an egg replacer like from Bob’s Red Mill. Other than that, I’m sure some apple sauce or a banana would work but it would change the flavor. Once again, I haven’t tested anything other flan flax, so I can’t give you a certain answer. Hope it works out!
I used powdered egg replacer when I made these and they turned out great. I just mixed the “egg” and added it to the wet ingredients.
Thank you for this recipe. We tried it this weekend and it worked like a charm!
Your plant based recipes are all so beautiful and tempting, you make vegan cooking look delicious (and of course, it is!).
Aww, lovely to hear! Thank you!
Added salted peanuts to the top halfway through baking and they’re perfection. Super decadent and BIG cookies but we all still managed to eat two ?
Love this!! Sending you lots of love!
This sounds fab!! Sending you lots of love!
This recipe makes the world’s best cookies. Actually, nothing I can buy even approaches the deliciousness of these cookies. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.
I have a question: if I wanted to do a mint variation, what measurement of mint oil would you recommend adding?
Lydia! This makes me so very happy to read. Thank you!! So mint oil is very strong so I would say start with ½ a teaspoon- mix well and give it a taste. Add more if you’d like!
hi there! quick-ish question: what is “full fat oat milk”? i generally buy oat milk with no extra fillers (e.g., oils added) and am confused. that said, i’m wondering if I might simply make these with almond milk….well, I guess I can just try!!!
these look fabulous!!
Hi there! So Oatly has a full-fat milk which is just more creamy and delicious. But you could certainly use any plant-based milk here. Happy baking!
thank you for the reply – very appreciated! i avoid Oatly as they add in oils (low erucic acid rapeseed oil) which do make it deliciously creamy; but, i avoid for a health reasons. it’s all good – making these with plain old almond milk worked so well!
Was so excited to make these but I don’t know what I did wrong, mine flattened out way too much in the oven and were so thin and crispy/burnt on the edges. I’m gonna try baking off the rest of my dough in the next few days but it seems they were too wet although I followed the recipe exactly. 🙁
Hi Laura, I am so sorry to hear this. I am not sure what’s wrong! The dough should be quite thick and dense like in the pre-bake picture. There is not very much liquid in this recipe in comparison to the dry ingredients. There is only 1/4th a cup of oat milk.. The only other thing I can think of is trying to chill the dough overnight to get it nice and cold… hope this helps.
so…..I made it with almond milk & it was AMAZING!!! i also left out the almond extract as i didn’t have any one hand. i can not say enough how gorgeously delectable these cookies are. i will make them exactly they way i did when i make them again – THAT GOOD! thank you, thank you for posting such a fabulous recipe.
Amazing! To the person who asked about mint extract – 2 teaspoons for sure. In addition to vanilla. Do it!
Mannnn I couldn’t help it, I made these the literal day after I got the email newsletter and they’re so good that I’m MAD! lol I was skeptical about the almond extract but dayum! Good call. SO SO GOOD. Thank you for sharing! Can’t wait to try the pumpkin sausage pasta next. Happy Holidays!
I made these for Christmas and they were such a hit! I left out the coffee (kids) but otherwise followed the recipe exactly and the cookies were unique, not too sweet and there were no leftovers!
Loved reading this! So happy you and the fam enjoyed them. Happy New Year!
Sounds super yummy! Is there a preferred Olive Oil for the cookies?
Hi there! So I just use whatever full-bodied olive oil I have on hand for sautéing. No need to use an expensive finishing olive oil here. Enjoy!
These sound delicious. One question – I don’t make coffee, but have some espresso powder that I put in chocolate cake recipes. If I use that, should I add a little more liquid? I’m also gluten free so will use my 1 to 1 substitution blend. I think they’re going to be amazing.
You can absolutely use that and just add the 2 tablespoons of water to replace the liquid from the coffee, I’m sure that would work just fine! I hope the GF blend works for you- lmk please! Happy baking!
I’ve been following your Blog for a while and very much enjoy your book. The chocolate cookies are perfekt for chocolate Junkies like me.
I could even convince my carnivore family with your recipies. keep it up!!!
Aww, thank you for the sweet comment and for being here! That makes me so happy to hear. I certainly will keep it up!!
Did this recipe used to Include Rye flour?
I know I bought rye flour for some chocolate cookies and I swear it was these but maybe I’m mistaken!
Hi! This recipe did not but that sounds lovely!!
I made these at 4am; that’s how excited I was to try them after stumbling upon the recipe in an insomnia-induced frenzy of online recipe window-shopping. And OH BOY are these good. I chopped up some dark chocolate and pressed some chunks into the top of each cookie. I’m genuinely struggling with the effort to not eat the lot of them. Thank you for this divine recipe!
Hi Ren! This makes me so happy to read. These cookies are quite special and I am so happy you like them.
I see this recipe has been up for a while, but I just come across it and had to give it a try. They’ve just come out of the oven and are a real hit. I’m wondering if the dough would store well in the freezer. We’d like to be able to make these at a moment’s notice, by just pulling a piece or two out of the freezer and baking them up! I know that works well with some doughs, but I don’t know if it is a universal. What do you think? Thanks for the recipe!
Hey! So I have tried making these from dough that has been in the fridge for up to 5 days and it worked great. I have not tested freezing it but I BET it would work. I can’t say for certain but I would suggest pre-rolling some balls and freezing a few to test out. I really think it would be just fine! Sorry I can’t help more on this topic. -T
These taste similar to brownie brittle but better- the fudgey center gives it the extra flavor and texture to make these absolutely incredible. Came across these cookies when looking for a vegan recipe based in olive oil- sure it’s just the first of many times I make it! Thanks in advance for making my family’s Thanksgiving sweeter this year 🙂
Hey Leah! Thank you so much for this comment. I agree, the crispy and chewy texture makes these cookies super special. Happy holidays and thank you for being here!
These are like brownies for grown ups. Crispy outside and a little gooey inside, and so rich! I like that I can bake a few fresh each night for dessert. A great holiday treat. Thank you!
So lovely to read this! Thank you for letting me know, Natalie!
Happy to say these cookies turned out well! ^_^
The first 1/2 batch I baked spread sooo much it looked like a delicious disaster (all stuck together, very crispy after 16 minutes) – they were all eaten of course!
For the second half batch the day after (the dough does keep very nicely in the fridge!), I divided the dough in a higher number of smaller cookie portions. They still spread but into lovely, big independent cookies. I also left them around 12-13 minutes and checked them before letting them cool for a chewier texture. I used 1.5 cups sugar and soft whole wheat flour.
Great with Maldon salt flakes and a glass of cinnamon sprinkled oat milk 🙂
Thank you for this, Sophie! Very happy to hear you liked them! I want a glass of cinnamon oat milk now.
These look delicious, perfect for Veganuary I can’t wait to try them.
I hope you love them!! Happy holidays, t
Was going to do 6 per sheet but my convection oven is tiny so I did 4. I subbed in half almond flour and half AP with just a smidge less AP because I used Cacao instead of Dutch Processed Cocoa and this swap can make dough thicker for some reason. I also subbed in coconut sugar for cane sugar and cut it down to a cup and a quarter. I didn’t have any almond extract. I didn’t skimp on the flaky salt! I ran these for the full 16 minutes. They look lovely out of the oven. They are a gift so I haven’t tasted one yet but the dough was ridiculously good!
I hope that they came out delicious!
Hello,
I’m new to your site and generally impressed with all the recipes so far (I grew up in LA, AL, and GA so have high expectations for Red Beans & Rice, and yours delivered.) These look absolutely decadent….do you have any tips for subbing flours or adapting this to be gluten-free? In addition to various allergies (dairy, egg, coconut, etc.) I also have Celiac.
Thanks,
SH
Hi there! I have actually heard that GF flour works with these! I think King Arthur’s makes a great GF one-to-one swap. Of course, the texture won’t be quite the same but still good! Also, you can use sweet sorghum flour for making the roux with my gumbo and it works nicely. Thank you for the kind words and for being here. Happy cooking!
I’m no stranger to baking or even vegan baking, but I must have done something wrong. The cookie dough was super crumbly and almost impossible to form into a ball. I let it sit in the fridge for about 5 hours and it completely fell apart being taken out of the plastic.
Baking supplies are super expensive right now so I was determined to not let it go to waste! I tried to form them into balls and even when they sort of separated, I kind of smashed them together mid-bake to make a sort of cookie shape 😅
Flavours were good and the cookies were a little cronchier than I like, but I’ll try again!
Hi Mya! Oh no, it sounds like something went wrong, I’m sorry! The dough is a little crumbly but it should definitely come together when pressed together. I have had a handful of others say this has happened to them (the dough being crumbly) and every time they have, I have retested the recipe with great results. My only guess is that if you are not using dutch-process cocoa powder and the measurements aren’t exact, the dough could be too dry? Again, I am sorry. I hate it when a recipe doesn’t work.
Hi – I just made the dough so I can’t comment on the results, but everything was straightforward and came together as written. I am just wondering if the reason some people are having problems with crumbly dough is too much flour? Unfortunately when a recipe is written in volume and not weight, it can be all over the board with how much flour to use. I did not want dry cookies, so I went with 125 grams per cup (Gold Medal unbleached), and 60 grams of cocoa. Excited to bake these off as I have many friends who are vegan and am always looking for recipes that make everyone swoon! Thanks for sharing. If I get back to NOLA, I will be sure to try this lovely bakery.
Susan, that is a GREAT idea. In my new book and for all of my sourdough recipes, I use grams so I am not sure why I hadn’t thought of that for this one. I am on it! Hope they bake up beautifully for you.