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Vie Hachés: The NYT Jacques Torres Cookie — They Turned My Aix Neighbors Into “Encore!” People

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If you’ve ever tried to buy a “cookie” in France and ended up with something that’s… fine… but also kind of a polite, crunchy biscuit that whispers “je suis sec”—welcome. 🙃

One of the best pieces of advice I picked up from Baguette Bound is: make American cookies for your French friends and neighbors. Not because French people don’t know dessert (they invented half the planet’s joy), but because American-style cookies are their own category of cozy chaos—gooey centers, dramatic puddles of chocolate, and a smell that says “I come in peace and butter.” (YouTube)

So when I decided to bake cookies here in Aix-en-Provence, I thought: if I’m going to do this, I’m going to do it properly. I went digging for the “best ever,” fell into the internet rabbit hole, and landed—like many before me—on the legendary New York Times Jacques Torres chocolate chip cookie (adapted by David Leite). The big “secret” isn’t one ingredient—it’s a few smart techniques: two flours, serious chocolate, and a long chill (24–36 hours) for deeper flavor and better texture. (Leite's Culinaria)

I baked a batch, sent some to my French school in Aix, and suddenly I had that very specific expat problem: multiple people asked me for the recipe and now I must not disappoint them. So here we are.

A tiny note: I’m not reposting the NYT recipe word-for-word. Instead, I’m sharing my Aix-friendly version (same spirit, same methods), plus shopping translations, oven tweaks, and what actually worked in a French kitchen—and I’ll link the original sources so you can compare.

The revelation moment (a.k.a. when it clicked)

I used to think “a cookie is a cookie.” Then I pulled these off the tray, let them sit for two minutes, and broke one open.

The center didn’t crumble—it bent. The chocolate didn’t “chip.” It melted into glossy little lakes. And the smell—brown sugar + butter + warm vanilla—hit the stairwell like a polite American invasion.

The only French sentence I needed in that moment was:

“J’ai apporté des cookies faits maison… c’est très américain.”
(I brought homemade cookies… they’re very American.)

And yes, people smiled in that universal way that means: we forgive your accent, please bring more. 😄

What makes the NYT/Jacques Torres method special?

Here’s the short, practical “why it works” list:

  1. Two flours = better texture
    Bread flour gives chew, cake flour gives tenderness—together you get that dreamy “crispy edge / soft middle” situation. (King Arthur Baking)

  2. Resting the dough = deeper flavor + nicer spread
    That 24–36 hour chill hydrates the flour and intensifies caramel-y notes. It also makes the dough easier to scoop. (Leite's Culinaria)

  3. Chocolate fèves/disks > standard chips
    Chips are often designed not to melt much. Disks/fèves melt into bigger pools—more drama, more joy. (Food & Wine)

My Aix-friendly “Jacques Torres-style” cookie recipe (not a copy, but a true cousin)

This is the version I’d actually hand to a classmate in Aix: ingredients you can find here, quantities that behave in European ovens, and the same key technique (the long chill).

Ingredients (about 18–22 big cookies)

  • Butter (beurre doux): 250 g, soft (not melted)

  • Brown sugar (cassonade / sucre roux): 200 g

  • White sugar (sucre en poudre): 160 g

  • Eggs (œufs): 2 large

  • Vanilla (extrait de vanille): 2 tsp

  • Flour total: 300 g, using either option below

    • Option A (closest texture): 150 g T45 + 150 g farine de gruau (or a strong bread flour)

    • Option B (simplest, still excellent): 150 g T45 + 150 g T55 

  • Baking soda (bicarbonate de soude alimentaire): 1 tsp

  • Baking powder (levure chimique): 1 tsp

  • Salt (sel): 1 tsp (fine), plus fleur de sel to finish (optional but magical)

  • Dark chocolate fèves/disks/chunks: 400–500 g

    • Aim for 60%+ cacao if you like a more “grown-up” cookie. (Food & Wine)

Method (the important parts)

  1. Mix dry ingredients: flour + bicarbonate + levure chimique + salt.

  2. Cream butter + sugars until fluffy (2–4 minutes).

  3. Add eggs one at a time, then vanilla.

  4. Add dry ingredients on low just until combined (don’t overmix).

  5. Fold in chocolate by hand (save a handful to press on top later).

  6. Cover dough and chill 24–36 hours. Yes, it’s annoying. Yes, it matters. (Leite's Culinaria)

  7. Bake (see “Aix oven tweaks” below). Scoop big balls (about 70–90 g each), space them out, and sprinkle a little fleur de sel on top if you want that bakery-style finish.

Aix oven tweaks (a.k.a. why my first tray came out too dark)

French/European ovens—especially with chaleur tournante (convection)—often run hot and brown faster than the recipes you remember from the U.S.

Here’s what consistently helps:

  • If the recipe says 175°C, try 165–170°C fan (chaleur tournante).

  • Use the middle rack.

  • One tray at a time until you trust your oven.

  • Pull them when the edges look set but the center still looks slightly underdone. They finish on the tray.

If your cookies are getting too dark:

  • Drop the temperature by 10°C, and/or

  • Shorten bake time by 1–2 minutes, and/or

  • Use a lighter-colored aluminum sheet (dark trays brown faster).

This is exactly what you said: once you make a few small temp/timing adjustments for your oven, the recipe becomes a repeatable win.

Shopping list in France (translations that save your sanity)

A small curated cheat sheet for French grocery runs:

  • Chocolate disks / fèves: look for “fèves,” “pastilles,” or chop a good bar. (Valrhona-style fèves are perfect for the big melty pools.) (Food & Wine)

  • Bread flour: “farine de gruau” (often in bigger supermarkets or bio shops)

  • Cake flour: T45 is the closest everyday equivalent for “softer” flour

  • Brown sugar: “cassonade” or “sucre roux”

  • Baking soda: “bicarbonate de soude alimentaire”

  • Baking powder: “levure chimique”

  • Parchment paper: “papier cuisson”

  • Wire rack: “grille”

Cookie diplomacy: when to bring them

A quick cultural note: gifting to near-strangers isn’t always the default in France the way it can be in the U.S. (context matters). But in the right setting—classmates, neighbors you’ve chatted with, someone who helped you, invitations—homemade cookies are basically edible goodwill. (The American in Paris)

My personal rule: if there’s a human relationship and a moment of warmth, cookies are rarely a bad idea.

Mini French practice: cookie edition (A1 → Advanced)

Because this is Étranger Things, we’re not just baking—we’re practicing.

A1 (simple + proud)

  • “J’ai fait des cookies.” (I made cookies.)

  • “C’est au chocolat.” (It’s chocolate.)

A2 (add detail + past tense)

  • “J’ai laissé la pâte au frigo toute la nuit.” (I left the dough in the fridge all night.)

  • “Ils sont croustillants et moelleux.” (They’re crispy and soft.)

B1 (explain the “why”)

  • “Le repos de la pâte améliore le goût et la texture.” (Resting the dough improves flavor and texture.)

  • “Je les ai cuits un peu moins longtemps pour mon four.” (I baked them a bit less long for my oven.)

B2 (opinions + nuance)

  • “Avec des fèves de chocolat, on obtient de vraies poches fondantes.” (With chocolate fèves, you get real melty pockets.)

  • “J’ai ajusté la température parce que la chaleur tournante dore plus vite.” (I adjusted temp because convection browns faster.)

Advanced (full-on cookie philosopher)

  • “C’est une recette de transmission: on l’adapte à son four, puis on la partage.”
    (It’s a recipe you pass on: you adapt it to your oven, then you share it.)

Want the original references?

Here are a few good deep-dives (including technique explanations and the origin story):

  • Leite’s Culinaria overview of the NYT cookies + method notes (Leite's Culinaria)

  • King Arthur Baking’s take on the “two flours” idea (King Arthur Baking)

  • Why resting cookie dough matters (and why everyone skips it) (Bon Appétit)

  • Jacques Torres’s “use better chocolate” argument (disks vs chips) (Food & Wine)

Your turn (on papote cookies 🍪)

Drop a comment and tell us:

  1. What temp/time worked in your French oven (and whether you used chaleur tournante).

  2. What chocolate you used (bars? pépites? fèves?) and where you found it in Aix.

  3. Your best “cookie diplomacy” moment—neighbor? teacher? that one French friend who pretends not to like sweets and then eats three?

And if you want bonus points: write one sentence in French at your level (A1, A2, B1, B2, or Advanced) describing your cookies. I’ll reply with a gentle correction and a gold star you can’t redeem anywhere, but still feels nice. ⭐

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