{"id":52432,"date":"2025-01-15T12:49:44","date_gmt":"2025-01-15T17:49:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beyondflourblog.com\/?p=52432"},"modified":"2025-01-15T12:49:44","modified_gmt":"2025-01-15T17:49:44","slug":"jacques-torres-chocolate-chip-cookies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beyondflourblog.com\/jacques-torres-chocolate-chip-cookies\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacques Torres Chocolate Chip Cookies"},"content":{"rendered":"

These gluten free cookies are inspired by the Jacques Torres Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. All the fuss & deliciousness of the famous cookie recipe, but none of the gluten! <\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve been following my gluten-free recipe exploits over the years, you probably know that some of my best ideas \/ recipes either:<\/p>\n

1. Come in my sleep,
\n2. Are worked out in my sleep, and\/or
\n3. Start with a fairly ridiculous idea or challenge.<\/p>\n

In the case of making a gluten free version of Jacques' famous chocolate chip cookies... 2 out of 3 ain\u2019t bad!<\/p>\n

While the idea to make a gluten free version of the cookies didn\u2019t come in my sleep, it was pretty close - I saw someone share photos of the cookies in a Facebook group, right before bed.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d seen them before - they basically look like a little cookie dough that\u2019s holding together a LOT of chocolate. <\/p>\n

They looked fantastic, but - as I\u2019d developed a gluten allergy long before ever hearing of them - they\u2019re not something I\u2019ll ever have the opportunity to try.<\/p>\n

Unless, you know, I took a deep dive in the recipe, made note of the ratios, saw what he was going for with those choices, and crafted a gluten-free cookie recipe that would behave the same way.<\/p>\n

So, I took a quick peek at the recipe right before bed.<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
The Problem:<\/h5>\n

Known as basically the best chocolate chip cookie recipe on the planet - as published in the New York Times - the Jacques Torres recipe is known to be quite fussy, between the ingredients and techniques used.<\/p>\n

The thing is, his combination of bread flour and cake flour is a central concept to the recipe. <\/p>\n

You know what sets those two flours apart? The amount of gluten each of them has.<\/p>\n

So yes, I set out to make a gluten-free version of the perfect chocolate chip cookie... when the original recipe is very much about precisely controlling the amount of a protein that will be completely absent from my version!<\/p><\/div>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

\n
The Problem-Solving<\/h5>\n

Taking cues from things like the amount of sugar used, the type of chocolate used, and the ratios of the flours used, I woke up with a pretty good framework in mind.<\/p>\n

While we don\u2019t have actual gluten to work with, we can design a flour mixture that\u2019ll behave more like we do. I did some research - reading reviews of both the actual cookies, and various cookie recipes, and came up with the texture profile to aim for.<\/p>\n

I chose my flours - and the ratios used - to replicate what I was reading. A soft, chewy cookie with crispy edges, that is sturdy enough to hold together with all that veining of chocolate. <\/p>\n

The Jacques Torres chocolate chip cookies recipe is notable in part for the length of time the dough chills - which is a good thing, as that\u2019s pretty much required if you want a gluten-free cookie that\u2019ll pass as a wheat flour cookie.<\/p>\n

Let me tell you... the resulting cookies were probably the best chocolate chip cookies I\u2019ve ever had.<\/p>\n

Yes, they take a long time to make, but hey, most of that is waiting time... and good things come to those who wait, right?<\/p>\n

Anyway - aside from time - let\u2019s take a look at what you\u2019ll need to make gluten-free Jacques Torres Chocolate Chip Cookies.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

\n

Ingredients<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019ve made any of my gluten free cookie recipes before, MOST of the ingredients used will be pretty simple ingredients for you (and good things to have on hand!)<\/p>\n

As always, I have some ingredient notes:<\/p>\n

While Jacques Torres used 2 types of flour in the original recipe, I had to get more creative when coming up with the alternative flour mixture for the gluten free version.<\/p>\n

When you use the right amount of a few different flours, can you use their individual properties to better mimic wheat flour.<\/p>\n

In this case - to get the signature chewy texture and crisp edge to the cookies - that means using a blend of:<\/p>\n

Light Buckwheat Flour<\/a>
\nSorghum Flour<\/a>
\nWhite Rice Flour<\/a>
\nCoconut Flour<\/a>
\nCorn Starch<\/a>
\nXanthan Gum<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n

These are all pretty basic flours across most of my gluten free baking recipes. I definitely recommend considering them pantry staples, if you\u2019re doing any amount of GF baking.<\/p>\n

Using custom ratios of specific flours will always produce a much better end result than using a gluten free all purpose flour mix.<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

Chocolate Disks<\/h4>\n

One thing that sets this recipe - and the original Jacques Torres cookie recipe it was inspired by - apart, is the use of chocolate discs, instead of regular chocolate chips.<\/p>\n

Yes, you can use other kinds of chocolate - bittersweet chocolate chips, chopped chocolate bars, etc - but it\u2019ll affect the final product.<\/p>\n

A few things to note:<\/p>\n

1 - The use of discs is what causes the thin layers of chocolate \/ pooling effect on top of some cookies. Rather than distinct little chips of cookies - that don\u2019t really change form much - the discs can make almost a stratified effect when you break into a cookie.<\/p>\n

2. You\u2019ll want to use dark chocolate (we aim for ~ 60% cacao) or bittersweet chocolate. This recipe takes almost a pound and a half of chocolate - if you use milk chocolate, it\u2019s going to be obscenely sweet. <\/p>\n

3. By \u201cchocolate discs\u201d, I mean actual, good quality chocolate. This is NOT the same as the melting chocolate \/ almond bark \/ candy melts that you can find in craft stores and such. <\/p><\/div>\n

So, rather than Wilton, you\u2019re looking for more bougie names like Callebaut Dark Chocolate Callets<\/a>, Valrhona Dark Chocolate Disks<\/a>, and
\nScharffen Berger<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Is it going to be cheap? No. <\/p>\n

If you\u2019re going to put 1 \u00bc lbs of chocolate into a recipe and then invest 3 days of wait time, though? <\/p>\n

Go big or go home, I say.<\/p>\n

We happened to have some couverture chocolate discs on hand, left over from our posts about Chocolate Fountains<\/a> and Chocolate Fondue<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Couverture is a a high quality chocolate that meets specific parameters regarding its content - especially with regard to percentage of cocoa butter. <\/p>\n

That can sometimes mean having twice - or more - the amount of cocoa butter, than average grocery store chocolate of the same type. (Milk chocolate, etc).<\/p>\n

It melts down to a glorious, creamy consistency that\u2019s not only perfect for those chocolate fountains, it can make some of the best cookies ever! <\/p>\n

As a note - the chips we used were a bit thicker - and had a shorter diameter - than the ones Jacques Torres uses... so they don't QUITE have the same look, in the finished cookie.<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

Everything Else<\/h4>\n

Rounding out this recipe, you will need:<\/p>\n

Unsalted Butter
\nGranulated Sugar
\nLight Brown Sugar
\nLarge Eggs
\nMilk (Any kind)
\nPure Vanilla Extract<\/a>
\nFlaky Sea Salt<\/a> (I use Malden Sea Salt Flakes)
\nBaking Powder
\nBaking Soda
\nSalt<\/p>\n

... I just don\u2019t have anything else to add, as far as these last few ingredients go!<\/p><\/div>\n

\"A\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n