Irresistible Rory’s Bakehouse Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies

Warning: Do not keep these in your freezer unless you want temptation dangerously beckoning every waking moment.
Rory’s Bakehouse Giant Chocolate Chip frozen cookie dough balls will do serious damage to your willpower and waistline — and leave an enormous smile on your face in the process.
Rory Kandel of Napa is the creator of these ginormous chocolate chip cookies that have cultivated a loyal following. So much so that she started making the frozen dough available through nationwide shipping. They can also be found in the freezer case at Woodlands Market in San Francisco, Kentfield and Tiburon; Glen Ellen Village Market in Glen Ellen; and Sunshine Foods in St. Helena. They can also be found freshly baked at Loveski Deli in Napa and Marin and Biscuit’s BBQ in Napa.

Last month, she also debuted a walk-up retail window in Napa at 2766 Old Sonoma Road, open Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. There, you’ll find the frozen cookie dough, along with baked cookies. There are also weekly specials of buttermilk biscuits, black truffle gougeres, and coconut passion fruit thumbprint cookies.
Perhaps more remarkable, Kandel accomplished all of this after being diagnosed last year with multiple sclerosis, a debilitating disease that often leaves her severely fatigued and with stabbing pain.
Even with those challenges, baking continues to bring her joy and comfort. A trained pastry chef, who got her start working for Charlie Palmer’s Aureole in New York City. In 2003, she moved to California, where she worked at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco under acclaimed Pastry Chef William Werner, as well as at Michelin-starred The Village Pub in Woodside.


For every giant chocolate chip cookie sold, Kandel donates a portion of proceeds to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in its efforts to research a cure.
Recently, I received samples of her frozen cookie dough to try. A pack of six frozen dough balls is $29; a bag of 12 is $58.
You can bake as few or as many as you like at a time. The bag contains not only the perfectly formed frozen dough balls, but parchment circles on which to bake them, and a packet of Maldon sea salt to sprinkle on before baking.
They take about 26 minutes to bake. When they emerge from the oven, resist the urge to pounce for another 10 minutes to allow them to set up.
They bake up to a sizeable 4 1/2-inch-diameter cookie, with crisp, golden brown edges, and a soft, tender interior loaded with semi-sweet chocolate chips. They are rich, buttery, and just sweet enough.

Size does matter, as their ample girth makes them feel even more indulgent and satisfying to bite into.
The back label states that they have 220 calories per serving. But take a deep breath, because there are supposedly 18 servings per bag of 6 cookies. That means that’s the calorie count for one-third of a cookie. I doubt you’ll be able to stop at that mere fraction of one. I sure couldn’t.
Oh no, these look so good! How cute that they come with parchment circles too.