A New Favorite Recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookies

Note:  I updated this recipe on 5/30/12 and now I think it's even better.  A friend told me she tried the recipe but the cookies seemed a little greasy, so I experimented with proportions of fat and flour.  The recipe below has been revised, using less fat than before, but I think the result is better.  And try using coconut oil--we love it!

The internet is swarming with CC Cookie recipes, all claiming to be the best.  I’ve tried them all, I’m pretty sure.  Most have not lived up to their claims, in my book.   If I’m going to indulge, it has to be worth it.  I don’t like flat, crunchy cookies, or thick, cakey cookies.  My goal is somewhere in between.  Barely crisp on the edges and soft and chewy in the middle.  And I want a cookie that I can mix up and bake right away—no “refrigerate dough for 24 hours or more” (hello, NY Times famous cookie recipe).

But in my quest for better cookies, there are a couple of ingredients that I refuse to use:  shortening and white flour.  I know what you’re thinking:  No wonder those other recipes don’t turn out well for her!  For years I’ve been making pretty good cookies with whole wheat flour.  And sometimes I play around with reducing the fat and using less sugar.  It is hard to find the right balance between delicious taste and texture and a cookie I don’t have to feel as guilty for eating.  I’ve made many low-fat or low-sugar cookies that were edible, but not great.  Until now.

A few days ago I was reading on someone’s blog about her mother’s famous chocolate chips cookies.  I recognized the recipe immediately.  Been there, tried that.  But I glanced at the comments and noticed that someone said she makes the same recipe but uses olive oil instead of shortening.  A few comments later, someone else remarked that they cut the sugar in half, with excellent results.  So I decided to try both modifications, along with using whole wheat flour instead of white.  Success!  (maybe one day I’ll get rid of the butter entirely and use all olive oil, but I like the butter flavor so I’m leaving it in for now.)

And so I share with you my new go-to recipe for CC Cookies.  Can you find one that tastes better, looks better, or is just like the ones at some famous bakery in NYC?  Maybe.  Go for it.  But will you find another recipe made with whole grain, heart-healthy oil, and half as much sugar that tastes this wonderful?  I think not.  (But if you do, please let me know!)  Will this be your new favorite?  Try it and see.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 cup olive oil (light, NOT extra virgin)
1/2 cup butter, softened (or coconut oil)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 cups white whole wheat (see note below)
2 teaspoons soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cream of tartar, optional
12 oz. (2 cups) chocolate chips (the darker the better!)
1 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Mix oil, butter, and sugars until creamy.  Add eggs and vanilla and mix until light and fluffy.  Add flour, soda, and salt and pulse until just combined.  Add chips and nuts, if desired.  Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes, depending on size.  I used a small cookie scoop and they were done at 11 minutes.  I bake my cookies using a Silpat mat on the cookie sheet, but parchment paper or a baking stone gives similar results.

Note:  I don't use white wheat as much anymore, except in bread.  For most baking I grind equal parts of brown rice, spelt, and barley.  (Chef Brad of Fusion Grain Cooking on BYUtv named it "wonder flour")

Disclaimer:  While these worked perfectly in my kitchen, I cannot be responsible for the differences in your oven temperature, the type of cookie sheet you use, your altitude, the room temperature or humidity in your kitchen, or your measuring techniques.  So many variables!  No wonder there are so many recipes out there.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

I started out planning to make these Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies for the varsity cross county pre-meet dinner at our house.  So I made the cookie dough.  Then decided that I didn’t want to go to the store just to buy Oreos.  I was going to turn it into Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars, until I remembered that it was the first day of fall.  So I added one cup of pumpkin puree and some spices and the result was an amazing cookie.  My teenage daughter is a fellow cookie fan and lover of fall, and she proclaimed these the best pumpkin choc. chip cookies she’s tasted, because they weren’t as soft and cakey as usual.  They disappeared fast and I’m craving more.  I’m posting this recipe before I forget how I made them!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 sticks softened butter (1 cup)

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 Tablespoon vanilla

1 cup pumpkin puree

4 cups white whole wheat flour (for low altitude you may only need 3-1/2 cups.)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon cloves

12 oz bag of chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cream butter and sugars until well combined.  Add eggs and vanilla and pumpkin until well combined.
In a separate bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.  Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients along with the chocolate chips until just combined.  Using a cookie scoop or a spoon, place cookies onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet and bake cookies 13-15 minutes or until lightly browned.  Let cool 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

My Favorite Gingersnaps

I have always loved gingersnaps or molasses cookies. I discovered this recipe a few years ago, just after we moved to Utah. The RS Presidency came to visit and brought a copy of the ward cookbook. When I read this recipe I was intrigued. There was no white flour, oil, butter or shortening listed! Afraid it might be a mistake, I called the person who had submitted the recipe to ask if the ingredients were correct. I had not met her yet, but she was so nice as she assured me the recipe was right. She explained that she first tasted the cookies at the hospital cafeteria in Logan where she worked and begged the cook for the recipe because she loved them so much. She’d had no idea that the cookies were whole wheat or low-fat—she just loved the taste. I tried the recipe immediately, and I have never used another gingersnap recipe since. It was a great way to make a new friend. We have both moved from the neighborhood, but I think of Cecile every time I bake gingersnaps.

These cookies are slightly crisp on the outside and soft and chewy inside. And unlike most of my low-fat cookie experiments, these store well for at least a few days.

Ingredients:

• 2 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. molasses
• 1 T. baking soda
• 2 t. ginger
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. ground cloves
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. ground black pepper, optional
• 4-5 c. whole wheat flour (see * below)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients well before adding flour. Add four cups of flour and combine. If dough is too sticky, add more flour a little at a time until the mixture clumps together without being sticky, but not too dry. Form dough into balls and roll in extra sugar. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Don’t overbake and you’ll have soft, chewy cookies. Makes 4 dozen.

*whole wheat flour differs in moisture content, so the amount of flour you use may vary. Follow the instructions above, adding a little at a time until the dough is easy to work with.

My Favorite Oatmeal Cookies

My sister-in-law asked me for a good oatmeal cookie recipe (a couple of weeks ago--sorry it took so long, Jenni) so I'm posting my favorite. I've tried many over the years and have settled on this one. It's a combination between America's Test Kitchen version and a recipe I found in the cookbook: 5 Star Recipes From Well-Known Latter-day Saints. I like the oat to flour ratio (twice as many oats) as well as the amount of butter called for (it's less than most recipes but still enough). This makes a soft chewy cookie, with a lightly crisp outside. I'm partial to chocolate chips and nuts in this recipe, but Craisins and white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, or butterscotch chips are all very good.
Update 7/26/12
I tried making these with 1/2 cup butter and 1/3 cup pure olive oil and they turned out perfectly when baked right away.  I doubt I'll ever make them with all butter again.  No spread, and slightly crisp edges with chewy centers.  I bet coconut oil would also be a good replacement for some of the butter.
Famous Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 c. butter, softened

1 c. brown sugar

½ c. sugar

2 eggs

1 t. vanilla

1 ¾ c. flour (I use whole wheat pastry flour)

½ t. baking powder

½ t. salt

1 t. cinnamon (optional; I usually don't use it)

3 c. old-fashioned oats

2-3 c. Add-ins (chocolate chips, nuts, Craisins, raisins, other baking chips)

Cream butter and sugars; add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Add flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon and mix until combined. Add oats and chips. Scoop onto cookie sheet (I use parchment paper--and I use each sheet over and over again) and bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. For bar cookies, spread batter in ungreased 9x13 pan and bake for approx. 30 minutes. This recipe makes exactly 3 ½ dozen cookies when I use my medium pampered chef cookie scoop.

Tip: If you bake these right away, they spread a little. They're good (my kids don't complain) but I prefer to chill the dough first before baking (as per America's Test Kitchen suggestion). I scoop all the dough onto cookie sheets and refrigerate or freeze before baking. Add an extra minute to the baking time when baking chilled dough.

Note: The above recipe works great for my altitude and my oven. If you are baking at a lower altitude, try using ¼ c. less flour and ¼ c. more sugar and alter baking temperature and time as needed.