Healthy Cookie Recipes: Transform your favorites!

C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
Oh, cookie, cookie, cookie starts with C

Hey, C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me
Oh, cookie, cookie, cookie starts with C

Yum! Yum! Christmas Cookies! Yum! Yum!

Do you remember this character? He had a passion for cookies! Num! Num!

Can cookies be healthy?

A non-published poll, by a biased data collector says: Everyone loves a Cookie!

WHY ARE COOKIES SO BAD TO EAT?

Cookies are a favorite treat for kids and adults. They’re a perfect dessert to bake for dinner. It is also a welcome addition to a party.

I made Halloween cookies tonight! I confess it was a ready-made 12 cookies. They looked so festive to end our Halloween Chili.

Now if only they could be yummy, AND good for us!

Most traditional cookie recipes are brimming with calorie and sugar-heavy ingredients like butter, granulated sugar or chocolate.

With a few substitutions that you already have, you can turn that favorite recipe into a healthy cookie/dessert.

Many cookie recipes use refined white flour (which has less fiber than whole wheat). They also use butter (a saturated fat). Most add sugar (which can cause spikes in blood sugar).

SO HOW TO MAKE THE RECIPE HEALTHIER?

FIRST: Look at the flour in your recipe. Perhaps consider switching to a healthier flour.

Whole-Wheat Flour

Whole-wheat flour is much heartier than all-purpose flour and produces denser baked goods with a more robust flavor. Whole-wheat flour is milled from wheat berries with the nutritious bran and germ still intact. It is rich in fiber and essential micronutrients like iron, magnesium, and vitamin B6.

(The pictured Red Mill Whole Wheat flour can be found at Kroger’s.)

Whole-wheat has texture and flavor differences compared to all-purpose flour. It can’t always be used as a total replacement. You might first want to try as 1/2 and 1/2.

Two whole-grain flours that work well as substitutes are white whole-wheat and whole-wheat pastry flours. It is a lot more difficult to get light, fluffy and airy bread using a whole wheat flour. 

Whole wheat flour includes the bran and germ. These components act like little “shards” that cut the gluten strands while the dough is mixing. The cutting also occurs while it is resting. This leads to a bread that is more dense and less elastic. Your cookie will not spread like you want it to.

Using cake flour in cookies can give them a tender, delicate texture that’s perfect for light and soft cookies. You should consider blending cake flour with all-purpose flour. This will add structure while maintaining tenderness. This approach is especially useful if you’re aiming for a melt-in-your-mouth quality.

White whole-wheat is milled from white, hard wheat. It yields a lighter color and milder flavor. It still has all of the benefits of whole grains. You’re safe substituting up to 50% white whole-wheat for all-purpose flour in a recipe.

Whole-wheat pastry flour is milled from soft white wheat, producing a very fine flour with less gluten. While not ideal for all baked goods, these attributes produce feathery light pastries and perfectly tender pie crusts. Try substituting up to 25% whole-wheat pastry flour for the all-purpose flour in the recipe. You may need to increase the liquid if you use more.

(Pictured is a whole wheat chocolate chip cookie. Can you tell it is whole wheat? Your taster won’t know. And your family definitely won’t know. And you will be passing along a healthy recipe!)

When working with whole wheat flour, it can be a trial and error to start. My advice, start by cutting the white flour by 1/2 and see if you like the results. Even by cutting the white flour in half, you are adding nutrition to the cookie.

Whole wheat flour will add fiber and can make your cookie more satisfying.

OAT FLOUR: is probably the easiest flour to make at home. Ground oats will add sweetness and chewiness to your cookie, besides adding protein and fiber.

You can grind you own rolled oats in a food processor until they reach a flour-like consistency. Oat flour can replace up to 20% of wheat flour.

Start with wheat, and maybe try oat flour at a later batch of cookies.

EGGS: Did you know that bananas can replace an egg? 1 medium mashed banana will substitute for 1 medium egg.

The banana makes the texture lighter, chewier, plus sweeter. Adding the banana adds fiber and vitamins and minerals to your cookie!

(Suggestion: use a ripe banana, not a firm banana.)

SUGARS: Are you aware that adding pureed prunes will increase fiber and nutritional value? It also reduces added sugars, overall calories, and carbohydrates. This swap makes a good choice for you cookie without changing the overall taste and texture.

It is interesting that by adding prunes as a sweetener you are also adding nutrition for your bones. The antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties of prunes help prevent bone loss. They also help to maintain healthy bone density and formation, according to clinical studies. The higher amounts of vitamin K in prunes help to improve bone health. All by adding prunes to your cookies! Wow!

You can also try to just cut your added sugar by 1/3 and see if you like the taste. Most likely you will not notice the difference.

BUTTER: You can replace about 1/2 of your butter with full-fat Greek yogurt. This will lessen the saturated fats of the cookie and still give it a soft, gooey texture.

SUGGESTION: Substitute at least 1/2 of the white flour for whole wheat. Use dark chocolate in place of milk chocolate. (Dark Chocolate is significantly healthier than milk chocolate.) Replace the butter with yogurt, canola oil, or olive oil. These kinds of substitutions adds fiber, nutrients, antioxidants, and healthy fats to the cookie treat.

NUTS: Unless there is a nut allergy, add nuts to many recipes.

The can be pecans, almonds, peanuts, cashews, pistachios, even chia seeds. This addition adds healthy fats, fiber, protein, and antioxidant vitamin E, beside a great taste and texture.

MAKE IT SMALLER: It is fun to cut out cookies at the holiday time. One other suggestion is make a smaller cookie. Two small cookies are still two cookies!

Smaller cookie = less sugars, carbs, and bad fats.

THOUGHTS:

Cookies are my favorite dessert. I try to limit my amounts to 2-3 cookies only after my main meal. I think my body is now just in the habit of thinking “cookie” at only supper.

Place on a plate just the right amount of cookies for each person. Portioning out the amount also teaches your children two is plenty. And always serve them AFTER the meal is complete. Children learn by example. Hopefully, serving cookies after a main meal is eaten will help them create healthy eating habits.

SNACK BARS: I consider most of the snack bars sold as “cookie-bars.” They contain a lot of sugars for a quick energy boost. We know what goes up, can come crashing down.

Learn to read the labels to compare. What cost the least may very well be the least nutritious. Nutrition can be costly. But it is worth it. Read the labels.

The best snack bar to consider:

Kind nut bars often contain a delicious nut and chocolate combinations and are easy to find at most grocery stores.  They offer many different flavors.

The first ingredient in these bars is always nuts. They also contain other whole food ingredients like dried fruit and seeds. They’re also gluten-free.

The added sugar content of these bars varies based on the flavor. Many options contain as low as 4 grams of added sugar. Kind products don’t contain artificial sweeteners. 

Kind nut bars are also high in fiber, with several flavors providing 25% of the daily recommended fiber intake.

If you are looking for a nutritious snack: go for nuts and fruit. A handful of nuts if always a good snack.

CHOOSING CHRISTMAS COOKIES: When you are deciding what cookies to bake this year, consider making easy substitutions to the recipe. This will help you make your Christmas Cookie healthy.

Or you can try:

PROTEIN COOKIES:

PROTEIN SUGAR COOKIES: makes 12 cookies