New Year’s Resolution Cookies

Okay, most people’s New Year’s Resolutions almost always include “Lose weight” or “eat healthier” which can be a problem if you’re a baker or you’re accustomed to eating sweet treats; however, I think this cookie recipe will tick off both of those boxes. I mean, with the oatmeal and the pepitas, it’s basically a granola in a cookie; and with the brown sugar, applesauce and honey, they’re also sweet which will help you with those sweet cravings. Then there are chocolate chips which make everything better.

Yes, these are for human consumption—for a change. I made these yesterday afternoon… Well, I’ve had two sticks of butter sitting out for the past two days in an attempt to get them to room temperature. My intention was to make traditional chocolate chip cookies; and I set out to do just that but got to thinking that I could make a much healthier version. Plus, I wanted Rob to think that these kind of cookies were what he has to look forward to for 2017…sometimes it’s fun to make him worry—especially when sweets are involved.

The interesting part is the dichotomy that exists between my dog treat and regular baking because making cookies healthy is what I do when making dog treats but not something I even try to attempt when making “treats” for myself or Rob. Often when I make dog treats, I look to strip a recipe to it’s healthy core and make it “cleaner”. In dog treat baking, I stray away from things like refined sugars and animal-based fats; so I decided to do so here and since it’s been a minute since I posted anything (we’re overstocked on dog treats at the moment due to my Christmas baking—which I’ll post before this—but write after), I figured I’d work this recipe up and share it.

When baking these treats, I found a traditional recipe for oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies and halved it since I was worried about how they would turn out and didn’t want a bunch of goopy, gross cookies on my hands. Then I went about altering its ingredients as I would if I were stripping it to make dog treats. These cookies use a lot of my dog treat staples; and I think this is a great recipe to highlight that if you’ve invested in them for your four-legged friends then you should be able to use them to make your own life healthier—there’s nothing wrong with getting the most out of your purchase.

The first thing I did was to mix the ground flaxseeds (1 Tablespoon) with the water (three tablespoons) to make the egg; and I continued to stir mine with a fork during the five minute sitting period. The mixture got slimy and cohesive after the five minute point, so I don’t think there’s a way to speed that part up. On the other hand, I don’t see the harm if you let it go longer—the flaxseeds would continue to absorb the water and get even more egg-like. If you don’t have flaxseeds, ground cha-cha-cha chia seeds will do the same (a simple google search will give you the ratios); or you can use 1 medium mashed banana…or just use the egg—it won’t kill you.

Flaxseeds add a nutty flavor, have omega three fatty acids, and add fiber; and I used a bit more later in the recipe—so you’ll need three tablespoons total: one for the egg, and the other two as an additive. When halving the ingredients, I ended up needing an odd amount of flour; so I added the flaxseeds to avoid calling for ½ cup plus two tablespoons of flour.

Now, Coconut oil and applesauce stand in for butter; and since coconut oil is solid at room temperature like butter, it works out on a 1-to-1 ratio. Applesauce is a great way to cut fat in a recipe as it can also be substituted for fats or eggs in baked goods. Keep in mind that applesauce will add moisture where other fats won’t—so if you’re adapting your own recipe, you may need to counterbalance that with added flour, ground flaxseeds, chia seeds, or additional oats.

Pepitas are the hulled inner seed of pumpkin seeds. Many natural-food markets sell these roasted and unsalted in bulk; and I certainly use them a nut substitute in my dog treat recipes. I used them here since I have them on hand, and they’re super healthy while adding a nice crunch to the texture. If you don’t have them or want to get them, add your favorite nut or omit them altogether.

Now, since we don’t get the flavor of butter, I added the cinnamon and cardamom to kind of help fill the void. I didn’t actually taste either of them directly; but I’d like to think they help round things out. With oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon isn’t really called for; but I thought it might be a good addition. Cardamom tends to be kind of expensive if you buy it in the store, and I found mine in bulk at my local natural market. It’s a powerful spice, so use it sparingly—it can easily overwhelm if you use too much.

Once baked, these cookies turned out slightly crispy on the outside with a soft, moist interior; and the chocolate chips give you just enough of a treat to almost trick you into forgetting all the healthy ingredients in these cookies. I hope you try these, I hope you love these, and I hope I’ve given you a few hints on how to adapt your own favorite recipes and make them a bit healthier. Just for the sake of posterity, I made no New Year’s Resolutions and am not going to be going through my recipe box switching things around; however, I have snuck in whole-wheat flour to two different recipes over the holidays with outstanding results—Rob didn’t even know it was there. 

New Year’s Resolution Cookies

¼ Cup Coconut Oil

½ Cup Packed Brown Sugar

¼ Cup Honey

¼ Cup Unsweetened, Natural Applesauce

1 flaxseed “egg”*

½ Tsp salt

1 tsp Vanilla

¼ tsp Ground Cardamom (optional)

1 tsp Ground Cinnamon (optional)

2 Tbs Ground Flaxseed

1 ½ Cups Quick-Cooking Oats

½ Cup All-Purpose Flour

¼ tsp Baking Soda

½ Cup Pepitas

½ Cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

*(1 Tbs ground flaxseed + 3 Tbs Water, combine in a bowl and let sit 5+ min stirring occasionally)

In the bowl of a mixer, cream together coconut oil, brown sugar, and honey until smooth. Add applesauce and flaxseed-egg mixture and combine. Next add salt, vanilla, cardamom, cinnamon, ground flaxseed and mix scrapping down the sides as necessary. Add Oats and continue mixing.

Remove mixer and add remaining ingredients (flour, baking soda, pepitas, and chocolate chips) and finish mixing using a spatula or spoon. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

While cookies are chilling, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare baking sheet using silpat, baking spray, or parchment. Once oven is to temperature and mixture is chilled, drop by spoonfuls or by using a cookie scoop onto baking sheet leaving two finger-widths between cookies. Bake for 13-15 minutes until set. Cookies will be golden brown in color.

Let cook for 2-3 minutes on pan and remove to wire rack to finish cooling.