Friday 19 January 2018

Chocolate Chip & Coconut Cookies

The chocolate chip cookies I favour the most are those made with nuts.  (I'm sure it's just me but they seem a little healthier if there's a macadamia or a walnut in the biscuit somewhere!) I can't bake nutty biscuits for my son's school lunchbox though because his school, along with many others these days, is a nut-free zone.  As we are preparing to go back to school next week, school baking for the freezer is underway. So, these simple chocolate chip & coconut cookies are a delicious alternative for an occasional lunchbox treat. 


Delicious!

The recipe that I tinkered with is one I came across on the Kidspot website.  The biscuit dough is made in the typical way with the creaming of the butter and sugar, beating in of eggs and the addition of the dry ingredients. I changed the recipe by using a blend of white and wholemeal spelt flours, reducing the sugar and substituting coconut sugar for brown sugar. As always, I used dark chocolate chips because they are our favourites but any chocolate-y chips will do!  Here's how they came together in my kitchen:


Chocolate Chip & Coconut Cookies

125g softened unsalted butter
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup white spelt flour
1/2 cup wholemeal spelt flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup dessicated coconut
1/2cup dark chocolate chips


1.  Preheat oven to moderate 180C.  Line biscuit trays.

2.  Cream butter, sugar and vanilla with a mixer until pale and fluffy.

3.   Add eggs, one at a time. Mix each egg in well.

4.   Add flours, baking powder, coconut and chocolate chips. 

5.  Mix well until thoroughly combined in a soft dough.

6.  Place tablespoons of mixture onto lined biscuit trays.

7.  Bake until just golden.  Cool on a wire rack then store in an airtight container.

Ssh!  Scrumptious!

As soon as they are cool enough, pour yourself an icy cold glass of milk or make yourself a cup of tea and sample one of your freshly-baked cookies before anyone else discovers them!


Meg











11 comments:

  1. Mmm,mmmm! They look totally delicious, I love how you always reduce the amount of sugar or use a more complex type of sugar in your recipes, I most always reduce the amount of sugar too. I haven’t used spelt flour yet, will have to give it a go, where do you find have the best price for spelt? Have a lovely day.
    Fi

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    1. Oh, it's hard to stop at just one of these, Fiona! I find that recipes usually turn out just fine without the full amount of sugar suggested in the original recipes; I typically cut it by a quarter to a third. I usually buy my spelt flours from bulk bins (TMP Organics or Wray Organics) but it is also now available in 2kg bags from the supermarket (Woolworths). Have a lovely day too! Meg:)

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  2. Those look and sound absolutely delicious! One of my favorite cookies is macadamia nut, white chocolate and craisins. So good!

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    1. I think macadamia, white choc and craisins sounds delicious, Debbie. Homemade cookies are so good! Meg:)

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  3. Yours look so much healthier than mine. I make the Toll House version by Nestle. Macadamia nuts are divine!

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    1. I think there are healthier chocolate chip cookies out there but these are nice for a treat. I make another variation with chickpeas but they have peanut butter in them so I can't put those in the lunchbox either. I agree too ... macadamia nuts are lovely! Meg:)

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  4. I have a similar recipe for Gluten Free cookies. Only my dessicated coconut, is 1 cup's worth. It really helps the fibre content, but adds "fluff" to the gluten free flours. So yummy! I'm sure they will be enjoyed in your son's lunch box. School starts tomorrow.

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    1. What kind of flour/s do you use in your gluten free cookies, Chris? I have a version with chickpeas that I make too which would be gluten free but not nut-free as they have peanut butter in them. Yes, school has started again for the year. I miss those holiday days already! Meg:)

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  5. So coconuts, though they grow on trees, are not considered "tree nuts"? I assume the ban on nuts applies to tree nuts as opposed to ground nuts, aka peanuts?

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    1. The nut ban at my son's school encompasses all nuts, like almonds and cashews, as well as peanuts. Coconut is allowed at my son's school though. Meg:)

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  6. I looked up the botanical classification and found out that coconut is not technically a nut, but a fruit. However, the US Food and Drug Administration classifies it as a nut. The critical thing is, most people who are allergic to other nuts can safely eat coconut. And aren’t we glad for them!

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