spelt chocolate chip cookies
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Update 2022: There used to be text with this post, but I decided to remove it because I just hated how officious I sounded when I was 19, all the events of the past few years considered. The goodness of the cookies still stands though… love you
This is the first recipe I'm posting that isn't one of my obscure creations :) these cookies have sort of a cult following since they're originally made with 100% whole wheat flour - they're Kim Boyce's famous chocolate chip cookies. Chances are you have a copy of the brilliant Good to the Grain but if not, it's the book that put whole grain flours in the more mainstream baking route. The author is actually a trained pastry chef (Spago and all) (that's like having played for Barcelona on a winning streak, or something, for your reference. Hi dad!!) so you know this isn't just 'eat your whole grains and be healthy', it's more the delicate balancing act of adding whole grains for flavor and texture, which takes actual skill. If you've never tried one of the recipes on this site, try this one, because she's a professional! You can trust a James Beard winner. This book is one of my favourites, if you're into whole grain, seasonal recipes or if it's something you're curious about, you'll be inspired by this book for sure. Anyway, I did make a few adaptations which are reflected in the recipe below (the original recipe is everywhere online including Food 52). To start with I halved the recipe. Because it's me, I used spelt flour rather than whole wheat, coconut oil instead of butter and used two unrefined sugars + cut the sugar... feel free to use either recipe if dairy isn't an issue for you, or mix and match.
These cookies are big, they're soft and pillowy, they're so good. It's suggested you use a chopped bar of fancy chocolate rather than chips which is what I always do, and also they're left super chunky - I highly reccomend you take that route. Big melty pools of chocolate are kind of fun. Ask someone else to do the chopping, just show them the photo, and they'll also do the dishes for you :) If you try these or the originals, I would love to know your thoughts. Chocolate chip cookies are very subjective so it's totally a taste thing.
The brightest end to your week + cookies xx
spelt chocolate chip cookies
adapted from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce
dairy free // makes around 10 laaarge cookies
1 1/2 cups (165g) spelt flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup (50g) coconut sugar / dark muscavado sugar
1/3 (67g) cup turbinado sugar
1/2 cup (110g) extra virgin coconut oil, soft room temperature*
1 free range egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
110g/4 ounces bittersweet/dark chocolate, chopped into large chunks
Preheat the oven to 180'c, 350'F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder & soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl (or the bowl of a standing mixer. I don't have one, so I'll give hand held mixer instructions, feel free to do it all in a stand mixer if you have one though) use a fork to cut the coconut oil into smaller chunks. Add the two sugars and with a hand held electric mixer on low speed, beat together. Turn the speed up to high and continue beat until the two sugars are combined with the oil and it's fluffier. Stop the beater and scrape the bowl with a flexible spatula whenever you need to.
Once the sugars are combined, add the egg and beat again on high speed until it's mixed evenly through the dough. Then add the vanilla and mix briefly once more.
Tip the flour mix into the same bowl as the oil and again using the beater, whisk till just combined and slightly clumpy. Add the chocolate pieces all at once to the dough and beat once more. The dough will be thick by this point and will come together into a ball easily. Use your hands to make sure all the chocolate pieces are evenly incorporated into the dough.
Portion out the dough into rounds on the cookie sheets - you want about 3 tablespoons a cookie (I used my 1.5T cookie scoop, 2 scoops per cookie, then rolled them into mounds). They do spread quite a bit, so leave around 7cm/ 3in between each one.
Bake the cookies for 16-18 minutes, rotating each sheet halfway through. They should be lightly browned all over and will still be very soft when you take them out, but they'll firm up as they cool. Slide the parchment, with the cookies, onto cooling racks and allow them a little time to cool. If you can, have one out of the oven. The rest will keep for 3 days in an airtight container. I will try freezing some too and let you know what happens.
notes
The recipe calls for cold butter but I've found that coconut oil, when cold, is cumbersome to work with and the mixer just makes a mess of it. I used room temperature oil - the key is that it's solid and not melting all over the place. The batter will look oily, but they turn out 100% ok. No taste of coconut either.
My cookies spread slightly less than the ones in the book's photos. That may be to do with the oil (it has higher fat content than butter which is part water) (just fyi) or with the fact that I cut back the sugar by 1/3. They're still very flat and even but have a liiiitle lump in the middle. I've been doing a lot of cookie science research but I'm not sure why this is... I'll let you know if I find out. If you try these and have any ideas, I'd love to hear them :)
cookies & snacks
