For years, I have been an all-purpose flour and granulated sugar girl, and have courted cookies which were both decadent and sweet.
Butter? Bring it on! Shortening? No fear! While I strove to be healthful with my cooking, baking was another matter.
All of that changed when I began experimenting and actually baking with whole grains. By substituting a portion of all-purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour and/or whole grain oat flour, I discovered how surprisingly simple and tasty it is to take those first steps towards healthful baking.
Spurred on by the line of Bob’s Red Mill Whole Grain Flours and enticed by the myriad of recipes found in Bob’s Red Mill Baking Book, I encountered a realm of baked goods that proved healthful in other, unexpected ways—some recipes requiring less sugar, some proposing healthier fat options, others that were lower in sodium and so on.
But taste—taste was my biggest concern. There is no joy in eating cookies with the flavor of cardboard.
To get acquainted with whole grain baking, I adapted two recipes from Bob’s Red Mill Baking Book. The first was a recipe for Apricot Cream Scones and the second was this recipe for Very Berry Chocolate Chip Yogurt Cookies.
Not only did I enjoy this cookie’s nuance of whole grain flavor, but also the sweet, tangy chewiness of the dried fruit, the hearty texture of the rolled oats, the slightly molasses flavor of the brown sugar, and the chocolate appeal of the baking chips. But my favorite aspect of this cookie was the incredible moistness that came from incorporating plain, low-fat yogurt into the recipe. Bonus – the acid in the yogurt reacts with this recipe’s baking soda to activate it, further leavening these delicious cookies.
If you enjoy baking and are interested in making your cookies a bit healthier, why not give this recipe a whirl? Your guests and family will appreciate your efforts and you may be delighted to find how much you enjoy baking with whole grains. 
Very Berry Chocolate Chip Yogurt Cookies
(adapted from Bob’s Red Mill Baking Book)
makes approximately 3 dozen cookies
- 1 & 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 & 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 & 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
- 1 & 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
- 1 cup dried, mixed fruit (I used Welch’s Berry Medley)
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate baking chips
- 2 cups plus 1 tablespoon plain, low-fat yogurt (do not substitute with fat-free yogurt)
- 1/4 cup canola oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F for baking. Spray baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray or line with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
In a large bowl, sift together the flours, baking powder and cinnamon. Whisk in brown sugar and oats; stir in dried fruit and baking chips. In a separate bowl, beat the yogurt and oil until combined; add to the flour mixture to form a dough. Drop by even spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for approximately 17 minutes, or until cookies are firm. Do not over bake and do not judge doneness by color as these cookies are naturally darker in appearance. Let rest for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Feel free to add chopped walnuts or pecans to this recipe if desired.
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{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
great idea! we have a cow’s milk allergy in our house so butter is out of the question and I am not a fan of shortening, so I will try this recipe with goat yogurt or soy yogurt and see what happens.
I’m off to look for dried berries, sounds yum!
I love this! And I am so going to make these! Do you have to use pastry flour, or does regular Whole Wheat work?
Kristen – Our youngest has a lactose sensitivity, but tolerates yogurt rather well (due to its probiotics I’m sure). If you make these cookies successfully by substituting with goat or soy yogurt, be sure to let me know. Happy baking!
Mental P Mama – Glad to hear you’ll be trying these! You could try making these cookies with whole wheat flour, but I would suggest at least using a whole wheat all-purpose flour versus whole wheat bread flour—here’s why: whole wheat bread flour will produce a chewier, nuttier, denser baked item that’s great for yeast bread recipes, but not so great for lighter baked goods like quick breads, muffins, pancakes and cookies. Why? Whole wheat bread flour typically has a high protein level and therefore greater gluten strength—properties that makes it ideal for heavier (yeast) breads.
For cookies, I really suggest using whole wheat pastry flour as its lower gluten content makes it more on par with substituting in recipes where you would normally bake with all-purpose unbleached (white) flour.
If you can find it, all-purpose whole wheat flour might make a good substitution (I’ve never baked with it myself), but for the lighter baked goods (cookies, muffins, quick breads, etc.), I’d go with the pastry flour. I know bakers who would use regular whole wheat flour and love the results, but you’d have to experiment, sift and perhaps increase the levels of liquids and/or fats the recipe calls for to compensate.
Hope that helps!
I’ve had really good luck with King Arthur’s white whole wheat flour. I like it even better than whole wheat pastry flour.
I’ve not tried the Bob’s Red Mill book, but I’ve had good luck baking from King Arthur’s Whole Grain Baking Book — and, like the previous commenter, with their white whole wheat flour, too. It’s a great way to begin to substitute whole wheat flour into most recipes without the telltale dark color of whole wheat, but with the same great flavor and health benefits. Looking forward to more of these great recipes for whole grain baked goods.
Looks good – really!
This sound and look so tasty, not to mention healthy! Perfect excuse to eat cookies for breakfast.
I love all of Bob’s products, they are so wonderful! These cookies sound delicious and healthy!
Yogurt and berries with chocolate chips? Very intriguing Sandie!
I’m gonna try this out tonight! I can’t wait, not had home made cookies for a long time…
good ol’ bob produces a lot of things that are completely unique and totally useful. awesome cookies all around.
Sara – I’ve heard good things about King Arthur’s White Whole Wheat Flour, but have not baked with it myself. I’ll definitely try it out. At least in some recipes, I am finding I really like the flavor of the whole wheat pastry flour. It adds such a nice dimension to cookies, muffins and quick breads, but I can see where white whole wheat flour would be great too, just to keep things interesting.
Lydia – Judging from the recipes I have made from Bob’s Red Mill Baking Book, I have found that some need adjusting (more or less flour, more or less liquids and/or fats, etc.), to achieve desired results. While the book overall is informative, helpful and inspiring, it helps if you are an experienced baker to know where and when to make these adjustments and adaptations. It takes a keen eye. If an inexperienced baker were to follow all of the recipes as-is, I’m afraid they might be disappointed with some of their results. While I like this cookbook, and can use it to bake from, I have used it more as a jumping off point rather than the be all end all. It has been an inspiration—not a definitive baking volume. For that, I would take your suggestion, and look into King Arthur’s Whole Grain Baking Book as I’m sure it’s more precise. Honest, but true (just my opinion).
Darius T. Williams – Thank you.
Hayley – If not cookies for breakfast, then at least cookies WITH breakfast, wouldn’t you say?!
Noble Pig – I love Bob’s products too. Their line of flours and meals have never done me wrong.
Lorraine – “Yogurt and berries and chips,”
Reminds me of the phrase, “Lions and tigers and bears,” from The Wizard of Oz!
Dave – I hope you enjoy them. The approximately 3 dozen I made here disappeared in no time at all, much faster than I thought they might (thank goodness). You know a cookie isn’t the best if they linger around for days on end…
Grace – I agree. The good thing about Bob’s, is that many of their products can be found at groceries throughout the US. Other specialty brands can be a bit trickier to find for some folks.
I have avoided sweets since Christmas only because I know I should. These cookies though would add that healthy twist I need.
great recipe… we’ll try this at the inn.. .
Can you let me know about adding our B&B blog to your list?
Manely Montana Memories at http://manker.wordpress.com
thanx
gp
I will give these a try for sure – they have my wheels turning already since I am trying to “health-up” my recipes a little bit.
The cookies look so good!! I can’t wait to give them a try!
I agree with some of the commenters, King Arthurs flours are great. We use King Arthurs when ever we can and the results are wonderful.
I love the name of your cookies…hanging on every ingredient of the name!
I always incorporate whole grains into my baking whenever I can, too. This recipe sounds really healthy. I’ve been really happy with the WW pastry flour from bob’s red mill.