Recipe: Lighter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Note: I'm not much of a chef or baker, but there are a few quick, simple recipes I like to make for sweet treats. Please keep in mind that these recipes reflect only my own experience, and that if you choose to follow them you do so at your own risk!

Earlier this year I shared my family's recipe for lighter chocolate brownies, which uses less fat than most traditional recipes. Recently I challenged myself to make a lightened-up version of classic chocolate chip cookies, and I couldn't be more pleased with the results--I admit in my disclaimer above that I'm no pro at baking, but I actually impressed myself with this one! These chocolate chip cookies use just half the butter and 3/4 of the chocolate chips of a recipe with standard proportions, but are every bit as delicious. Even though I usually prefer chewy chocolate chip cookies, I actually loved the crisper texture of this batch--if you use brown sugar instead of plain organic cane sugar, you might get a chewier texture.

Ingredients

- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 3/4 cup organic cane sugar or brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons einkorn flour*
- 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

*Einkorn flour is made from an ancient variety of wheat and is naturally moister than all-purpose flour. If you substitute all-purpose flour, you may need to add 1-2 extra tablespoons of melted butter.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment paper and set aside.

2. In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and mix thoroughly.

3. Add the baking soda, salt, and 1/4 cup of the flour to the mixture and stir to combine. Keep adding the flour 1/4 cup at a time, mixing after each addition. Add the last 2 tablespoons of flour and mix--the dough will be quite soft.

4. Fold the chocolate chips into the dough using a rubber spatula.

5. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of dough onto the parchment-lined baking sheets--use a teaspoon designed for actual tea-stirring rather than a measuring spoon for the best size.

6. Bake the cookies until the edges are golden-brown. Use a spatula to carefully transfer the cookies from the baking sheets to a wire rack to cool. Serve with a nice cold glass of milk for a classic treat!

Makes 24 cookies