Move over oatmeal cookie, there's a new sheriff in town. These Coconut Quinoa Chocolate Chip Cookies don't play with their soft & chewy texture and loads of chocolate chips, raisins, coconut, and quinoa.
The other Sunday night I was craving a more substantial, nutty cookie but looking for something different than oatmeal. After all, given my love for hearty cookies, I’ve made almost every oatmeal cookie variation known to man. I never anticipated making these soft & nutty Coconut Quinoa Chocolate Chip Cookies, though.
I've made Monster cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, chocolate chip oatmeal raisin cookies. I might have even made some peanut butter oatmeal cookies at some point.
Bringing it back to my Sunday night-- I found a pot of quinoa while making room in the fridge for dinner's leftovers. Why not try that? Quinoa will bring more whole grains and protein to the cookie while also making it softer with the moisture and providing a light crunch.
Not only that, but throw in some chocolate, raisins, and coconut for flavor and we're ready to go. With a softer cookie texture a light crunch, they're sweet and satisfying but not as over-the-top as your traditional chocolate chip cookie.
What makes these healthier chocolate chip cookies?
These cookies are healthier than your average chocolate chip cookie because they are lower in sugar than average chocolate chip cookies and they have much more whole grains and protein in them, thanks to the quinoa and whole wheat flour.
You'll see that there is still sugar in the recipe, but the ratio of refined sugar to other ingredients and the flour is much lower than regular chocolate chip cookies, making it less sugar per cookie.
What other types of cookies are these similar to?
These cookies are super similar to coconut oatmeal chocolate chip cookies or chewy coconut chocolate chip cookies, so if you like either or both of those types of cookies you are in luck!
What's the secret to making soft cookies?
The secret to making soft, pillowy cookies like these is to have enough moisture in the dough. The cooked quinoa brings the moisture in this situation. Another example of moisture creating a soft, pillowy cookie is with pumpkin cookies.
Are oatmeal or quinoa cookies healthier than chocolate chip cookies?
Yes, for the most part these are. This is because they have added whole grains by way of oatmeal or quinoa. The added quinoa or oatmeal also adds more overall dry, flour-like ingredients to the cookie, thereby lowering the ratio of butter to dry ingredients and making each cookie lower in saturated fat and processed sugar.
Do you need baking soda for cookies?
Almost all cookie need leaveners to help them rise, but they don't all need baking soda as the leavener. This recipe does use baking soda, but some also use baking powder. Refer to your recipe to determine if you will need baking soda or baking powder, or search for a recipe with the leavener you have on hand.
What happens if you make cookies without vanilla?
The cookies will be edible but they will lack the warmth and dimension that you are used to! They will likely taste flat or like they lack that "it-factor."
Chewy coconut chocolate chip cookies cooking Notes:
- Make sure to let the cookies cool for 5-10 minutes before attempting to move to the cooling rack to cool the rest of the way because they will be tender while hot but will firm up as they cool. Parchment paper will make this whole procedure easier, too.
- Feel free to throw or sub in walnuts or pecans for another dimension of flavor as well. Dried cranberries would also be nice! If you're going to add either of them in (instead of substituting), add about ¾ cup.
How to cook quinoa:
If you don't already have cooked quinoa on hand, just boil ½ cup rinsed (it helps remove that soapy flavor!) quinoa in a saucepan of salty water for about 14-15 minutes. Drain and rinse with cool water until the quinoa is at least a room temperature then make sure to shake out thoroughly before you mix it into the cookies.
This will probably yield you just slightly more quinoa than you need for the recipe. Those extra little leftovers are awesome on a salad or added into a smoothie.
Coconut Quinoa Chocolate Chip Cookies
Nutty and with a little crunch, these cookies are a healthier -- but no less tasty -- alternative to their original chocolate chip cookie brother.
Ingredients
- ¾ c. (or 150 g) unsalted butter, brought to room temp
- 1 c. (or 200 g) packed brown sugar
- ¼ c. (or 200 g) white granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tsp (or 12.5 mL) vanilla extract
- 2 eggs, brought to room temp
- 1 ¼ c. (or 150 g) all purpose flour -- or ¾ c. all purpose flour and ¾ c. whole wheat flour
- 1 c. (or 120 g) whole wheat flour
- ½ tsp. (or 2.5 g) Salt
- 1 tsp. (or 4 g) Baking soda
- 1 tsp. (2.3 g) Cinnamon
- 1 ¾ c. (or 315 g) cooked quinoa, see directions below for cooking
- 1 ½ c. (or 262 g) semisweet chocolate chips
- ⅔ c. (or 100 g) raisins
- ¾ c. (or 75 g) unsweetened coconut chips, broken into ½-1 inch pieces if larger than that
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugars until creamy and light. Add in eggs and vanilla and mix until combined.
- In a small bowl, mix together the flours, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Slowly add to the creamed mixture and mix in until incorporated. Batter will be dry so make sure to scrape down to the bottom to incorporate any remaining flour or crumbs.
- Mix in the quinoa until combined then remove mixing bowl from stand mixer, if using, and mix in the chocolate chips, raisins and coconut chips with a rubber scraper or until all evenly distributed.
- Scoop cookies by the heaping tablespoon full -- life is too short for small cookies -- onto baking sheets and bake 12-14 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through. Cookies should be golden brown and smelling nutty by the time they are done, but may still look soft and/or crumbly. They will firm up as they cool.
- Move sheets to cooling racks and let cool for 5-10 minutes, or until firm enough to move the cookies to the cooling racks themselves. Cool until room temp and chocolate chunks have firmed back up but feel free to snatch one or two while they cool.
Notes
Keeps covered in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days, refrigerated for about 7-10 days, or frozen for 1 month.
Nutrition Information
Yield
18Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 180Total Fat 10gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 3gCarbohydrates 15gFiber 3gSugar 15gProtein 3g
This nutrition breakdown is just an estimate of the nutritional value of this recipe and cannot be taken as facts. The owners of Mae's Menu are not nutritionists or dieticians and therefore cannot be held accountable for this nutrition estimate. Please contact your nutritionist or medical professional for a nutritional breakdown of this food. Furthermore, this food is not intended to prevent, diagnose, cure, or treat any disease.
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