I originally grew up in a modest house in a cookie cutter subdivision. Although I barely remember anything, mainly the pastel pink bows stenciled around the top of my room and learning how to climb a tree as my mom nervously looked on, I do recall one very vivid memory from the kitchen.
One random afternoon, Mom decided to bake chocolate chip cookies, a rare occasion because she normally bought all of our treats for our brown bag lunches to save time. My younger brother and I “helped” as much as we could, which mean that we stirred in ingredients after Mom measured and poured them in. Otherwise, every bite of cookie would end up as salty as the ocean with crunchy eggshells throughout!
To transfer the dough to the baking sheets, Mom scooped up a portion with a spoon, and we pointed where it should go. She’s a smart lady and knew we’d end up with more in our mouths than in the oven if we were handed spoons of our own!
Once she set the timer, Mom handed over the big metal mixing bowl and made us promise to share. She always left a few “stray” chocolate chips inside to complement all of that “extra” cookie dough stuck to the sides.
I drew a line down the center with my pointer finger, trying to leave an equal number of chocolate chips on each side, and my younger brother and I went to town scraping up that cookie dough with our fingers and popping it into our mouths. Plus it guaranteed that Mom would have a few minutes of peach and quiet to wash the rest of the dishes!
So after making my own chocolate chips, that memory resurfaced, and I knew I had to test them out in cookies of my own. But these aren’t just any cookies… They’re Clean Eating Chocolate Chip Cookies! They’re just as soft and chewy as the ones you grew up with, but they contain NO refined flour or sugar!
To create this recipe, I tweaked a few things in my ultimate healthy soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies. Have you tried them yet? They’re one of the most popular recipes on my blog! Hundreds of readers have made those cookies, and nobody they shared them with could tell the cookies were healthy.
However, I came up with that recipe before I had heard of “clean eating,” so to make these cookies even healthier, I made 3 main swaps.
1) White whole wheat flour. Instead of all-purpose, I used white whole wheat flour. It has a finer texture than regular whole wheat and isn’t quite as dark, so it works really well in baking chewy cookies that still look and taste similar to the classic ones. If you don’t have white whole wheat flour, check out the recipe notes where I list acceptable substitutions.
2) Coconut sugar. I skipped the brown sugar and mixed in coconut sugar instead. Coconut sugar is much less refined, but it’s still just as moist as brown sugar. This means your cookies will still be as soft and chewy as the originals! And no, it does not impart any hint of coconut flavor whatsoever—just pure sweetness.
3) Homemade dark chocolate chips. My two-ingredient chocolate chips are really rich and add an extra indulgent taste. I topped a few cookies with store-bought mini chocolate chips and the rest with mine, then compared the two in the picture below.
In the store-bought chip cookie on the top, the chips held their shape and barely melted, whereas with my homemade chip cookie on the bottom, the chips turned irresistibly melty and gooey while baking in the oven. This is because my homemade chocolate chips do not contain the stabilizers that are in store-bought ones. Plus I love them because they’re really dark—my favorite!
Are there any other cookie monsters out there? Besides me?
These Clean Eating Chocolate Chip Cookies barely lasted two days! I snuck a couple as soon as I finished the photo shoot and made every excuse I could to slip into the kitchen and grab another one. Morning snacks, afternoon chocolate breaks, dessert, before bed treats…
How long will they last in your cookie jar?
| Clean Eating Chocolate Chip Cookies | | Print |
- 2 c (240g) white whole wheat flour (measured correctly)
- 1 ½ tsp (2g) cornstarch
- 1 ½ tsp (4g) baking powder
- ¼ tsp (2g) salt
- 4 tbsp (56g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 4 tsp (20mL) vanilla extract
- 1 c (192g) coconut sugar
- 4 tbsp (56g) regular chocolate chips (preferably homemade)
- 2 tbsp (28g) miniature chocolate chips (preferably homemade)
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and coat two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, eggs, and vanilla. Stir in the coconut sugar. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in all of the regular chocolate chips and half of the miniatures. Optional: If the dough is very wet, chill for 10-30 minutes.
- Drop the cookie dough into 24 rounded scoops onto the prepared baking sheets, and press the remaining miniature chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Regular whole wheat, whole wheat pastry, or all-purpose flour may be substituted in place of the white whole wheat. If using regular whole wheat, then chill for a maximum of 10 minutes or skip the chilling altogether.
Brown sugar may be substituted in place of the coconut sugar. I do not recommend using a liquid sweetener (such as agave, maple syrup, or honey) because they will add too much moisture to the cookies. The cookie dough will be nearly impossible to shape and will flatten to be as thin as a pancake when baked in the oven.
Good-quality chopped dark chocolate may be substituted in place of the chocolate chips if you prefer truly clean-eating cookies and would rather not make your own chocolate chips. I recommend Ghirardelli, Godiva, or Trader Joe’s.
If the cookie dough is chilled for longer than 30 minutes, you may want to flatten the rounded scoops slightly. The longer it chills, the less the cookie dough spreads while baking.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
More clean eating cookie recipes from other food bloggers…
♥ Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies by iFoodreal
♥ Clean Eating Samoas by My Whole Food Life
♥ Healthy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies by Bless This Mess
A chocolate chip cookie that I can feel good about eating! Just what I need. I seriously need to try those homemade chips though. I’m not sure they would make it into the cookie.
I had to hide the bag of homemade chips to save enough for cookies Jen! 😉
Awesome recipe! Mine came out quite different from the pictures (thick rather than flat), but they’re damn tasty! I substituted coconut oil for the butter, and left everything else the same. Definitely going to make them again!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the cookies Danielle! 🙂 For the future, you can flatten the cookie dough to about half of its original height after dropping it on the baking sheet. That should give the cookies a little “spreading head start” so that aren’t quite so thick!
When you mentioned drawing a line in the bowl for you and your brother to split, it reminded me of how my sister and I used to split things! If there was only one cupcake left, one kid would cut it in half, and then the other kid got to pick which half! Haha! 🙂
That’s such a sweet story Erin! Great minds must think alike. 🙂 I love the idea of the other kid getting to pick though — I’m sure the halves were much more even that way!
The concept of homemade chocolate chips is really intriguing. I feel this way about shredded cheese. I started using my food processor to shred my own without that dry stuff they put on the bagged kind. It is such a huge difference in flavor and how it melts…I will never go back to store bough. So you may have just sold me on the chocolate chips because I believe it that they make a big difference!
And your story about growing up making cookies was so sweet. My older nephew loves to bake with me and we have a tradition that whenever we bake he gets to eat two chocolate chips. It is really cute and I hope he grows up having fond memories like you do of us in the kitchen together.
That’s such a sweet story about baking with your nephew! He must absolutely love you. Two chocolate chips every time you bake? I’d want to bake every single day with you if I were him! 🙂 And it’s definitely true about shredding your own cheese. How beautifully it melts gets me every time!
I cannot resist a good chocolate chip recipe. Especially one with homemade chips! They look so much better than store-bought.
Thank you so much Kim!
I love that you made these with homemade chocolate chips. I’ve heard that chopped chocolate gets more gooey for chocolate chip cookies, so I can imagine that your homemade chocolate chips are PERFECT for chocolate chip cookies! Fortunately for me, my brother didn’t really like cookie dough, so I got to lick the bowl all to myself!
YES! I love using chopped chocolate instead of chocolate chips. Melty chocolate is way better fresh out of the oven! And I’m kind of jealous that your brother didn’t like cookie dough… Okay, really jealous.
Just made these today, they’re so fantastic!!!
Aww, I’m so glad you enjoyed them Marina! 🙂
This is a great recipe, but coconut sugar is not sustainable or green or even responsible to use. Once a coconut tree is used for sugar, it can never produce coconuts again, and dies. The recent popularity of this sugar is causing many people in third world countries to be out of work, since their coconut trees can’t be harvested after they’ve been tapped for sugar. I am ALL for being healthy, but Please edit your recipe to include a more responsible sugar. Thanks!
I appreciate you sharing your insights Rebecca. You’re welcome to substitute whatever sugar you’re most comfortable with using. 🙂
Hi Amy! These look so good! I’m wondering though, could I substitute a gluten-free blend like bob’s red mill 1:1 flour? Do you think I could use that in your Ultimate Healthy Chocolate chip cookies as well? I prefer to not have to mix a bunch of flours but want a really great gluten-free chocolate chip cookie recipe that everyone will love 🙂
Yes, that should work for both recipes Anna! I just recommend being really careful when measuring the Bob’s Red Mill GF flour, and you should be fine. (And if you’re okay mixing 3 different GF flours in the future, here is my ultimate healthy gluten-free chocolate chip cookie recipe! 🙂 ) I can’t wait to hear what you think of both sets of cookies!
Great, thank you!! 🙂 I have a kitchen scale so I will use that to be sure it’s accurate. Can’t wait to try them!
Perfect!! I can’t wait to hear how they turn out Anna!
Dannnnnnnng Amy, back again with these awesome recipes! I’m back once again Amy and I have a very happy stomach and happy siblings! These cookies were DELICIOUS. I couldn’t even wait for the cookies to cool before I started devouring them. Fantastic job Amy, I’m really happy I found this blog! I’ll be back again!!
You’re so sweet Vanessa — that’s the best kind of compliment that you ate them warm from the oven! I’m so glad your siblings enjoyed the cookies too! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you try next!
Amy,
Do you prefer using butter over coconut oil, or vice versa, and why?
I slightly prefer butter over coconut oil, partially because I enjoy its flavor more, but mainly because it’s easier to slice a few tablespoons off of a stick of butter than it is to scoop coconut oil out of a jar! 🙂 In the recipes where I say you can use either, they both perform equally well, so it’s just a matter of which you feel more comfortable working with and consuming. I’d love to hear what you think of the cookies if you try them Ken!
I just made these and mine turned out so flat! Like pancakes!! Any ideas? I used the gluten free mix you recommended. Also, is coconut palm sugar alright? I couldn’t find just plain coconut sugar at my market. I think they are the same thing. Please help!
Coconut palm sugar is fine Sarah! Thanks for mentioning that you used the gluten-free mix I recommended. I realized I only included enough gluten-free mix for a half batch (12 cookies), rather than the two dozen cookies. That’s why your cookies were as flat as pancakes — I’m so sorry! I’ve updated the recipe and recommend my my ultimate healthy gluten-free chocolate chip cookie recipe. (It’s the same recipe, just with a gluten-free blend that yields an even better texture!) I hope that really helps your next batch! 🙂
They are not the same recipe though. The one for these cookies does not use coconut flour. Also, how cool does the butter need to be? Would it be better to just let it soften? Is microwaving bad?
They’re the same recipe aside from the gluten-free flour blend. After testing both blends, I guarantee that the one with coconut flour has a much better taste and texture, which is why I recommend using that one instead. 🙂 Microwaving the butter is fine! As long as your eggs are fully at room temperature, you just need to let the butter cool for about 5 minutes while you whisk together the dry ingredients.
But this other version does not have cornstarch. Is that okay?
You have a great eye for details Sarah! 🙂 Yes, that’s fine that the designated gluten-free version does not include cornstarch. That recipe includes enough tapioca starch that the cornstarch isn’t necessary. I can’t wait to hear how they turn out for you!