The summer after my freshman year of college, my mom and I flew to Alaska to do volunteer work with a few of our friends in the tiny town of Seward. The two of us turned it into a mini vacation and arrived a few days early to explore the surrounding area.
We stayed at a cozy B&B, run by a sweet lady who actually attended the same college for the same major as me many years prior, and she suggested multiple activities: a restaurant on the waterfront famous for their grilled salmon and salmon chowder; watching the salmon derby and fishmongers fillet the catches; the SeaLife Center, similar to a zoo but with mostly native animals; and a boat tour of the majestic and impressive fjords.
Although we saved the SeaLife Center for when our friends arrived, we managed to fit everything else into the next day. We rose bright and early, pulling on layers upon layers for our chilly cruise around the huge glaciers, and we even managed to see a huge piece of one break off and fall into the icy ocean below!
The rest of our group drove into town late the following afternoon, and we all met with one of the locals for dinner who was in charge of our volunteer work during our stay. The mission was simple: watch the community members’ children while they worked during the day. Most of the adults in Seward depended on the summer tourism season for their entire year’s income, so by providing a pseudo-daycare for their kids, it allowed them to save more of their earnings instead of spending that money on baby-sitters.
So that’s exactly what we did. We colored, strung together beaded necklaces, built and decorated birdhouses, and ran around outside playing Red Light, Green Light with the kids for a full week. Because the parents picked up their children at lunchtime to eat their meals at home, we volunteers stayed at the play center and munched on our homemade sandwiches to refuel for the afternoon.
As a treat, I had packed two huge gallon zip-topped bags in my suitcase filled with homemade cookies for our desserts: one with chocolate chip, the other with peanut butter. Because of how rambunctious some of those kids could be, we all thought we deserved something sweet as a reward and helped ourselves to the bags. Neither one lasted the full week!
That memory recently resurfaced since our trip fell around this same time in August, and it brought along a big craving for cookies. I decided to combine the two flavors into one even more irresistible treat: these Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies!
These healthier cookies are a combination of two of the more popular recipes on my blog: these ultimate healthy chocolate chip cookies and these ultimate healthy peanut butter cookies. Have you tried either of those recipes yet? Countless readers have reported that these taste just as decadent as traditional recipes, yet nobody can tell that they’re healthy!
To keep these cookies clean-eating friendly, they start with white whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour is slightly different than regular whole wheat flour because it’s more finely ground and lighter in texture, yet it still has all of the same health benefits. This makes it perfect for baked goods, especially cookies!
Note: If you prefer, whole wheat pastry flour can be used instead! It’s also ground more finely and would provide the same texture as white whole wheat flour.
Next comes the peanut butter. I used my homemade easy blender peanut butter because it just contains two ingredients: peanuts and salt! Many store-bought varieties contain some white sugar and additional ingredients. They’ll work too if you don’t want to make your own PB, but… I highly recommend homemade. It takes just 5 minutes to make, and it’s hard to beat its pure flavor and creamy texture!
For the sweetener, either coconut sugar or brown sugar both work equally well. Coconut sugar is clean-eating friendly while brown sugar is not. However, it’s more expensive and slightly harder to find, which is why I still include brown sugar as an option. Use whatever you feel most comfortable with!
Don’t forget the chocolate chips! I almost always use both regular-sized and mini chips in my cookies because the former provides a big burst of melty chocolate (mmmmm… so irresistible!) while the latter ensures every bite has at least a morsel of chocolate. I love these dark chocolate chips because they’re normal in size, instead of gigantic like other brands, and they melt really well.
These cookies do not spread, so you must flatten the cookie dough before baking to your desired thickness and width. To make sure they turn out extra soft and chewy, we’ll pull them out of the oven while they still feel slightly underdone, then let them cool longer on the warm baking sheet. This allows the centers to continue to cook through without the outsides turning crisp and crunchy. It’s my #1 secret to chewy cookies!
Now… Got milk??
| Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies | | Print |
- 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat or gluten-free* flour (measured correctly)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (128g) homemade easy blender peanut butter (or your preferred brand)
- 1 cup (212g) coconut or brown sugar
- ¼ cup (56g) dark chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp (28g) miniature chocolate chips, divided
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg whites and vanilla. Stir in the peanut butter until completely incorporated. Stir in the sugar. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the dark chocolate chips and 1 tablespoon of miniature chocolate chips.
- Roll the dough into 24 balls, and place onto the prepared baking sheets. Flatten to the desired thickness and width, and gently press the remaining miniature chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. Cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted in place of the white whole wheat flour.
It's extremely important to measure the flour correctly using either a kitchen scale or the spoon-and-level method. Too much flour will make the cookies and dough very dry. If this happens, mix in 1 tablespoon of milk at a time until the cookie dough comes together.
Semisweet chocolate chips may be substituted in place of the dark chocolate chips.
The cookies barely spread at all during baking, so flatten them to the desired thickness and width before placing the baking sheets in the oven.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
These look absolutely delicious! I love peanut butter!
Thanks Marsha!
Yes!!! Chocolate and peanut butter my favorite combinations! And healthy makes it even better 🙂
It’s hard to beat chocolate + PB!
Those look amazing!! Can’t go wrong with peanut butter + chocolate. Love that they’re whole wheat too 🙂
Thanks June!
Hi! I tried making these today, but had a few problems :(. When I added the peanut butter, the eggs seemed to absorb into it and after I added the flour mixture, I was left with a very sandy, crumbly mess.! Nothing like a dough. And I certainly couldn’t roll it into balls. I tried adding milk, in hindsight I probably should have added more peanut butter. That just made the dough too sticky. So I added more flour bit by bit. They came out ok, more like a cross between a cookie and a pancake. Plz advise!
I’m sorry that the cookies didn’t turn out like you expected Lindsay; that must have been disappointing. If the cookie dough was dry and crumbly, then there was probably too much flour. How did you measure it? It’s really important to use a kitchen scale or a light hand with the spoon and level method. When I scoop the flour directly from the container with measuring spoons, I end up with 1.5 time as much as with the spoon and level method, which would definitely cause the issues that you saw. Since the cookie dough turned out sticky, there was probably too much milk added to compensate. You should only need 1 or 2 tablespoons to fix the crumbly issue. Hopefully your next batch turns out better with these tips!
Hi,
I just wanted to ask a question before I try these out. If I used all purpose white flour,would the texture change compared to the white whole wheat flour? I’m not sure I have ever seen white whole wheat around here and want to make sure they would still turn out crunchy and chewy in the middle.
All-purpose flour would be a great substitute and wouldn’t change the texture of the original cookies. However, this cookie recipe is designed to be chewy throughout, not with crunchy edges. I hope you enjoy the cookies Heidi!
Thanks im going to try this tonight!
I love chewy cookies 🙂 fingers crossed.
I really hope you enjoy the cookies Heidi!
I am delighted with the cookie recipes i have tried–and my husband too. I have become increasingly turned off by how sugary most food is today–especially desserts.
So far I have enjoyed two batches of pb, 2 of oatmeal–one with raisins and nuts another with choc chips, and a chocolate dough with nuts and white choc and dark choc chips
I’m really touched that you’ve tried and enjoyed so many of my cookie recipes — thank you so much for sharing that with me Cathy! 🙂
I had the same issue as Lindsay. This is my first recipe from this blog and I’m not feeling encouraged to try another.
I want to update my review to three stars. I had to add another two egg whites for consistency and still felt more comfortable rolling out the dough instead of forming balls. After baking I cut them into bars, I noticed no rise or spread to the dough so I’m concerned that balling the dough would have left me with spheres. They were somewhat dry though not overcooked, so I left them wrapped overnight. This afternoon they have a firm yet soft texture and the flavor is good. Since my housemate enjoyed them, I might consider making them again but I would stick with the bar method.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe! I’d love to help solve those issues so your cookies turn out with the perfect soft and chewy texture if you decide to try them again. 🙂 Did you make any modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section? How did you measure the flour, with a kitchen scale or measuring cups? If the latter, can you describe in detail what you did? What brands of flour and peanut butter did you use? How long did you bake the cookies? These cookies don’t spread, which is why Step 3 instructs to flatten the cookies to the desired thickness and width before baking. 😉
Dear Amy !
I will make these cookies the sooner .
Indeed they are the perfect combination .
I love peanut butter as well as chocolate.
Thank you so much for the lovely recipes you offer me.
Take care , kisses
Christina