Notes: Whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour. Regular whole wheat flour may be substituted in a pinch, but the cookies may have detectable “wheat-y” taste.

Do not use Dutched or special dark cocoa powder! They’re much less acidic than regular cocoa powder, so the texture and flavor of these cookies won’t be the same. Use regular unsweetened cocoa powder, like this.

Remember to measure the flour and cocoa powder correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own and love!) Too much of either will dry out your cookie dough, make your cookies taste cakey or dry, and prevent them from spreading. Too much cocoa powder may make your cookies taste bitter.

If using coconut oil, the cookies may have a faintly detectable coconut flavor.

Any milk may be substituted for the unsweetened vanilla almond milk.

Regular red food coloring (like this) will give the brightest color. Liquid “natural” red food coloring may also be used, but the color will be more of a mahogany shade. I have not tried anything else (i.e. gel food coloring) and don’t know how other options will turn out. I haven’t had good luck with other natural options (beets, pomegranates, etc).

Brown sugar may be substituted for the coconut sugar.

I used these white chocolate chips, and I roughly chopped them because they’re a bit larger in size. (I prefer at least one small morsel of chocolate in every bite of cookie!) You can also use bars of white chocolate, like this. See below for a dairy-free and vegan alternative!

This recipe is easily doubled!

GLUTEN-FREE OPTION: Use a high-quality store-bought gluten-free flour blend (this is my favorite!) or gluten-free oat flour (this is my favorite!). Make sure you measure them carefully, like this! (This is especially important if using the oat flour! It tends to be more absorbent, so using too much will dry out your cookies and prevent them from spreading.)

DAIRY-FREE + VEGAN OPTION: Use stick-style vegan butter (this is my favorite!) or coconut oil in place of the unsalted butter. Use vegan-friendly white chocolate (like this!) for the chopped white chocolate.

CLEAN EATING OPTION: Substitute milk or water for the red food coloring (or your preferred “natural” red food coloring, although I haven’t had good luck with those; they never seem to look as bright in color!). Substitute mini chocolate chips for the white chocolate.

IF YOUR COOKIES DID NOT SPREAD: There was too much flour and/or cocoa powder in your cookie dough! See here for information on how to properly measure them. Alternatively, if you used less sugar or substituted a no-calorie sweetener (such as monk fruit, erythritol, etc), that would have prevented your cookies from spreading as well.

{gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free option, vegan option, clean eating option, low fat}