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Chocolate Chip Cookies: Recipe Makeover

October 01, 2012
Photo: Randy Mayor
The classic chocolate chip treat is made lighter and better with browned butter, dark chocolate, and whole grains. By Sidney Fry, MS, RD
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Lighter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Photo: Randy Mayor
The chocolate chip cookie, crisp around the edges, soft in the middle, with gooey pockets of melty chocolate, is an almost perfect treat. And it's hardly a huge nutrition offender at just 200 or so calories per cookie. But who can eat just one? Or, put another way, what if you can have the pleasures of the classic with about half the fat and calories? That's what we have delivered here, even sneaking in a few whole grains. And we did not skimp on the rich, buttery cookie or the essential minimum chip-per-cookie ratio.

Classic
• 187 calories per cookie
• 5.8 grams saturated fat
• 9.6 grams total fat

Makeover
• 96 calories per cookie
• 2 grams saturated fat
• 4 grams total fat

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Cookie Tip #1: Browned Butter

Photo: Randy Mayor
Less becomes more when butter gets browned, which amps up richness and nuttiness. A touch of canola oil comes in to save 3g sat fat per cookie.

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Cookie Tip #2: A Boost of Whole Grains

Photo: Randy Mayor
We add some whole-wheat flour to make a better, more nutrient-dense treat.
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Cookie Tip #3: Chocolate Duo

Photo: Randy Mayor
We develop a deeper, more intense chocolate presence with two types of chips: classic semisweet and rich dark chocolate.
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