I haven’t had homemade cookies in the house for a while. My only explanation is…I eat too many of them. I can’t help it. They caaaalllll to me from their tupperware prison. I’m not making this up.
So I wanted to inject a little bit of health into what I know will turn into a feeding frenzy of cookie love. But before I go on, have I told you all that Kashi Go Lean is my absolute favorite cereal (no one is paying me to say that)? I have loved it forever. I don’t like the crunch one, it’s too sweet for me. But the Go Lean…I love. And here’s the thing, it really is a super-healthy cereal. A crazy amount of protein and fiber in every serving with barely any sugar. Now, if i would just stop enjoying it with whole milk it would be perfect.
Funny thing is, I don’t eat cereal for breakfast. I eat eggs. But I often have Kashi Go Lean as an afternoon snack. It’s satisfying. I even use it in my vanilla Greek yogurt instead of granola. It has the perfect crunch and is far less in calories.
So, I usually use 4 cups of chocolate chips in my chocolate chip cookies. With these I halved my chips and used two cups of Kashi Go Lean instead. My kids said they were one of the best cookies I had ever made. Please know they do not like dark chocolate or healthy cereal. So wow, I certainly surprised them.
The cereal gave the cookies a chewy interior. Without knowing what was in there, you would be under the impression you were eating a chocolate chip cookie with lots of texture and a bit of complexity.
And the sea salt, don’t leave this out. It is an absolute must when it comes to accenting the chocolate and experiencing the whole sweet and salty combo. It’s magical.
I have had to place the cookies on lock-down, from me and the kids. The urge to just go and grab one or ten with a big glass of milk is kind of overwhelming. I think the sea salt kind of adds to the madness. I do love my salt.
The trick to making a cookie that isn’t flat as a pancake is refrigerating the cookie balls for an hour before baking them off. Also, take them out of the oven a couple minutes early to finish cooking on the pan but not in the oven. This leaves the edges perfectly brown and not overdone.
Dark Chocolate-Sea Salt Kashi Cereal Cookies
Recipe from: Created by Cathy Pollak for NoblePig.com | Serves: Makes 3 dozen cookies
Ingredients
- 2-1/4 cupsall-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoonsbaking soda
- 1 teaspoontable salt
- 1 cupunsalted butter, softened
- 1 cuppacked golden brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, cold
- 1 Tablespoonpure vanilla extract
- 2 cups dark chocolate chips
- 2 cupsKashi Go Lean cereal
- 1-1/2 Tablespoonssea salt
Directions
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- Cream butter and two sugars until mixed bu not fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time and mix well. Add vanilla and continue to mix.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips and Kashi Go Lean until fully incorporated.
- Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Roll cookies into Tablespoon sized balls and place all on one baking sheet. Sprinkle each cookie ball with sea salt. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for one hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake 12 cookies at a time on a rimmed baking sheet covered in parchment. (Put the uncooked ones back in the fridge to stay cold.) Bake for about 13-15 minutes or until almost done. Let them finish cooking on the pan out of the oven for 5-7 minutes more. Remove to a cooling rack. Repeat with other cookies.
Cathy owns a vineyard and winery in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. She is a food writer forDavis Life Magazine and blogs daily about wine, food and everyday living. She lives with her husband and two sons. You can visit her at noblepig.com.