Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Banana chocolate chip muffins are always a good idea.

Probably my favorite way to use up overripe bananas, these muffins are moist, easy on the sugar because they’re already sweet from the bananas, and chocolatey. They’re simple enough to make that even my 2 year old can help make them.

We love them because they make sure our older bananas don’t go to waste and sourdough discard gets used up. This recipe also doesn’t require dirtying a bowl just to mash bananas. Often banana recipes instruct to mash bananas separately before adding into the already-mixed wet ingredients. Here, the bananas are mashed then the wet ingredients are added right in to the banana bowl.

Muffins require no fancy tools beyond a muffin tin. Muffins are my go-to for a quick bake with tasty results.

Use up sourdough discard

As mentioned above, muffins are a great way to use up sourdough discard. I find using up to 1/2 cup keeps the taste and texture subtle. Otherwise up to 1 cup discard can be used, although the taste will be more pronounced and the texture of the muffins will start to get a bit more bread like.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. Where possible, links are prioritized to small businesses and ethically and responsibly made items. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

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Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Makes about 12 muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cup / 210g flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 3/4 cup / 128g mini chocolate chips, plus more for topping

• 3-4 very ripe bananas

• 1/2 cup / 113g oil

• 1/2 cup / 100g sugar

• 1 egg

• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract

• up to 1/2 cup / 125g sourdough discard, optional

Directions:

Oven preheated to 375°F / 190°C. 1 muffin pan greased or lined with muffin liners.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips.

2. In a large bowl, mash bananas. Add oil, sugar, egg, vanilla, and discard, if using. Mix well.

3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, mixing until just moistened. Don’t over-mix.

4. Scoop batter into prepared muffin pan, filling until just about even with pan. Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips, if desired.

5. Bake for 17-19 minutes, or until muffins no longer look wet and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool.

Jenny’s Notes:

• Depending on size of bananas and if sourdough discard is used, this recipe may make a bit more than 12 muffins.

Yield 12

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

20 Min

Cook time

19 Min

Total time

39 Min

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Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Moist banana chocolate chip muffins are lightly sweet with pops of chocolate, perfect for breakfast, a snack, or on the go. This recipe is quick and easy with the option of using sourdough discard.

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Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cup / 210g flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup / 128g mini chocolate chips, plus more for topping
• 3-4 very ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup / 113g oil
• 1/2 cup / 100g sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract
• up to 1/2 cup / 125g sourdough discard, optional

Instructions

1. Oven preheated to 375°F / 190°C. 1 muffin pan greased or lined with muffin liners.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips.
3. In a large bowl, mash bananas. Add oil, sugar, egg, vanilla, and discard, if using. Mix well.
4. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, mixing until just moistened. Don’t over-mix.
5. Scoop batter into prepared muffin pan, filling until just about even with pan. Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips, if desired.
6. Bake for 17-19 minutes, or until muffins no longer look wet and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool.

Notes

• Depending on size of bananas and if sourdough discard is used, this recipe may make a bit more than 12 muffins.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

274

Fat

13 g

Sat. Fat

3 g

Carbs

35 g

Fiber

2 g

Net carbs

33 g

Sugar

11 g

Protein

3 g

Sodium

215 mg

Cholesterol

15 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 1 muffin if recipe makes 12, not including sourdough discard.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2024/10/4/banana-chocolate-chip-muffins

best ever easy banana chocolate chip muffins,

breakfast, snack

American

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Sweet and Salty Chocolate Chip Cookies

Also known as MMM Cookies, or Magical Marvelous Memorable Cookies.

These cookies are sweet, salty, and have little crunchies in them from granola and pecans. Many people pick them up thinking they’re just a normal chocolate chip cookie only to ask, “hey, what’s in here?” when they realize there are some delightful little sweet and salty add-ins dotting the chocolate chip landscape.

The recipe that inspired these cookies is called “Magical, Marvelous, Memorable Cookies”. I like to think of the pretzels as magical, the pecans as marvelous, and the granola as memorable. Irony of ironies, I could never remember the whole title and would always forget “memorable.” I decided to give them a little bit easier and more descriptive name. While I do enjoy the original more whimsical one, it is harder to remember and gives no indication as to what is in these cookies or what they will taste like.

Cookies that unite

Somehow, their everything-but-the-kitchen-sink-esque ingredient list works really well together. They unite people, when you think they would divide, especially when they include things like pretzels and nuts. I’m not normally one to like pretzels in my desserts. The pretzels are one of my favorite parts. My mom doesn’t like nuts in her cookies. She likes the pecans in these.

Granola? In cookies?

The recipe calls for granola, which might seem ambiguous in light of all of the different kinds of granola out there, store-bought and homemade. Use whatever kind you’d like! Yes, each time the cookies will be a bit different, but as long as you like the granola you’re using, the cookies should turn out delightful. It doesn’t even have to be pure granola. Recently I’ve been using Post Great Grains Crunchy Pecan and it works very well.

Likewise, pecans are one of my favorite nuts in dessert (if I want nuts), but you can use your favorite nut here, if you don’t have or don’t want to use pecans.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. Where possible, links are prioritized to small businesses and ethically and responsibly made items. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe inspired by Food52

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Sweet and Salty Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 24-30 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup / 225g Butter, softened OR 3/4 cup / 169g Neutral-flavored cooking oil

• 3/4 cup / 150g Granulated sugar

• 3/4 cup / 150g Brown sugar

• 2 Eggs

• 2 tsp / 10g Vanilla extract

• 2 1/4 cup / 270g All-purpose flour

• 1 tsp Baking soda

• 1 tsp Salt

• 1 cup / 170g Semi-sweet chocolate chips

• 1 cup / 120g Granola or granola-like cereal

• 1/2 cup / 50g Pecans, chopped

• 1/2 cup / 20g Pretzels, crushed

Directions:

Oven 375°F / 177°C. 1 or 2 ungreased cookie sheets

1. In bowl of a stand mixer or with a handheld mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. If using oil, simply mix oil and sugars.

2. Beat in eggs and vanilla, until thoroughly combined.

3. In a separate large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.

4. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, mixing just until combined.

5. Stir in chocolate chips, granola, pecans, and pretzels until evenly distributed.

6. Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until edges start to turn golden and centers still look a bit soft.

7. Allow to cool for a few minutes before removing from cookie sheet to cool completely.

Jenny’s Notes:

• Any variety of pretzels can be used, as long as they can be broken into small pieces. Sticks or tiny twists (mini) are probably the easiest to work with.

• The options for what kind of granola to use in these is almost endless. You could use store-bought or homemade, any flavor you like.

Yield 24-30

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

25 Min

Cook time

10 Min

Total time

35 Min

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Sweet and Salty Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sweet and Salty Chocolate Chip Cookies with the addition of pretzels, pecans, and granola. The ingredients might sound a bit "everything but the kitchen sink" but surprise everyone with just how tasty they are.

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Ingredients

• 1 cup / 225g Butter, softened OR 3/4 cup / 169g Neutral-flavored cooking oil
• 3/4 cup / 150g Granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup / 150g Brown sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2 tsp / 10g Vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cup / 270g All-purpose flour
• 1 tsp Baking soda
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 cup / 170g Semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup / 120g Granola or granola-like cereal
• 1/2 cup / 50g Pecans, chopped
• 1/2 cup / 20g Pretzels, crushed

Instructions

1. Oven 375°F / 177°C. 1 or 2 ungreased cookie sheets
2. In bowl of a stand mixer or with a handheld mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. If using oil, simply mix oil and sugars.
3. Beat in eggs and vanilla, until thoroughly combined.
4. In a separate large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.
5. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, mixing just until combined.
6. Stir in chocolate chips, granola, pecans, and pretzels until evenly distributed.
7. Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until edges start to turn golden and centers still look a bit soft.
8. Allow to cool for a few minutes before removing from cookie sheet to cool completely.

Notes

• Any variety of pretzels can be used, as long as they can be broken into small pieces. Sticks or tiny twists (mini) are probably the easiest to work with.
• The options for what kind of granola to use in these is almost endless. You could use store-bought or homemade, any flavor you like.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

268

Fat

15 g

Sat. Fat

3 g

Carbs

31 g

Fiber

1 g

Net carbs

29 g

Sugar

17 g

Protein

3 g

Sodium

180 mg

Cholesterol

14 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 1 cookie from a 24-cookie batch.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2024/8/27/mmm-cookies

no chill chocolate chip cookies, everything but the kitchen sink cookies, magical marvelous memorable cookies

dessert

American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @jennyblogsandbakes on instagram and hashtag it #jennyblogs

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Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Cookies

Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Cookies are very much like a classic chocolate chip cookie, but with two important differences: They have butterscotch chips and dark chocolate chips instead of the classic semi-sweet. Also, a sprinkling of sea salt on top gives these an extra little sweet and salty kick.

The orange and dark chocolate give these an autumnal, even Halloween look. I love that a simple, quick to make cookie can still look subtly festive without having to make cutout cookies with icing and such.

A Note on Chips:

These cookies call for butterscotch chips. I recommend checking the ingredients of butterscotch chips before buying as some brands include artificial colors. While butterscotch chips may not be the most wholesome thing on the market, some options are still better than others. I’ve found butterscotch chips at Aldi that use natural coloring and for one of the better prices, too!

While any flavor of chocolate chips can be used in these, milk, semi-sweet, or dark, I really enjoy dark chocolate chips or chunks. The bitterness from the dark chocolate helps to cut the sweetness of the butterscotch chips while also complimenting the sea salt.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. Where possible, links are prioritized to small businesses and ethically and responsibly made items. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

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Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 24-30 cookies

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup / 168g neutral-flavored cooking oil

• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar

• 3/4 cup / 150g brown sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract

• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 cup / 170g butterscotch chips

• 1 cup / 170g dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips

• sea salt, for sprinkling, optional

Directions:

Oven 375° / 190°C. 1 or 2 ungreased cookie sheets.

1. In a large bowl, combine oil, both sugars, eggs, and vanilla. Beat well with a spoon for about 30 seconds - 1 minute.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.

3. Add dry ingredients along with butterscotch and chocolate chips to wet ingredients. Mix until well combined.

4. Drop by generous tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges are just starting to turn light golden brown and centers look mostly set.

Jenny’s Notes:

• While cookie recipes never include notes about needing to add more flour, like bread recipes often do, I often find it necessary to add more flour to get the consistency I like. If you can see cookie dough spreading in the bowl after mixing, rather than staying mostly in a mounded shape, it’s probably too soft. Add 1/4 cup flour at a time until desired thickness is achieved. If in doubt, you can always bake off a test cookie. Scoop out enough dough for just one cookie onto cookie sheet and bake, adding more flour if cookie spreads too thin. Conversely, if cookie is too thick and doesn’t spread much at all, next time add less flour.

Yield 24-30

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

15 Min

Cook time

10 Min

Total time

25 Min

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Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chewy cookies with dark chocolate, butterscotch, and a sprinkling of sea salt.

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Ingredients

• 3/4 cup / 168g neutral-flavored cooking oil
• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar
• 3/4 cup / 150g brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup / 170g butterscotch chips
• 1 cup / 170g dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips
• sea salt, for sprinkling, optional

Instructions

1. Oven 375° / 190°C. 1 or 2 ungreased cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, combine oil, both sugars, eggs, and vanilla. Beat well with a spoon for about 30 seconds - 1 minute.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.
4. Add dry ingredients along with butterscotch and chocolate chips to wet ingredients. Mix until well combined.
5. Drop by generous tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges are just starting to turn light golden brown and centers look mostly set.

Notes

• While cookie recipes never include notes about needing to add more flour, like bread recipes often do, I often find it necessary to add more flour to get the consistency I like. If you can see cookie dough spreading in the bowl after mixing, rather than staying mostly in a mounded shape, it’s probably too soft. Add 1/4 cup flour at a time until desired thickness is achieved. If in doubt, you can always bake off a test cookie. Scoop out enough dough for just one cookie onto cookie sheet and bake, adding more flour if cookie spreads too thin. Conversely, if cookie is too thick and doesn’t spread much at all, next time add less flour.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

235

Fat

11 g

Sat. Fat

2 g

Carbs

31 g

Fiber

1 g

Net carbs

30 g

Sugar

15 g

Protein

2 g

Sodium

193 mg

Cholesterol

15 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 1 cookie if recipe makes 24.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2024/10/12/butterscotch-chocolate-chip-cookies

no chill cookies, chocolate chip cookies, butterscotch chip cookies, sea salt cookies, crackly cookies

dessert

American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @jennyblogsandbakes on instagram and hashtag it #jennyblogs

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Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies

Last Updated September 2, 2024

Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies made with semi-sweet chocolate chips

Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies: like classic chocolate chip cookies, but malted. The malt is subtle, but irresistible, and makes the cookies extra tender and chewy.

The Effect of Adding Malt Powder to Cookies

You’d think you could take your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe and just add some malted milk powder, right? Not quite. Something about malted milk powder makes cookies thin and spread a lot. If you add less malt powder, the flavor won’t come through enough. Adding more flour to try and offset this will only make the cookies cakey and weird.

To combat the cookies from spreading too much, there are a few key things this recipe includes:

1. Cornstarch - helps keeps cookies thick and soft

2. Brown sugar - most chocolate chip cookies call for both white sugar and brown sugar. Cookies made with white sugar spread more, so these cookies only call for brown sugar

3. Refrigeration - Chilling dough helps cookies to maintain their shape a bit more and get those golden, crispy edges while maintaining a soft, chewy center. While these cookies are already naturally chewier than most thanks to the malt powder, chilling the dough helps them to spread less. While I’m fully aware of the benefits and reasons for chilling cookie dough, I’m also a huge fan of no-chill cookie dough, and most of the recipes on this blog reflect that. I usually want cookies NOW, haha. That said, the chilling for this recipe is important enough that I really do recommend it!

This recipe has been on the blog since its first year, but you would never know it because it was very well hidden at the end of a satire piece I wrote for April Fools. I only recently rediscovered it myself and decided it was high time to give these cookies their own post, their own spotlight, not hidden in some other piece.

So here’s a fresh and clean post for Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies with some fresh photos to boot!

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. Where possible, links are prioritized to small businesses and ethically and responsibly made items. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe adapted from Cookies and Cups.

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Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 24-36 cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour

• 1/2 cup malted milk powder

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 1 tsp salt

• 2 tsp cornstarch

• 1 cup / 113g butter, softened or 3/4 cup / 169g oil

• 1 1/2 cups / 300g brown sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 Tbsp / 15g vanilla extract

• 2 cups / 340g semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips or 2 cups (250g) coarsely chopped malted milk ball candies (Whoppers)

Directions:

1. Whisk together flour, malted milk powder, baking powder, salt, and cornstarch in a medium bowl. Set aside.

2. Beat together butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. If using oil, beat to combine. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla.  

3. Stir in dry ingredients until just combined. Switch to a spoon and stir in chocolate chips.

4. Cover and chill dough for at least 2 hours or up to 72 hours.  

5. When ready to bake dough, preheat oven to 350°F / 177°C.  Scoop out dough by rounded spoonfuls onto cookie sheets. 

6. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges begin to turn golden-brown but centers still look soft.  

7. Allow to cool for a a few minutes before transferring from cookie sheets to cooling racks or clean counter to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 6 months.

Jenny's Notes:

• 2 cups of whoppers is about 2 (5oz) packages of Whoppers

• Try these cookies with chocolate malt powder for a chocolatey twist!

Yield 24-36

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

20 Min

Cook time

10 Min

Inactive time

2 Hour

Total time

2 H & 30 M

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Malted Chocolate Chip Cookies

Soft and extra chewy chocolate chip cookies with an irresistible malty flavor

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Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup malted milk powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1 cup / 113g butter, softened or 3/4 cup / 169g oil
• 1 1/2 cups / 300g brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tbsp / 15g vanilla extract
• 2 cups / 340g semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips or crushed malted milk ball candies (Whoppers)

Instructions

1. Whisk together flour, malted milk powder, baking powder, salt, and cornstarch in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Beat together butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. If using oil, beat to combine. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla.
3. Stir in dry ingredients until just combined. Switch to a spoon and stir in chocolate chips.
4. Cover and chill dough for at least 2 hours or up to 72 hours.
5. When ready to bake dough, preheat oven to 350°F / 177°C. Scoop out dough by rounded spoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
6. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges begin to turn golden-brown but centers still look soft.
7. Allow to cool for a a few minutes before transferring from cookie sheets to cooling racks or clean counter to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 6 months.

Notes

• Try these cookies with chocolate malt powder for a chocolatey twist!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

261.15

Fat

12.69 g

Sat. Fat

7.79 g

Carbs

35.23 g

Fiber

0.35 g

Net carbs

34.87 g

Sugar

23.27 g

Protein

2.27 g

Sodium

197.97 mg

Cholesterol

34.61 mg

Nutritional information is approximate and based on 1 serving if recipe makes 24 cookies.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2024/8/26/malted-chocolate-chip-cookies

chocolate chip cookies, best ever soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies, malted Whopper chocolate chip cookies

dessert

American

Did you make this recipe?

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Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

Last updated August 3, 2024

Looks pretty delicious, right? Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip, but actually pretty good for you! I’m not going to say that you could do a blind taste test with real cookie dough and not know the difference, but also, for having beans as a base, this is weirdly close. It’s delicious in its own right. The only time this recipe gets flack is if someone knows it is made with beans before trying it. Even then they admit it’s pretty tasty. If they don’t know and aren’t prejudiced, they love it.

This cookie dough dip is one I’ve been making for over a decade now. A blogger by the name of Chocolate Covered Katie was having a big moment and I made and loved a lot of her recipes. She was, I believe, the person who got me into the ‘healthy” baking scene. Back when I was dancing full time, I loved all of the healthier desserts, food that actually provided some fuel for my body while still tasting like dessert (my favorite thing). Well, most of the time. I ate and made some pretty weird things that I no longer eat and make and will most definitely not ever share as a recipe on this blog. This one, though, is one I’ve kept and made over and over again. Now, it’s a snack for my kids that they have no idea is not actual decadent cookie dough. One day, they will realize the deception. Ah, it’s fun being a parent, isn’t it? (My kids also get to experience real cookie dough, don’t worry!!) 

While this recipe is based on Chocolate Covered Katie’s, almost every element is highly customizable depending on your tastes, dietary needs (vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, etc.), or simply which ingredients you have on hand. If you make and like this recipe, you too will probably find your groove in how you like to make it and it will become your own. 

In fact, let’s walk through the ingredient list so you can see all the different options that are possible with this recipe. I don’t normally do this, but this one has a lot, too many to simply add to the “Jenny’s Notes” that I usually have at the bottom of each recipe. 

Beans

The base of this recipe is beans. You can use any kind of white bean you’d like, as long as it doesn’t have too strong of a flavor. Rinse beans to keep the flavor as neutral as possible. Use a can or cook up your own. I prefer to use chickpeas, but also use great northern beans and cannellini beans if that’s what I have on hand.

Nut Butter

Any nut butter can be used in this recipe, as long as it’s something you like, of course! Think peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, sunflower butter, etc…the stronger the flavor of the butter (like sunflower), the more it will come through in the dip. Completely up to you what you prefer. I like using peanut butter, mostly because I always have peanut butter. I also like to use almond butter. 

Sweetener

Brown sugar will get you the closest flavor to cookie dough. You can also use higher amounts than in the recipe below to get that super sweet cookie dough taste. Conversely, you can also use less. I think 1/4 cup is that sweet spot for keeping it on the healthier side, while still tasting plenty sweet, especially when paired with plenty of chocolate chips! 

Other sweeteners can also be used. I probably use maple syrup the most. You can also use any kind of sugar (granulated, superfine, demarara, rapadura, sucanat, powdered, etc.), honey, stevia, agave, or any other sweetener you prefer. Keep in mind that the consistency of the sweetener used will affect the overall consistency of the dip, and will need to be adjusted accordingly. 

Oats

Oats help to give the dip a little bit of texture while also thickening it. The amount you need will vary depending on how well the beans are drained, how thick or thin your nut butter is, and if using a liquid sweetener. Remember that oats and some of the other options below will continue to absorb moisture as they sit, so it’s okay to leave the dip a bit thinner than desired to allow it to thicken up without getting too thick. 

You can use quick or rolled oats, wheat germ, oat bran, flaxmeal, almond flour, or even baby cereal. Just keep in mind that wheat germ and oats have gluten or possible gluten contamination, for those with wheat or gluten sensitivities. If you don’t have any problems with wheat, you could also just use flour. Since flour is supposed to be cooked before eating due to possibly harboring harmful bacteria that can cause food poisoning, this is the part where I’m supposed to recommend that you toast it first before adding to this dip. 

Vanilla Extract

A little extra vanilla for great flavor! Not much to say here other than use real vanilla extract for best flavor! Unless, of course, you have some real vanilla bean lying around you’d like to add.

Salt

Regular cookie dough usually has about a teaspoon of salt per batch. This recipe does not make as much as a batch of cookie dough, but you do have the option of increasing the salt, to taste. Keep in mind that some nut butters may have salt in them, so take that into consideration when adding salt.

Baking Soda

Baking soda might seem like an unusual addition when this dip is raw and not baked, but it lends a slight, but authentic flavor to the dip. It’s not a huge deal if you omit it, but if you do, consider increasing the salt slightly since baking soda is also salty. 

Milk

If your dough is too thick for your liking, add a bit of milk of choice, 1 tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached. To keep this dairy-free, use a plant or nut based milk instead of dairy milk.

I don’t usually need to add any milk when I make this, since my sweetener is liquid (maple syrup) and the almond butter I use is quite runny. 

Chocolate Chips

You can use any size, shape or flavor of chips that you’d like. Regular semi-sweet chocolate chips would be the classic choice, but my favorite is probably using mini chocolate chips in this dip. I also really like dark chocolate. Chocolate chips sometimes sneakily have dairy in them, so check your ingredients if wanting to keep this dairy-free.

Use as little as 1/4 cup of chocolate chips to really keep things on the lighter/healthier side, but I recommend starting with 1/2 cup / 85g or up to 1 cup / 170g to really get the party going. 

Cuisinart 7 Cup Food Processor, 600-Watt Motor, White, DLC-10SYP1

Equipment

The last thing you need to know, is that you need a food processor to make this. Some quality blenders may be able to handle the thickness of this, but most blenders and mine most definitely cannot.

Such a simple dip to make and eat, but oh so many options! Have fun, friends! 

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. Where possible, links are prioritized to small businesses and ethically and responsibly made items. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie

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Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients:

• 266g (1 14oz can drained) chickpeas or white beans

• 1/4 cup / 65g peanut butter or nut butter of choice

• 1/4 cup / 50g brown sugar or 1/4 cup / 80g maple syrup or other sweetener of choice

• 1/4 cup / 22g quick oats

• 2 tsp / 10g vanilla extract

• 1/8 tsp salt

• 1/8 tsp baking soda

• a few tablespoons of milk, as needed

• 1/2 - 1 cup / 85g - 170g regular or mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Combine chickpeas, peanut butter, sugar, oats, vanilla, salt, and baking soda in a food processor. Blend until smooth.

2. Add milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, if a thinner consistency is desired. (Dip will continue to thicken slightly.)

3. Stir in chocolate chips with spoon or spatula.

4. Serve with fruit, graham crackers, pretzels, etc. or simply eat by the spoonful!

Jenny’s Notes:

• Oats will continue to absorb liquid as they sit, so it’s okay to let the dip sit for 30 minutes or so (if it lasts that long!) before deciding to add more oats to thicken.

• If blended in the food processor for more than a couple minutes, the motor may heat up the dip. If this happens, simply allow to cool or stick in the fridge before stirring in chocolate chips. Alternatively, stir in chips gently while warm for a melty, swirly, fresh baked cookie taste.

Yield 8

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

15 Min

Total time

15 Min

Print

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Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

What could be better than a cookie dough dip? One that's so healthy you can eat it for breakfast or anytime! Made with a base of beans and highly customizable, this dip is delicious and can also be gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, and it's no-bake.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 266g (1 14oz can drained) chickpeas or white beans
• 1/4 cup / 65g peanut butter or nut butter of choice
• 1/4 cup / 50g brown sugar or 1/4 cup / 80g maple syrup or other sweetener of choice
• 1/4 cup / 22g quick oats
• 2 tsp / 10g vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• a few tablespoons of milk, as needed
• 1/2 - 1 cup / 85g - 170g regular or mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Combine chickpeas, peanut butter, sugar, oats, vanilla, salt, and baking soda in a food processor. Blend until smooth.
2. Add milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, if a thinner consistency is desired. (Dip will continue to thicken slightly.)
3. Stir in chocolate chips with spoon or spatula.
4. Serve with fruit, graham crackers, pretzels, etc. or simply eat by the spoonful!

Notes

• Oats will continue to absorb liquid as they sit, so it’s okay to let the dip sit for 30 minutes or so (if it lasts that long!) before deciding to add more oats to thicken.
• If blended in the food processor for more than a couple minutes, the motor may heat up the dip. If this happens, simply allow to cool or stick in the fridge before stirring in chocolate chips. Alternatively, stir in chips gently while warm for a melty, swirly, fresh baked cookie taste.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

200.64

Fat

8.78 g

Sat. Fat

3.38 g

Carbs

24.77 g

Fiber

3.6 g

Net carbs

21.18 g

Sugar

11.45 g

Protein

6.24 g

Sodium

96.89 mg

Cholesterol

1.34 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 8 servings of about 1/4 cup each.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2024/1/20/healthy-chocolate-chip-cookie-dough-dip

healthy chickpea chocolate chip cookie dough dip, bean dessert dip, vegan, gluten free, dairy free, no bake

dessert

American

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Tag @jennyblogsandbakes on instagram and hashtag it #jennyblogs

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Avalanche Bark - Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Copycat

White chocolate peanut butter coated Rice Krispie treats with mini marshmallows and chocolate chips.

These are so delicious and simple to make, needing only about 10 minutes and 5 ingredients. Pop it in the fridge and you’ve got yourself a tasty treat for yourself or for that party you forgot you were supposed to bring something to!

I always have people asking for this recipe when I take it places, and it’s an easy one to give because it’s so simple. Even once when I had made this in Italy, and only had some older overly-chewy marshmallows, (marshmallows aren’t a big thing there and different than US ones to begin with) it was still a hit. In fact, a friend, after asking for the recipe, asked what the chewy bits were, and when I embarrassingly told him about the stale marshmallows, he laughed and said, “they’re my favorite part!” These are so good, they’ll even make chewy marshmallows shine.

The shameless blogger backstory

I once worked at a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, and honestly it was one of the most fun jobs I ever had. I enjoyed working with chocolate, making the caramel apples, fudge, barks, etc., I liked my colleagues, had a good boss, and yes, also enjoyed eating some chocolate. It was very low-stress and not overly physical, at least compared to having spent 6+ hours at the ballet studio during the day before going to RMCF.

This recipe is a copycat of the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory’s Avalanche Bark. While legally I can’t give you the exact recipe, I would like to note that it would be completely impractical for me to even try. Everything there is made in much larger batches than a home baker would need to make, and by the time the recipe would be reduced down to a manageable quantity, you would have awful measurements like 0.1625 lbs of this or 2/3 tsp of that.

What I can tell you, is that this recipe is probably the closest you can get. But all of that could actually be irrelevant, as some of the other copycat recipes probably adjusted the recipe according to their tastes, and you can too! It wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to look at a slice of authentic Rocky Mountain Avalanche Bark and compare it to some of the other copycat recipes to realize that hey, Rocky Mountain’s has more Krispies. Because really, if you like a lighter, crunchier version, add more Krispies (it would also be crumblier, by the way). If you want more of a true “bark”, add less Krispies. Or, add more marshmallows and less Krispies, for a chewier version. Maybe you want more chocolate chips on top. Maybe you want to mix chocolate chips into these instead of just sprinkling on top. As you can see, for only having 5 ingredients, this recipe has quite a few possibilities for customization.

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Avalanche Bark

Makes about 9 generous squares

Ingredients:

• 12 oz white chocolate chips

• 1/2 cup / 130g peanut butter

• 1 1/2 cups / 86g mini marshmallows

• 3 1/2 cups / 98g rice krispies

• 1/4 cup / 43g mini chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Line bottom of an 8x8in / 20x20cm square pan with wax paper.

2. In a medium large pot, melt white chocolate chips and peanut butter together over low heat, stirring often.

3. When white chocolate has just melted, remove from heat and stir in mini marshmallows. Gently fold in Rice Krispies until evenly coated.

4. Spoon and spread into prepared pan, being careful not to flatten too much.

5. Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips and press lightly.

6. Allow to set at room temperature or in fridge before slicing.

Jenny’s Notes:

• While this recipe is very similar to Rocky Mountain’s, feel free to customize as you wish. Add more or less Krispies, more or less Mini marshmallows, more chocolate chips or even mix them in, etc.

Yield 9

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

10 Min

Inactive time

20 Min

Total time

30 Min

Print

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Avalanche Bark - Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Copycat

White chocolate and peanut butter coated rice krispies with chewy mini marshmallows and mini chocolate chips make up this simple, no-bake dessert that tastes just like Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory's

Ingredients

• 12 oz white chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup / 130g peanut butter
• 1 1/2 cups / 86g mini marshmallows
• 3 1/2 cups / 98g rice krispies
• 1/4 cup / 43g mini chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Line bottom of an 8x8in / 20x20cm square pan with wax paper.
2. In a medium large pot, melt white chocolate chips and peanut butter together over low heat, stirring often.
3. When white chocolate has just melted, remove from heat and stir in mini marshmallows. Gently fold in Rice Krispies until evenly coated.
4. Spoon and spread into prepared pan, being careful not to flatten too much.
5. Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips and press lightly.
6. Allow to set at room temperature or in fridge before slicing.

Notes

• While this recipe is very similar to Rocky Mountain’s, feel free to customize as you wish. Add more or less Krispies, more or less Mini marshmallows, more chocolate chips or even mix them in, etc.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

382.4

Fat

20.86 g

Sat. Fat

9.55 g

Carbs

45.03 g

Fiber

0.96 g

Net carbs

44.08 g

Sugar

32.81 g

Protein

6.56 g

Sodium

162.96 mg

Cholesterol

8.69 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 1 square if cut into 9 slices.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2024/4/11/avalanche-bark-rocky-mountain-chocolate-factory-copycat

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Avalanche Bark, no bake dessert

dessert

American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @jennyblogsandbakes on instagram and hashtag it #jennyblogs

---

Almond Joy Cookies

Almond Joy candy bars in an easy to make, homemade cookie form.

These cookies are loaded with chocolate chips, coconut, and sliced almonds, bursting with that coconut and almond flavor. They’re sweet, chewy, and pure joy to eat. (Heh heh.)

Make these with toasted coconut!

While I’ve written the recipe as a quick and easy to whip up recipe with regular, unsweetened coconut, these are DELICIOUS if you have a few extra minutes to toast your coconut.

To toast coconut:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F / 177°C.

2. Spread 2 cups coconut into an even layer onto an ungreased baking sheet or dish.

3. Bake in oven for 8-10* minutes, or until golden and fragrant. Check every 2 minutes or so to ensure it doesn’t burn. Stir as necessary.

* Baking time will vary depending on oven and type of baking dish used.

I used to always use a baking sheet or cookie sheet to toast coconut, until I tried using a Le Creuset baking dish, and I’ve never used anything else since. The coconut toasts so evenly I rarely have to stir it anymore, and burning it is a distant memory.

Le Creuset is made of enameled stoneware which creates even baking, and easy clean up! One more amazing use for Le Creuset. They’re an investment and can be very expensive, but certain pieces are more affordable, or even if you can find them on occasion at Home Goods or Le Creuset’s outlet stores, you can get some pretty good deals.

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Almond Joy Cookies

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup / 168g neutral-flavored cooking oil

• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar

• 3/4 cup / 150g brown sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 tsp coconut extract

• 1 tsp almond extract

• 2 cups / 160g unsweetened shredded coconut

• 2 1/4 cups / 270g all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp salt

• 2 cups (12 oz bag) / 350g semi-sweet or milk chocolate chocolate chips

• 1/2 cup / 42g sliced almonds

Directions:

1. In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, mix together oil, and sugars.

2. Beat in eggs and extracts. Stir in coconut.

3. In another medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.

4. Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients.

5. Stir in chocolate chips and almonds by hand, just until evenly distributed.

6. Drop by generous tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until cookies look puffed, slightly golden, and center no longer looks gooey.

7. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes on cookies sheets before removing to cool completely.

Jenny’s Notes:

• Try these cookies using toasted coconut! (Toast coconut by spreading into an even layer on a baking sheet or dish, and bake at 350°F / 177°C for 5-10 minutes or until golden brown, check every 2 minutes or so to ensure it doesn’t burn, stirring if necessary.)

• I like to use a mix of both semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips in these!

• For nut lovers, you can increase the amount of sliced almonds in this recipe!

Yield 24 cookies

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

20 Min

Cook time

10 Min

Total time

30 Min

Print

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Almond Joy Cookies

Chewy cookies loaded with coconut, chocolate, and almonds, just like the Almond Joy candy bar.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup / 168g neutral-flavored cooking oil
• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar
• 3/4 cup / 150g brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp coconut extract
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 2 cups / 160g unsweetened shredded coconut
• 2 1/4 cups / 270g all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups (12 oz bag) / 350g semi-sweet or milk chocolate chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup / 42g sliced almonds

Instructions

1. In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, mix together oil, and sugars.
2. Beat in eggs and extracts. Stir in coconut.
3. In another medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.
4. Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients.
5. Stir in chocolate chips and almonds by hand, just until evenly distributed.
6. Drop by generous tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until cookies look puffed, slightly golden, and center no longer looks gooey.
7. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes on cookies sheets before removing to cool completely.

Notes

• Try these cookies using toasted coconut! (Toast coconut by spreading into an even layer on a baking sheet or dish, and bake at 350°F / 177°C for 5-10 minutes or until golden brown, check every 2 minutes or so to ensure it doesn’t burn, stirring if necessary.)
• I like to use a mix of both semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips in these!
• For nut lovers, you can increase the amount of sliced almonds in this recipe!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

298.91

Fat

17.71 g

Sat. Fat

7.83 g

Carbs

31.57 g

Fiber

1.82 g

Net carbs

29.76 g

Sugar

16 g

Protein

2.62 g

Sodium

159.65 mg

Cholesterol

13.64 mg

Nutritional information is approximate and based on 1 cookie.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2024/4/5/almond-joy-cookies

no chill cookie dough, chocolate chip cookies, Almond Joy

dessert

American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @jennyblogsandbakes on instagram and hashtag it #jennyblogs

---

Whole Wheat Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies

One bowl chocolate chip cookies featuring whole wheat flour and oats.

While the whole wheat flour and oats may trick you into thinking these cookies are trying to be healthy, that’s really not what they’re here for! Sure, an added bonus is that these cookies do have added nutrition, but the whole wheat flour and oats serve to add a more complex flavor profile.

Whole wheat flour adds a nutty flavor while the oats add, ahem, “oatiness” and that beloved chew from an oatmeal cookie. You can use your favorite kind of chocolate chips in this recipe, but I really love the bitterness of dark chocolate chips in these. On the flip side, I also think using white, or even white and dark (!) would be a really beautiful combo.

Chocolate chip cookies are a timeless American staple, and I love all the endless variations. Here is yet another for you to try and add to your baking repertoire!!

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

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Whole Wheat Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 14-18 medium cookies

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup / 113g oil

• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar

• 1/4 cup / 50g sugar

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1 egg

• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract

• 3/4 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1 1/2 cups / 135g rolled or quick oats

• 3/4 cup / 96g whole wheat flour

• 1/4 cup / 25g oat bran, wheat germ, or wheat bran

• 1 cup / 175g semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

Directions:

Oven preheated to 350°F / 177°C. 1 ungreased baking sheet

1. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine oil, both sugars, and salt. Beat in egg and vanilla.

2. Mix in baking powder and baking soda until thoroughly combined.

3. Stir in oats, flour, oat bran, and chips until combined. If dough seems too soft and sticky, add more flour or oats, 1/4 cup at a time, until desired consistency is achieved.

4. Drop by generous tablespoonfuls onto baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between cookies. Bake for 8-12 minutes or until lightly golden and no longer look wet.

5. Allow to cool for several minutes before removing from cookie sheets to cool completely.

Jenny’s Notes:

• In the instance you don’t have oat bran, wheat bran, or wheat germ on hand, you could add in extra flour or oats, instead. In fact, I’ve even used baby cereal with great success!

• If using rolled oats, the mixture may seem a bit stickier than if using quick oats. You may want to let the mixture sit for 10 minutes or so to see if it thickens up to a desirable consistency before adding in more flour or oats.

• While you can really use any kind of chocolate chips you wish, I really enjoy dark chocolate chips or chunks in these cookies; it really compliments the nutty whole wheat flour!

Yield 14-18 cookies

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

15 Min

Cook time

12 Min

Total time

27 Min

Print

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Whole Wheat Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies made with oats and whole wheat flour. The extra nutty flavor pairs beautifully with the chocolate chips for an indulgent yet nutritious treat.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup / 113g oil
• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar
• 1/4 cup / 50g sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups / 135g rolled or quick oats
• 3/4 cup / 96g whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup / 25g oat bran, wheat germ, or wheat bran
• 1 cup / 175g semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Oven preheated to 350°F / 177°C. 1 ungreased baking sheet
2. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine oil, both sugars, and salt. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
3. Mix in baking powder and baking soda until thoroughly combined.
4. Stir in oats, flour, oat bran, and chips until combined. If dough seems too soft and sticky, add more flour or oats, 1/4 cup at a time, until desired consistency is achieved.
5. Drop by generous tablespoonfuls onto baking sheet. Bake for 8-12 minutes or until lightly golden and no longer look wet.
6. Allow to cool for several minutes before removing from cookie sheets to cool completely.

Notes

• In the instance you don’t have oat bran, wheat bran, or wheat germ on hand, you could add in extra flour or oats, instead. In fact, I’ve even used baby cereal with great success!
• If using rolled oats, the mixture may seem a bit stickier than if using quick oats. You may want to let the mixture sit for 10 minutes or so to see if it thickens up to a desirable consistency before adding in more flour or oats.
• While you can really use any kind of chocolate chips you wish, I really enjoy dark chocolate chips or chunks in these cookies; it really compliments the nutty whole wheat flour!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

231.82

Fat

13.14 g

Sat. Fat

4.56 g

Carbs

28.53 g

Fiber

2.44 g

Net carbs

26.1 g

Sugar

12.2 g

Protein

3.66 g

Sodium

174.98 mg

Cholesterol

11.82 mg

Nutritional information is approximate and based on 14 servings.

If you don’t have oat bran, wheat bran, or wheat germ on hand, you could add in extra flour or oats, instead. In fact, I’ve even used baby cereal with great success! While you can really use any kind of chocolate chips you wish, I really enjoy dark chocolate chips or chunks in these cookies; it really compliments the nutty whole wheat flour!

cookies, chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies, whole grain, whole wheat flour

dessert, cookies

American

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Chocolate Chip Meringue Cookies

Last Updated September 7, 2024

As far as simple and delicious cookie recipes go, this is a good one to have on hand.

These cookies have only 4 ingredients, and are gluten-free, dairy-free (as long as your chocolate chips don’t contain dairy), and many other allergen and dietary needs friendly.

This is a recipe I’ve had around for ages, since I was a kid! I believe I originally got it from my cousin. I recently re-discovered these, they’re almost too easy to make, and a great way to use up extra egg whites. They’re easy enough kids can help or even make them by themselves, and with the chocolate chips, M&M’s, or other add ins, also very appealing to kids!

Are you ready for some of the easiest cookies you’ve made yet? Yeah, let’s go!

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe from my cousin

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Chocolate Chip Meringue Cookies

M&M Meringue Cookies

Makes about 24 (about 1 1/2inch / 3cm) cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 egg whites

• 1 pinch of cream of tartar

• 1/2 cup / 100g granulated sugar

• 3/4 cup / 128g mini chocolate chips or other add-in of choice

Directions:

Oven preheated to 250°F / 121°C. Line a cookie sheet with a silpat or lightly grease.

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand-held electric mixer, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with whisk attachment until foamy.

2. Add sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

3. Fold in chocolate chips with a spatula.

4. Drop onto prepared cookie sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, or until set and just starting to turn a light golden color. Allow to cool slightly before removing from cookie sheet.

Jenny’s Notes:

• Mini M&M’s are also a hit in these cookies! You can get creative, any kind of crushed candy or cookie like Oreo’s, or nuts, sprinkles, etc.

• These cookies are best enjoyed within a day or two. They can be stored loosely covered at room temperature, but if you cover too tightly they turn soft and sticky even quicker.

Yield 24

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

20 Min

Cook time

30 Min

Total time

50 Min

Print

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Chocolate Chip Meringue Cookies

4 ingredient meringue cookies with a slightly crunchy exterior and a soft, chewy inside, speckled with chocolate chips.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 2 egg whites
• 1 pinch of cream of tartar
• 1/2 cup / 100g granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup / 128g mini chocolate chips or other add-in of choice

Instructions

1. Oven preheated to 250°F / 121°C. Line a cookie sheet with a silpat or lightly grease.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand-held electric mixer, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with whisk attachment until foamy.
3. Add sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.
4. Fold in chocolate chips with a spatula.
5. Drop onto prepared cookie sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, or until set and just starting to turn a light golden color. Allow to cool slightly before removing from cookie sheet.

Notes

• Mini M&M’s are also a hit in these cookies! You can get creative, any kind of crushed candy or cookie like Oreo’s, or nuts, sprinkles, etc.
• These cookies are best enjoyed within a day or two. They can be stored loosely covered at room temperature, but if you cover too tightly they turn soft and sticky even quicker.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

45.69

Fat

1.32 g

Sat. Fat

0.81 g

Carbs

8.05 g

Fiber

0.15 g

Net carbs

7.9 g

Sugar

7.7 g

Protein

0.54 g

Cholesterol

0.84 mg

Sodium

8.04 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 1 cookie from a 24-cookie batch.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2023/10/9/chocolate-chip-meringue-cookies

meringue, egg whites, cookies, gluten-free, dairy-free

dessert, cookies

American

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Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Last Updated August 30, 2024

It’s zucchini season!

Don’t ask me why, but I am always surprised when summer rolls around and so do all the mountains of ripe zucchini…I associate zucchini with fall and winter dishes. Why? No idea. Especially when I look back over my childhood, and my mom almost always had zucchini growing in her garden (they would get huge and there would be so many, who wants zucchini???) Ah, the things we take for granted! Summer dinners would often see zucchini battered in flour and fried up over the griddle.

Now that I live in Italy, I always see the zucchini blossoms battered and fried. It’s a favorite appetizer in restaurants come summer. In fact, more often than not zucchini are sold with the blossoms still attached. Or you can buy just the blossoms. I rarely batter and fry things at home and haven’t bothered to discover other ways of using them, so I have to be careful because the blossoms go moldy much quicker than the zucchini itself! The zucchini are also quite small and light in color, at least compared to the monster dark green baseball bats that used to grow in my mom’s garden.

With the abundance of zucchini around, or any produce, I tend to start looking for new ways to cook them or improving current recipes. While I love zucchini in a stir-fry, with pasta, in risotto, pan-fried like my mama’s, etc., I wanted something different. Zucchini bread came to mind. But not just classic zucchini bread. I wanted chocolate zucchini bread. Double chocolate zucchini bread.

Thus this recipe was born, and if you’re at the point where you’re getting sick of all the zucchini, this is the recipe for you. You won’t even know there is zucchini in it. It’s chocolatey, fudgy, not overly sweet, and just exactly what I was wanting.

Aside from having vegetables in it, it doesn’t have much oil, using half yogurt or applesauce instead, keeping the calories and fat content down. If you’re concerned about cholesterol, you can also use egg whites instead of the whole egg! See notes below recipe for more ideas to customize this bread to your tastes and needs.

Use up sourdough discard

Another great thing about this recipe? You can use up some sourdough discard that may be lurking in your fridge. No need to feed it or for it to be active at all, just make sure it hasn’t gone bad! Sometimes my discard sits up to 2-3 weeks in my fridge before I get to it. The longer it sits the more sour it will taste/smell, but even using a 3 week old discard I couldn’t have told you there was any in this zucchini bread! It can help bulk up recipes like this and add a little fermented nutrition!

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe adapted from my mama’s classic zucchini bread

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Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup / 100g sugar

• 1/4 cup / 56g oil

• 1/4 cup / 60g plain yogurt or applesauce

• 1 egg or 2 egg whites

• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract

• about 1/2 cup / 100g sourdough discard, optional

• 1 1/2 cups / 250g grated zucchini (about 2 medium)

• 1 cup / 120g all-purpose flour

• 1/2 cup / 50g cocoa powder

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/4 tsp baking powder

• 1 cup / 170g chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F / 177°C. Grease 1 9x5inch / 23x13cm bread pan or line with parchment paper.

1. In a large bowl, beat together sugar, oil, yogurt, egg, vanilla, and sourdough discard, if using. Stir in zucchini.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and baking powder.

3. Fold dry ingredients and chocolate chips into wet ingredients until just combined. Reserve a handful of chocolate chips for sprinkling on top, if you wish.

4. Pour into prepared bread pan, sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips, and bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. A few moist crumbs clinging to the toothpick is a good sign the bread is done but still moist! Allow to bread to cool before removing from pan and serving.

Jenny’s Notes:

• If you desire a sweeter bread, you can up the sugar to 1 cup / 200g.

• I know not everyone has plain yogurt on hand, so if you have French Vanilla or another flavor you wouldn’t mind mixing with chocolate, use that! Flavored yogurt has added sugar, so if that is important to you to keep the sugar down, simply reduce the sugar from 1/2 cup / 100g to a scant 1/2 cup / 80-90g.

• Zucchini quantity can be played with! My mom’s original recipe calls for 1 cup, but here I’ve increased it to 1 1/2 cups. If you can’t detect the veggies, why not add more so you get maximum nutrition? On that note, measuring grated, sliced, or cubed veggies by weight is always a bit tricky. From my research, the average medium zucchini weighs about 5oz or 140g, so if you’re buying zucchini specifically for this recipe, you’ll probably want to get 2, making a bit more than 1 1/2 cups, but that’s ok! I would use it all. Or just get one zucchini that’s a bit bigger. However you please, as I said it’s flexible! And I just way over-analyzed that for you. You’re welcome.

Yield 1 loaf

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

20 Min

Cook time

45 Min

Total time

1 H & 5 M

Print

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Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Fudgy, chocolatey zucchini bread loaded with chocolate chips. A sneaky way to get in more vegetables and you can even use up some sourdough discard with this recipe!

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Ingredients

• 1/2 cup / 100g sugar
• 1/4 cup / 56g oil
• 1/4 cup / 60g plain yogurt or applesauce
• 1 egg or 2 egg whites
• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract
• about 1/2 cup / 100g sourdough discard, optional
• 1 1/2 cups / 250g grated zucchini (about 2 medium)
• 1 cup / 120g all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup / 50g cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup / 170g chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F / 177°C. Grease 1 9x5inch / 23x13cm bread pan or line with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, beat together sugar, oil, yogurt, egg, vanilla, and sourdough discard, if using. Stir in zucchini.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and baking powder.
4. Fold dry ingredients and chocolate chips into wet ingredients until just combined. Reserve a handful of chocolate chips for sprinkling on top, if you wish.
5. Pour into prepared bread pan, sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips, and bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. A few moist crumbs clinging to the toothpick is a good sign the bread is done but still moist! Allow to bread to cool before removing from pan and serving.

Notes

If you desire a sweeter bread, you can up the sugar to 1 cup / 200g.I know not everyone has plain yogurt on hand, so if you have French Vanilla or another flavor you wouldn’t mind mixing with chocolate, use that! Flavored yogurt has added sugar, so if that is important to you to keep the sugar down, simply reduce the sugar from 1/2 cup / 100g to a scant 1/2 cup / 80-90g. Zucchini quantity can be played with! My mom’s original recipe calls for 1 cup, but here I’ve increased it to 1 1/2 cups. If you can’t detect the veggies, why not add more so you get maximum nutrition? On that note, measuring grated, sliced, or cubed veggies by weight is always a bit tricky. From my research, the average medium zucchini weighs about 5oz or 140g, so if you’re buying zucchini specifically for this recipe, you’ll probably want to get 2, making a bit more than 1 1/2 cups, but that’s ok! I would use it all. Or just get one zucchini that’s a bit bigger. However you please, as I said it’s flexible! And I just way over-analyzed that for you. You’re welcome.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

277.93

Fat

13.31 g

Sat. Fat

4.04 g

Carbs

38.03 g

Fiber

2.86 g

Net carbs

35.17 g

Sugar

22.45 g

Protein

4.65 g

Sodium

291.43 mg

Cholesterol

21.07 mg

Nutritional information is approximate; based on roughly 9 slices from 1 loaf. Does not include using sourdough discard.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2020/7/26/chocolate-zucchini-bread

zucchini bread, quick bread, sourdough discard, low fat recipe, double chocolate zucchini bread

bread, dessert

American

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A zucchini lurking in the background, for proof there truly is zucchini in this bread

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Beurre Noisette (browned butter) Congo Bars

Last Updated September 3, 2024

With oats.

One of the best things to happen to the cookie world is browned butter, or beurre noisette as the French call it. It not only ups the baked cookie game, but it takes cookie dough to a whole new level.

Will someone please get browned butter cookie dough ice cream on the market? Thanks.

You can find my original recipe for Beurre Noisette Chocolate Chip Cookies right here, but you might want to stick around a little longer for today’s recipe because it’s essentially the same thing, just a different form and a little quicker to make. And cookies are already quick to make, so imagine that!

Why the name congo bars? I really have no idea. They’re just chocolate chip cookies in bar form. Therefore quicker to make but not necessarily superior to the classic cookie form. It’s really down to whatever tickles your fancy in that moment.

This recipe was born under full Italian lockdown. Ironically, you think I wouldn’t want to short cut a recipe with all the time I had on my hands, but you see, I have a very small oven. I can bake a max of 5-6 cookies a time, so that’s a long time to be waiting around to take cookies out of the oven, reload the tray, and repeat. Not to mention a higher electric bill.

So what did I do? I took my handy dandy Beurre Noisette Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe and adjusted it to fit in an 8x8in / 20x20cm square pan. So great. So delicious. And the timer only goes off once! A square baking dish is also a bit easier to wash than a large and cumbersome cookie sheet.

This recipe also features oats, and you can use the browned butter while it’s still melted if you want one more time-saving trick. While I do think it’s worth the time/planning ahead to brown the butter, allow it to cool, then whip it up as you normally would in a cookie recipe (so fluffy and so delicious), it’s not essential and can save you a lot of time if you don’t.

To learn how to make browned butter, see the original Beurre Noisette Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

A recipe by Jenny

---

Beurre Noisette (browned butter) Congo Bars

Makes about 9 bars

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup / 113g butter, melted, browned, and cooled

• 3/4 cup / brown sugar

• 1 egg

• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 cup / 120g all-purpose flour

• 1/2 cup / 45g oats

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 6 oz / 170g (half a bag) chocolate chips

Directions:

Oven preheated to 350°F / 177°C. 8x8in / 20x20cm pan, greased.

1. In a medium bowl, mix together melted and cooled browned butter, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla and smooth.

2. Add in flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips. Mix until well combined.

3. Scrape dough into an even layer in the prepared pan and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until set and center no longer looks doughy.

Jenny’s Notes:

• This recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 9x13in / 23x33cm pan.

• If you choose to whip your butter, cream first just the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Then add in the rest of the wet ingredients and continue with recipe.

• Before baking you can also sprinkle some flaked sea salt on top if you’re craving the sweet and salty!

Yield 9

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

25 Min

Cook time

22 Min

Total time

47 Min

Print

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Beurre Noisette (browned butter) Congo Bars

All the goodness of browned butter chocolate chip cookies in a bar form!

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup / 113g butter, melted, browned, and cooled
• 3/4 cup / brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup / 120g all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup / 45g oats
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 6 oz / 170g (half a bag) chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Oven preheated to 350°F / 177°C. 8x8in / 20x20cm pan, greased.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together melted and cooled browned butter, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla and smooth.
3. Add in flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and chocolate chips. Mix until well combined.
4. Scrape dough into an even layer in the prepared pan and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until set and center no longer looks doughy.

Notes

This recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 9x13in / 23x33cm pan.If you choose to whip your butter, cream first just the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Then add in the rest of the wet ingredients and continue with recipe. Before baking you can also sprinkle some flaked sea salt on top if you’re craving the sweet and salty!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

316.06

Fat

16.84 g

Sat. Fat

10.05 g

Carbs

40.76 g

Fiber

1.98 g

Net carbs

38.78 g

Sugar

25.25 g

Protein

3.65 g

Sodium

321.79 mg

Cholesterol

47.66 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 9 servings.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2020/5/18/beurre-noisette-browned-butter-congo-bars

browned butter, chocolate chip cookies, congo bars, cookies

cookies, dessert

American

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---

Chocolate Chip Brioche Rolls

But why are they so golden? Many thanks to butter and egg wash.

Last Updated August 11, 2024

I've been thinking about you a lot recently.  How sweet you are, how tender you are, how you like to butter me up. Yeah, you're a little soft, but I love that about you. I wake up in the morning hoping you'll want to meet me for coffee. Will you, brioche? Please say yes. Before life hardens you and you become like a rock. But if not, how about your friend? He looks yummy, too - Oh hey. Welcome to my blog! Yep, I'm writing a recipe about brioche, mmm hmmm. No, I was not talking to the brioche. Just eating. Nom nom nom. See? Delicious. Yep. Believe me and make these, and you'll be talking to your brioche, too.  

Brioche is a yeasted, enriched bread or bun. By enriched I mean, rich in butter, with help from sugar and eggs.  The amount of butter in the recipe for brioche must be equal to or more than 20% of the flour weight, but can go up to 100%.  I like to think of brioche in three categories, as called by Peter Reinhart: 

1. Poor man's brioche - consisting of at least 20% butter

2. Middle-class brioche - consisting of around 50% butter

3. Rich man's brioche - consisting of 50-80% butter, or on rare occasion, more!

To find the butter percentage, divide the weight of the butter by the weight of the flour and multiply by 100.  

Butter weight / flour weight x 100 = Butter percentage

For example, let's take the recipe below, which calls for 6 Tbsp butter or 85g by weight, divided by 2 1/2 cups flour or 300g by weight, which equals 0.28.  Multiply 0.28 by 100 and you get 28.  Thus the butter percentage is 28 percent in this recipe.  Poor man's brioche!  

85 / 300 x 100 = 28

If the words ratio, weight, percentage make you glaze over, stay with me. It can be confusing at first, but understanding these concepts can really enhance your baking experience. Think of it as the key that unlocks all recipes and links them together. Instead of blindly following a recipe, always secretly wondering what will happen if you omit an egg, use baking soda instead of baking powder, add less flour or sugar than called for, formulas such as this can help you compare recipes across the board. You’ll start to notice similarities, how textures are affected by the ratio of liquids to flour, fat to flour, etc. Ok, so baking soda vs. baking powder is more in the realm of science, but also helpful! Science and math, who knew?

Are we done yet? No, on to the poor man's brioche!

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. Where possible, links are prioritized to small businesses and ethically and responsibly made items. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe adapted from Soup Addict

---

Chocolate Chip Brioche Rolls

Makes 12 rolls

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour

• 2 tsp / 6g instant yeast

• 1/3 / 67g cup sugar

• 1 1/2 tsp / 11g salt

• 1/2 cup / 118g milk

• 1/2 cup / 118g buttermilk or sour milk

• 6 Tbsp / 85g butter, room temperature

• 2 eggs

• 1 1/3 cup / 234g chocolate chips or chunks

Directions:

Oven 350°F / 177°C.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat.

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, mix together flour, yeast, sugar, and salt.  

2. In a small saucepan heat milk and buttermilk until about 105°F / 40°C.  Add to flour mixture and mix until well combined.  

3. With the mixer running, add butter and allow to mix until fully immersed.  Add 1 egg.  

4. Switch to the dough hook and knead on medium speed for 6-8 minutes, until the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl and starts to make a slapping sound against the bowl.  If the dough is still clinging to the sides, add a touch more flour until it no longer sticks.  

5. Mix in chocolate chips just long enough to incorporate.  

6. Transfer dough to a large oiled bowl.  Flip dough so that both sides are now oiled.  Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to ferment in a warm place for about 1 1/2 hours, or until doubled in size.   

7. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 equal pieces.  Roll each piece into a ball and place evenly spaced on the prepared baking sheet.  

8. Beat second egg with 1 tablespoon of water. Use a pastry brush or your fingers to brush each dough well with egg wash. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for about 1 hour, or until puffed.  

9. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown and internal temperature reads about 180°F / 82°C.  

Jenny's Notes:

• If you don’t have buttermilk or sour milk, you can make your own sour milk by adding 1 Tbsp lemon juice or vinegar per 1 cup milk.

• After you've made the dough, you can place the dough in the fridge before the first or second ferment. That way the ferment will happen slowly in the fridge, and you can shape or bake the rolls the next day.  Allow the dough to come to room temperature before rolling or baking, then continue as instructed.

• Use any leftover egg wash for another baking venture or omelette!

Yield 12

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

55 Min

Cook time

30 Min

Total time

1 H & 25 M

Print

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Chocolate Chip Brioche Rolls

Buttery, soft, sweet, enriched brioche rolls speckled with chocolate chips.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp / 6g instant yeast
• 1/3 / 67g cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp / 11g salt
• 1/2 cup / 118g milk
• 1/2 cup / 118g buttermilk or sour milk
• 6 Tbsp / 85g butter, room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/3 cup / 234g chocolate chips or chunks

Instructions

1. Oven 350°F / 177°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, mix together flour, yeast, sugar, and salt.
3. In a small saucepan heat milk and buttermilk until about 105°F / 40°C. Add to flour mixture and mix until well combined.
4. With the mixer running, add butter and allow to mix until fully immersed. Add 1 egg.
5. Switch to the dough hook and knead on medium speed for 6-8 minutes, until the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl and starts to make a slapping sound against the bowl. If the dough is still clinging to the sides, add a touch more flour until it no longer sticks.
6. Mix in chocolate chips just long enough to incorporate.
7. Transfer dough to a large oiled bowl. Flip the dough so that both sides are now oiled. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to ferment in a warm place for about 1 1/2 hours, or until doubled in size.
8. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place evenly spaced on the prepared baking sheet.
9. Beat the second egg with 1 tablespoon of water. Use a pastry brush or your fingers to brush each dough well with egg wash. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for about 1 hour, or until puffed.
10. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown and internal temperature reads about 180°F / 82°C.

Notes

If you don’t have buttermilk or sour milk, you can make your own sour milk by adding 1 Tbsp lemon juice or vinegar per 1 cup milk. After you've made the dough, you can place the dough in the fridge before the first or second ferment. That way the ferment will happen slowly in the fridge, and you can shape or bake the rolls the next day. Allow the dough to come to room temperature before rolling or baking, then continue as instructed.Use any leftover egg wash for another baking venture or omelette!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

265.01

Fat

12.95 g

Sat. Fat

7.58 g

Carbs

34.61 g

Fiber

1.96 g

Net carbs

32.65 g

Sugar

13.04 g

Protein

5.38 g

Sodium

439.38 mg

Cholesterol

47.41 mg

Nutritional information is approximate.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2017/9/20/chocolate-chip-brioche-rolls

brioche, brioche rolls, poor man's brioche, recipe, chocolate chip brioche, butter

Bread, Breakfast

French

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---

Very Chocolate Cherry Brownies

Last Updated August 10, 2024

This post contains affiliate links. If you buy something using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

We bakers like to stick to the four main food groups: Chocolate, chooooocolate, chocolat, and cioccolato.  Although we no longer believe, as the Aztecs did, that chocolate is a gift from the gods nor do we throw away the golden goblet once the chocolate drink has been consumed (haven't you heard about recycling?! Sheesh), we'll take it for its taste and possible health properties.  I say possible because it hasn't been scientifically proven yet.  But we know in our hearts, right?  So, let's make some Very Chooooocolate brownies.  And throw in some cherries because it's just about cherry season and I grew up in a cherry town.  National Cherry Festival, anyone?  

---

Double Chocolate Cherry Brownies

Makes about 9-12 brownies

Ingredients:

• 6 Tbsp / 85g butter

• 1 1/3 cup / 225g chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate bar, or chips

• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar

• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract

• 2 eggs

• 1/3 cup / 40g all-purpose flour

• 2/3 cup / 115g bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips

• generous 1/2 cup / 110g dried cherries

Directions:

Oven 350°F / 177°C.  Grease an 8x8in / 20x20cm square pan.

1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat.  Add the chocolate and stir continuously until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. 

2. Remove from the heat and add sugar and vanilla.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time.  

3. Add the flour and stir vigorously for about a minute, until the batter turns from grainy to glossy, and starts to pull away from the edges of the pan.  Add chocolate chips and cherries.

4. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until center isn't quite set or a toothpick inserted near the center comes out mostly clean.  

Jenny's Notes:

• If using semisweet chocolate I prefer to reduce the sugar to 125g or about a generous 1/2 cup. 

• Don't over-bake brownies!  In my opinion, brownies are always better off on the dense, slightly under-baked side than dry or crispy.  

• Nut fan?  Add 1/2 cup walnut, pecans, or your nut of choice! 

Yield 9-12 servings

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

20 Min

Cook time

30 Min

Total time

50 Min

Print

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Double Chocolate Cherry Brownies

Dense, fudgy, double chocolate brownies loaded with chocolate chunks and tart dried cherries.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 6 Tbsp / 85g butter
• 1 1/3 cup / 225g chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate bar, or chips
• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar
• 1 tsp / 5g vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup / 40g all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup / 115g bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
• generous 1/2 cup / 110g dried cherries

Instructions

1. Oven 350°F / 177°C. Grease an 8x8in / 20x20cm square pan.
2. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the chocolate and stir continuously until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.
3. Remove from the heat and add sugar and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time.
4. Add the flour and stir vigorously for about a minute, until the batter turns from grainy to glossy, and starts to pull away from the edges of the pan. Add chocolate chips and cherries.
5. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until center isn't quite set or a toothpick inserted near the center comes out mostly clean.

Notes

If using semisweet chocolate I prefer to reduce the sugar to 125g or about a generous 1/2 cup. Don't over-bake brownies! Brownies are always better off on the dense, slightly under-baked side than dry or crispy. Nut fan? Add 1/2 cup walnut, pecans, or your nut of choice!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

387.92

Fat

20.18 g

Sat. Fat

11.93 g

Carbs

54.18 g

Fiber

2.66 g

Net carbs

51.53 g

Sugar

45.56 g

Protein

3.67 g

Sodium

82.56 mg

Cholesterol

61.64 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 9 servings.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2017/6/16/very-chocolate-cherry-brownies

dried cherry brownies, double chocolate cherry brownies, fudgy dense chocolate brownies, chocolate chip brownies, best ever brownies, favorite brownies

dessert

American

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---

New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

Last Updated October 25, 2024

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Going back to the classics. American classics. Chocolate chip cookies. And not just any chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chip cookies the NY Times way. Want me to say chocolate chip cookies one more time? Chocolate. Chip. Cookies.  

Why do we need one more chocolate chip cookie recipe floating around?  

When it comes to the kitchen, I'm not one much for routine. I like to explore, to try and constantly better what it is in my power to improve. And as I am constantly learning about foods and why ingredients act the way they do, the more I can apply that to recipes. When you have a classic such as chocolate chip cookies (yes, chocolate chip cookies) it may seem unnecessary to improve upon it. Chances are, even if your recipe isn't that great, they probably will taste great anyway. They're pretty hard to mess up. That's also why there are so many chocolate chip cookie recipes out there. People are satisfied with "good" when they don't know they're missing out on "great".  

I have three recipes for chocolate chip cookies that I love, including the one I am about to share with you. The other two include a classic recipe a.k.a. my mom’s famous chocolate chip cookies, and one with browned butter. You can find that one here. I'm sure there are more out there that are wonderful. But for now, I share with you another truly good recipe.  Courtesy of the NY Times, they knew what they were doing with this one.

The recipe includes bread flour and cake flour, lending a wonderful chew and delicate crumb, respectively.

Then there is the long refrigeration, which allows all the ingredients to marry and the flavor to concentrate as the dough dries out ever so slightly.

When the cookies are finally baked, the sugar is able to crystallize easier resulting in beautiful golden edges with a center still soft, and an extra caramel nutty flavor.

Even if the refrigeration has to be skipped due to a time constraint, the cookies will still turn out delicious, although I would urge you to try the refrigeration for yourself to taste that extra special result!

Recipe adapted from the NY Times

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New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 40-70 cookies, depending on size.

Ingredients:

• 220g / 2 cups cake flour

• 200g / 1 2/3 cup bread flour

• 6g / 1 1/4 tsp baking soda

• 6g / 1 1/4 tsp baking powder

• 5g / 1 tsp salt

• 283g / 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter

• 250g / 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar

• 225g / 1 generous cup granulated sugar

• 2 eggs

• 9g / 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 566g / 20 oz. 60% bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks

Directions:

1. Whisk together cake flour, bread flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla.  

3. Add dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Carefully incorporate chocolate chips by hand using a spoon, as a stand mixer can crush chocolate chips.

4. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate dough for 24 - 72 hours. 

5. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F / 177°C. Scoop cold dough out onto cookie sheets in 1" balls, or desired size. Sprinkle with a touch of sea salt, if desired.  Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges turn a nice golden brown and centers still look a bit soft.  

Jenny's Notes:

• Why bread and cake flour?  Bread flour has a higher gluten content and lends more crisp and chew to the cookies.  Cake flour is finer and lends a delicate crumb.  

• If you need these cookies the same day you are making the cookies, the refrigeration is not absolutely essential.  When you place a dough in the fridge, the moisture in the dough is able to be evenly absorbed, then after a time begins to dry out, concentrating the flavors.  Then, when you bake the cookies, the sugar is able to caramelize better.  That is the beautiful golden brown color you see, and nutty flavor you taste.  Also, a cold or refrigerated dough won't spread as much.    

Yield 40-70 cookies

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

30 Min

Cook time

20 Min

Inactive time

24 Hour

Total time

24 H & 50 M

Print

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NY Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies get a remix with bread flour, cake flour, and the magic trick of refrigeration, resulting in nothing short of amazing cookies.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 220g / 2 cups cake flour
• 200g / 1 2/3 cup bread flour
• 6g / 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 6g / 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 5g / 1 tsp salt
• 283g / 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter
• 250g / 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
• 225g / 1 generous cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 9g / 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 566g / 20 oz. 60% bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks

Instructions

1. Whisk together cake flour, bread flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla.
3. Add dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Carefully incorporate chocolate chips. You may want to use a spoon as a stand mixer can crush the chocolate chips.
4. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate dough for 24-72 hours.
5. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F / 177°C. Scoop cold dough out onto cookie sheets in 1" balls, or desired size. Sprinkle with a touch of sea salt, if you like. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges turn a nice golden brown and centers still look a bit soft.

Notes

Why bread and cake flour? Bread flour has a higher gluten content and lends more crisp and chew to the cookies. Cake flour is finer and lends a delicate crumb. If you need these cookies the same day you are making the cookies, the refrigeration is not absolutely essential. When you place a dough in the fridge, the moisture in the dough is able to be evenly absorbed, then after a time begins to dry out, concentrating the flavors. Then, when you bake the cookies, the sugar is able to caramelize better. That is the beautiful golden brown color you see, and nutty flavor you taste. Also, a cold or refrigerated dough won't spread as much.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

235.01

Fat

13.56 g

Sat. Fat

8.26 g

Carbs

24.83 g

Fiber

2.61 g

Net carbs

22.22 g

Sugar

11.36 g

Protein

3.66 g

Sodium

122.36 mg

Cholesterol

24.84 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 1 cookie from a 40-cookie batch.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2017/3/26/chocolate-chip-cookies

chocolate chips, bread flour, cake flour, NY Times, cookies

Dessert

American

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---

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Muffins

Do you like my snowman liners? :)

This post may contain affiliate links. If you buy something using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Muffins are great, aren’t they? So American and so versatile. They can be savory or sweet and just about any flavor you could desire. They can be calorie bombs or nutrition bombs. These Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Muffins are actually pretty good for you, considering how delicious they are.

The sugar content is low, only whole wheat flour is used, and they’re rich in peanut butter and chocolate!

Sometimes I think muffins don’t get the recognition they deserve. Each country has its specialty and maybe of all the things that my country could’ve invented I would’ve chosen croissants or pastries, but muffins have their place on the table for sure! I am not ashamed.

The world is a beautiful place full of diverse people, traditions, and food.  The beauty of the age we live in is how accessible it has become to travel.  You no longer have to rely on magazines and other people's experience, or weigh the cost of time it takes to get places and the chance of death as you voyage on a ship or whatnot.  Even if you remain right where you are, chances are the other people around you are coming and going.  The world is opening up more and more, we are no longer isolated from each other.  We are exposed to different ways of thinking, culture, languages, ideals.  Sometimes we agree, and sometimes we don't, and as long as we know how to do those two things humbly and lovingly, it can be a beautiful thing.  Even when it seems the disagreements outweigh the agreements, there will always be one thing we have in common: Food. 

Never underestimate the power of food.  We can thank France for flaky, buttery pastries, crepes, chocolate mousse, and baguettes, Italy for pizza, pasta, gelato, and panettone, Germany for pretzels and bratwurst, Greece for Gyros and tzatziki, the middle east for hummus, falafel, tabbouleh, baba ganoush, pita, and shawarma, Turkey for Turkish delight and baklava, Japan for sushi, China for wontons, spring rolls, and dumplings, Ireland for Shepherd's pie, Mexico for tacos, burritos, and enchiladas, Canada for Poutine, U.S. for macaroni and cheese, apple pie, s'mores, buffalo wings, jambalaya, annnnnnd muffins. 

Basically, while the French are making pastries, Americans are making muffins.  Hm.  That's fine.  Taking two days to make something does not necessarily mean it will be automatically better.  (In this case, however, I think it does.)  But we don't always have the luxury of taking two days to make pastries when the fancy strikes.  Life and work happens.  Enter the humble muffin.  Simple, humble, delicious, and quick to whip up.  It has its place in the kitchen.

They tend to get a bad rap for being high in calories, unhealthy, and associated with muffin tops.  I promise, their sole intent in life is not give you a muffin top.  Poor muffins.  I am here today to show you that muffins can be nutritious, not 500 calories a pop, and enjoyable to make.  I hope I don't have to tell you they are also enjoyable to eat.  Especially these ones. :)

Recipe adapted from Culinary Adventures in the Kitchen

---

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Muffins

12-14 muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups / 270g whole wheat or white whole wheat flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 3 Tbsp / 42g oil

• 1/4 cup / 61g yogurt

• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar

• 3/4 cup / 195g peanut butter

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup / 237g buttermilk

• 1 cup / 175g chocolate chips

Directions:

Oven 375°F / 190°C.  Muffin tin lined with cupcake liners or greased.  You may need two pans.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. 

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine oil, yogurt, and brown sugar.  Add peanut butter and mix until incorporated.  Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. 

3. Add 1/3 of flour mixture to the stand mixer, mixing just until combined.  Add half of the buttermilk, again mixing until just combined.  Repeat with another third of the flour, the remaining half of the buttermilk, and finally the last third of flour.  Gently stir in 3/4 cup / 130g chocolate chips with a spoon or spatula. 

4. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full, and sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup / 44g chocolate chips over the tops. 

5. Bake until lightly golden around the edges and/or a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean, about 16-18 minutes. 

Jenny's Notes:

• Whole wheat flour is not necessarily healthier than white whole wheat flour, they are simply different kinds of wheat.  Whole wheat flour is a red wheat, which gives it the darker color and slightly heavier texture.  Think of it like a Granny Smith apple and a Macintosh Apple, they are different varieties of apple but equally nutritious for you. 

• Using either plain yogurt or a sweetened yogurt like vanilla is fine in this recipe. 

• These muffins are not overly sweet, (I think they're perfect for breakfast so you don't start your day with a sugar coma) so feel free to up the sugar if you prefer sweeter muffins. 

Yield 12-14 Muffins

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

30 Min

Cook time

18 Min

Total time

48 Min

Print

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Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Muffins

Lightly sweet, whole wheat peanut butter muffins with a healthy sprinkling of chocolate chips.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups / 270g whole wheat or white whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 Tbsp / 42g oil
• 1/4 cup / 61g yogurt
• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar
• 3/4 cup / 195g peanut butter
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup / 237g buttermilk
• 1 cup / 175g chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Oven 375°F / 190°C. Muffin tin lined with cupcake liners or greased. You may need two pans.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine oil, yogurt, and brown sugar. Add peanut butter and mix until incorporated. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.
4. Add 1/3 of flour mixture to the stand mixer, mixing just until combined. Add half of the buttermilk, again mixing until just combined. Repeat with another third of the flour, the remaining half of the buttermilk, and finally the last third of flour. Gently stir in 3/4 cup / 130g chocolate chips with a spoon or spatula.
5. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full, and sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup / 44g chocolate chips over the tops.
6. Bake until lightly golden around the edges and/or a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean, about 16-18 minutes.

Notes

Whole wheat flour is not necessarily healthier than white whole wheat flour, they are simply different kinds of wheat. Whole wheat flour is a red wheat, which gives it the darker color and slightly heavier texture. Think of it like a Granny Smith apple and a Macintosh Apple, they are different varieties of apple but equally nutritious for you. Using either plain yogurt or a sweetened yogurt like vanilla is fine in this recipe. These muffins are not overly sweet, (I think they're perfect for breakfast so you don't start your day with a sugar coma) so feel free to up the sugar if you prefer sweeter muffins.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

329.90

Fat

17.53 g

Sat. Fat

4.88 g

Carbs

39.14 g

Fiber

4.20 g

Net carbs

34.95 g

Sugar

18.61 g

Protein

9.13 g

Sodium

328.68 mg

Cholesterol

32.10 mg

Nutritional information is approximate and based on 12 servings.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2017/2/11/whole-wheat-peanut-butter-muffins

muffins,snack,nutritious, chocolate chips, whole wheat, dark chocolate, peanut butter, buttermilk,yogurt

Breakfast, Bread

American

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---

Orange Chocolate Chip Scones

Last Updated August 5, 2024

Do you know what goes great with cold weather?  Hot beverages, like tea and coffee. 

And do you know which carbs goes best with tea and coffee? Scones. 

That's not to say that scones are dry and should only be served with hot liquids to help re-salivate your mouth. If that's your past experience, then you need to find a new scone recipe or scone baker. I like the sound of that. Scone baker. Sconed baker.  The scorned baker. Maybe not. Moving on. These scones are wonderful!! Light and flaky. Not too sweet, with a nice burst of citrusy orange that pairs beautifully with the bitterness of the chocolate.

January is for baking.  Not dieting.  (Whole30 I'm looking at you.  In a very kind way.  Maybe not.)  Particularly breads, scones, cookies...winter and carbs are good buddies.  Love handles are an awkward third wheel.  But we get to wear big cozy sweaters and sit by fireplaces if we want to. I love winter. I love baking. I love these scones. Without further ado….

This post may contain affiliate links. If you buy something using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe adapted from Joy the Baker

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Orange Chocolate Chip Scones

Makes about 12 scones

Ingredients:

• 3 cups / 360g all-purpose flour

• 1/4 cup / 50g sugar

• 4 tsp orange zest

• 4 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp salt

• scant 3/4 cup / 150g oil

• 1 egg

• 3/4 cup / 180g buttermilk

• 1 cup / 170g chocolate chips or chunks

Directions:

Oven 425°F / 218°C.  Baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

1. In a large bowl whisk together flour, sugar, zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Add oil and mix until texture resembles coarse crumbs.

2. Whisk together egg and buttermilk.  Add to dry mixture until evenly moistened but being careful not to overmix.  Fold in chocolate chips. 

3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a few rounds, 12-14 times.  Roll or pat out into a rectangle of about 1-inch thickness.  Cut into 12 squares.

4. Place on prepared baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes, until scones no longer look doughy in the center and the bottoms are a light golden brown.  

5. Best served same day, with tea and coffee and butter and jam, if you wish.   

Jenny's Notes:

• In place of chocolate chips you can also break up a chocolate bar. Last time I used a chocolate bar with hazelnuts in it for Orange Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Scones and it was scrumptious.

• Scones are so great, and there are many different varieties and recipes for them.  As long as they aren't too dry, I think they all have merit.  In fact, I have several different scone recipes, this is just one of them.  They are similar, but with slight differences that make each one valuable.

Yield 12 servings

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

25 Min

Cook time

15 Min

Total time

40 Min

Print

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Orange Chocolate Chip Scones

Light, moist, orange and chocolate chip scones.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 3 cups / 360g all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup / 50g sugar
• 4 tsp orange zest
• 4 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• scant 3/4 cup / 150g oil
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup / 180g buttermilk
• 1 cup / 170g chocolate chips or chunks

Instructions

1. Oven 425°F / 218°C. Baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl whisk together flour, sugar, zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add oil and mix until texture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Whisk together egg and buttermilk. Add to dry mixture until evenly moistened but being careful not to overmix. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a few rounds, 12-14 times. Roll or pat out into a rectangle of about 1-inch thickness. Cut into 12 squares.
5. Place on prepared baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes, until scones no longer look doughy in the center and the bottoms are a light golden brown.
6. Best served same day, with tea and coffee and butter and jam, if you wish.

Notes

In place of chocolate chips you can also break up a chocolate bar. Last time I used a chocolate bar with hazelnuts in it for Orange Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Scones and it was scrumptious.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

317.34

Fat

17.57 g

Sat. Fat

3.59 g

Carbs

37.50 g

Fiber

1.72 g

Net carbs

35.78 g

Sugar

12.69 g

Protein

4.72 g

Sodium

465.72 mg

Cholesterol

16.10 mg

Nutritional information is approximate and based on 12 servings.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2017/1/26/orange-chocolate-chip-scones

Scones, quick bread, orange, chocolate

bread, breakfast

American, British

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---

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

Last Updated August 5, 2024

Some people are adverse to the word healthy when it comes to desserts.  This recipe today is to help you see you don't need to be one of those people. 

Oh, but what I would give to have a little slice of this pie right now, healthy or not!  Actually, I wouldn't give much.  But that doesn't mean I don't want it.  Yes, Whole30January is still happening.  It has gotten easier in recent days...but you can ask my mom, who is doing it with me, if that's a true statement.  So here is yet another recipe you can make and eat in my stead.  Please, for my sanity.  Just don't tell me how delicious it is.  I like to ask the people around me who are eating delicious nonWhole30food to tell me how disgusting it is.  It almost makes me feel better.  Won't you be glad when Whole30January is over so you won't have to hear any more of my sardonic complaining? 

What do I mean when I say healthy? I mean, aside from the chocolate chips (which have some health benefits in and of themselves aside from the sugar), that you could eat this for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

This recipe is naturally gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, and nut free. Just keep in mind you may need to use certified ingredients, i.e. certified GF oats (even though oats are a gluten-free food, they are almost always processed in facilities that also process foods that contain gluten, and there is a high risk of cross-contamination) and check your other ingredients for stowaway unwanted allergens! Chocolate chips, as long as they are semi-sweet or dark chocolate, should not contain any dairy, yet I’ve seen brands that do contain dairy. Reading labels is very important for so many reasons!

Yes ok, on to this nutritious pie that somehow tastes like dessert!

This post may contain affiliate links. If you buy something using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie

---

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

12-16 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 15oz cans / 500g cooked white beans (navy, great northern, cannellini) or garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

• 1 cup / 90g oats or 180g ground flax seeds

• 1/4 cup / 63g applesauce

• 3 Tbsp / 42g oil

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar

• 3 tsp stevia powder

• 1 cup / 170g chocolate chips or chunks, plus more for sprinkling

Directions:

Oven 350°F / 177°C.  Greased 8 - 9in / 20 - 23cm pie dish.

1. Combine all ingredients except chocolate chips in a food processor and blend until smooth.  Stir in chocolate chips. 

2. Scrape dough into prepared pan and sprinkle with additional chocolate chips. 

3. Bake in oven for 30-35 minutes.  Allow to cool before slicing and serving. 

Jenny's Notes:

• If you don’t have applesauce, you can use oil instead. That means you would be adding a total of 7 Tbsp / 98g oil, or a scant half cup.

• I adapted this recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie.  She is very good about giving lots of options if you are gluten-free, vegan, have a nut allergy, etc.  I simply narrowed it down to my favorite combination of ingredients from her options, and preferred amount of sweetener so that it tastes like dessert without giving in to your sugar dragon too much. 

• Feel free to add more sugar if you feel the need! 

• If for whatever reason your batter comes out too thick or thin, (didn't drain the beans as much, the applesauce brand you use is soupier, etc.) you can add more oats or flax to thicken, or applesauce, maple syrup, or milk to thin. 

Yield 12-16

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

15 Min

Cook time

35 Min

Total time

50 Min

Print

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Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

A healthy and somehow still delicious cookie pie that is gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, and vegan.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 2 15oz cans / 500g cooked white beans (navy, great northern, cannellini) or garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup / 90g oats or 180g ground flax seeds
• 1/4 cup / 63g applesauce
• 3 Tbsp / 42g oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar
• 3 tsp stevia powder
• 1 cup / 170g chocolate chips or chunks, plus more for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Oven 350°F / 177°C. Greased 8 - 9in / 20 - 23cm pie dish.
2. Combine all ingredients except chocolate chips in a food processor and blend until smooth. Stir in chocolate chips.
3. Scrape dough into prepared pan and sprinkle with additional chocolate chips.
4. Bake in oven for 30-35 minutes. Allow to cool before slicing and serving.

Notes

If you don’t have applesauce, you can use oil instead. That means you would be adding a total of 7 Tbsp / 98g oil, or a scant half cup. I adapted this recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie. She is very good about giving lots of options if you are gluten-free, vegan, have a nut allergy, etc. I simply narrowed it down to my favorite combination of ingredients from her options, and preferred amount of sweetener so that it tastes like dessert without giving in to your sugar dragon too much. Feel free to add more sugar if you feel the need! If for whatever reason your batter comes out too thick or thin, (didn't drain the beans as much, the applesauce brand you use is soupier, etc.) you can add more oats or flax to thicken, or applesauce, maple syrup, or milk to thin.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

280.72

Fat

10.08 g

Sat. Fat

3.02 g

Carbs

44.03 g

Fiber

7.02 g

Net carbs

37.01 g

Sugar

20.13 g

Protein

7.85 g

Sodium

533.19 mg

Cholesterol

0.00 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 12 servings.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2017/1/21/healthy-chocolate-chip-cookie-pie

vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free, nut-free, healthy, cookie pie,

dessert

American

Did you make this recipe?

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---

Banana Chocolate Chip Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

Last Updated August 4, 2024

It's almost Christmas!!!  The most wonderful time of the year, filled with family, friends, delicious food, and cheery music.  Wasn't that a wonderfully cliché sentence?  Yes, but we hope it's true.  I am fortunate enough to say that it is for me.  I love all my family, I love Christmas music (I can't always vouch for it all being "good" music, but it lifts your spirit and you can mindlessly sing along while wearing a Santa hat and elf socks without anyone thinking twice), and we have an abundance of delicious food.  So much food. 

What is one to do when they have been indundated with rich holiday food?  Take a break?  No fun.  Stand by the vegetable tray all night?  Nah, I hear the conversation can get a little heated with those peppers.  Chew gum?  No, you need a compromise.  Something that will satisfy, but not put you over like your great-aunt's cousin-once-removed on your dad's side triple chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream, ganache, whipped cream, sprinkles, drizzled with caramel and bonbons on top.  Something more like a fruit based cake.  Banana.  With chocolate chips, because it is Christmas, and peanut butter because that makes the whole thing.  The bow on top of the present.  The icing on the cake...so very literally. Plus protein. It’s basically a health food, you guys.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you buy something using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

Recipe adapted from Handle the Heat

---

Banana Chocolate Chip Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

Makes 12-16 servings

Ingredients:

For the Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour

• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 3/4 baking soda

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 3/4 cup / 168g oil

• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar

• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 cup / 123g plain yogurt or sour cream

• 4 overripe bananas, mashed, to get roughly 1 1/3 cups / 400g mashed banana

• 1 cup / 170g mini chocolate chips

For the Peanut Butter Frosting

• 1 cup / 226g unsalted butter (2 sticks, 8 oz), room temperature

• 1 cup / 260g creamy peanut butter

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• pinch of salt

• 2 - 2 1/2 cups / 250-313g powdered sugar

Directions:

Oven preheated to 350°F / 177°C.  Grease and flour two 8 or 9in / 20 or 23cm round cake pans.

Make the Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.  Set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together oil and sugars.  Add vanilla and eggs; beat well.

3. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the egg mixture.  Mix in yogurt.  Add another third of flour mixture.  Add bananas.  Add final third of flour mixture.  Fold in chocolate chips.

4. Pour and divide batter evenly between the two prepared pans. 

5. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.   Allow to cool for about 10 minutes in the pans before flipping out onto cooling racks to cool completely. 

Make the Peanut Butter Frosting

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and peanut butter together until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and salt.  Add 2 cups of powdered sugar; add more as needed until frosting is thick enough to spread. 

Assembly

1. Center one cake layer upside down on a cake stand or plate.  Frost this layer within 1/4 inch of edge of cake. 

2. Place second layer on top, and frost cake with remaining frosting.  Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips, if desired. 

Jenny's Notes:

• I prefer to use organic yogurt instead of sour cream in recipes simply because it's healthier.  I don’t always have plain yogurt on hand, so in those cases I use vanilla yogurt and reduce the sugar in the recipe by 1/3-1/2 cup, depending on the amount of yogurt called for.  Feel free to use whatever you have on hand! 

Yield 12-16

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

1 Hour

Cook time

40 Min

Total time

1 H & 40 M

Print

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Banana Chocolate Chip Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

A tender banana cake speckled with chocolate chips topped with a creamy peanut butter frosting.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

For the Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

• 2 1/2 cups / 300g all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup / 168g oil
• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar
• 1/2 cup / 100g brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup / 123g plain yogurt or sour cream
• 4 overripe bananas, mashed, to get roughly 1 1/3 cups / 400g mashed banana
• 1 cup / 170g mini chocolate chips

For the Peanut Butter Frosting

• 1 cup / 226g unsalted butter (2 sticks, 8 oz), room temperature
• 1 cup / 260g creamy peanut butter
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 2 - 2 1/2 cups / 250-313g powdered sugar

Instructions

Make the Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

1. Oven preheated to 350°F / 177°C. Grease and flour two 8 or 9in / 20 or 23cm round cake pans.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together oil and sugars. Add vanilla and eggs; beat well.
4. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the egg mixture. Mix in yogurt. Add another third of flour mixture. Add bananas. Add final third of flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chips.
5. Pour and divide batter evenly between the two prepared pans.
6. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes in the pans before flipping out onto cooling racks to cool completely.

Make the Peanut Butter Frosting

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and peanut butter together until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and salt. Add 2 cups of powdered sugar; add more as needed until frosting is thick enough to spread.

Assembly

1. Center one cake layer upside down on a cake stand or plate. Frost this layer within 1/4 inch of edge of cake.
2. Place second layer on top, and frost cake with remaining frosting. Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips, if desired.

Notes

I prefer to use organic yogurt instead of sour cream in recipes simply because it's healthier. I don’t always have plain yogurt on hand, so in those cases I use vanilla yogurt and reduce the sugar in the recipe by 1/3-1/2 cup, depending on the amount of yogurt called for. Feel free to use whatever you have on hand!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

785.39

Fat

45.52 g

Sat. Fat

15.55 g

Carbs

88.21 g

Fiber

3.37 g

Net carbs

84.84 g

Sugar

59.78 g

Protein

10.55 g

Sodium

386.82 mg

Cholesterol

75.36 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 12 servings using the full 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar for the frosting.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2016/12/23/chocolate-chip-banana-cake-with-peanut-butter-frosting

Banana, cake, banana chocolate chip, chocolate chip cake, peanut butter, peanut butter frosting, banana cake, ripe banana recipe

Dessert, Cake

American

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---

Pumpkin Spice Energy Bites

Last Updated July 16, 2024

The great thing about these Pumpkin Spice Energy Bites is that they whip up so quick. In less than 15 minutes you can have delicious morsels easy to grab for a snack, pack for a quick lunch, or take on long car rides.  They're so easy to make you might spend more time assembling the ingredients, or mis en place, than making them!

These little balls of energy are all about that pumpkin and spice and everything nice, and health and wealth with all of that schmealth. Or something like that. These will not make you rich. Or give you schmealth. I would never wish schmealth on anyone. That sounds like some terrible disease. Nor will these actually bite you. You bite them. Nom nom nom.

 Now if I would stop rambling you probably could've had them already made...Scusami.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. Where possible, links are prioritized to small businesses, and American companies and products made in the USA for American readers. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

---

Pumpkin Spice Energy Bites

Makes about 12-15 Bites

Ingredients:

• 1 cup / 90g rolled oats

• 1/4 cup / 65g peanut butter

• 1/4 cup / 60g pumpkin purée

• 1/4 cup 45g ground flax seeds or wheat germ

• 1/4 cup / 45g mini chocolate chips

• 3 Tbsp / 60g maple syrup or honey

• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/4 tsp cloves

• 1/4 tsp ginger

• 1/4 tsp nutmeg

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl combine all ingredients; mix well.

2. Roll mixture into approximately 1 inch balls.  Place in a container and store in the refrigerator, or freeze for snacking at a later date. 

Jenny's Notes:

• With these types of recipes you do not have to be overly exact in your measurements.  If the dough seems too soft, simply add more oats or flax.  Too crumbly and you can add any number of things, honey, maple syrup, peanut butter...the choice is yours to personalize as you wish!

• To make these energy bites vegan, be sure to use maple syrup instead of honey. For gluten-free energy bites, make sure your oats are certified gluten-free. For dairy-free, ensure your chocolate chips are dairy-free.

Yield 12-15

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

15 Min

Total time

15 Min

Print

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Pumpkin Spice Energy Bites

A quick and versatile snack, on the go breakfast, or dessert full of pumpkin and fall spice that is easily made vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 1 cup / 90g rolled oats
• 1/4 cup / 65g peanut butter
• 1/4 cup / 60g pumpkin purée
• 1/4 cup 45g ground flax seeds or wheat germ
• 1/4 cup / 45g mini chocolate chips
• 3 Tbsp / 60g maple syrup or honey
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl combine all ingredients; mix well.
2. Roll mixture into approximately 1 inch balls. Place in a container and store in the refrigerator, or freeze for snacking at a later date.

Notes

With these types of recipes you do not have to be overly exact in your measurements. If the dough seems too soft, simply add more oats or flax. Too crumbly and you can add any number of things, honey, maple syrup, peanut butter...the choice is yours to personalize as you wish!To make these energy bites vegan, be sure to use maple syrup instead of honey. For gluten-free energy bites, make sure your oats are certified gluten-free. For dairy-free, ensure your chocolate chips are dairy-free.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

119.52

Fat

6.04 g

Sat. Fat

1.44 g

Carbs

14.60 g

Fiber

2.81 g

Net carbs

11.78 g

Sugar

5.77 g

Protein

3.37 g

Sodium

28.96 mg

Cholesterol

0.00 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 12 servings.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2016/10/13/pumpkin-spice-energy-bites

pumpkin spice, energy balls, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, fall recipe

snacks

American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @jennyblogsandbakes on instagram and hashtag it #jennyblogs

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Now that didn't hurt, did it?  Happy snacking!

Burgundy Chocolate Cherry Cookies

September 24 feels like a very significant day.  You know, one of those days where you feel like it's someone's birthday (well, that's always true, even if you don't know them), a holiday, or something significant happened for you on that day.  But, I have nothing.  Except, this day last year my friend Hannah and I got off our first and hopefully last overnight train in Europe...terror....nope, not that.  Oh, it's the third day of autumn.  OH YEAH.  That's significant, we'll roll with that.  If you still have a nagging feeling like you're forgetting something, best wish everyone you meet a happy birthday, just in case...

...and make these Burgundy Chocolate Cherry Cookies so it really didn't look like you forgot....worst case scenario it's no one's birthday and you have to eat them yourself...

...actually, it's always a good idea to have cookies on hand, whatever the occasion, if even just to say "Happy September 24!" Especially these ones. 

Let me list some reasons for you.  Wine, chocolate, very chocolate, cherries, super chocolatey, and very chocolatey.  In fact, the batter is so chocolatey it makes the semi-sweet chocolate chips look like light milk chocolate.  But they are not.  So chocolatey. 

Go make them. And Happy Birthday.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, Jennyblogs may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. This helps to support Jennyblogs. For further information see the privacy policy. Grazie!

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Burgundy Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 cups / 240g all-purpose flour

• 3/4 cup / 75g cocoa powder

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp salt

• 1/4 cup / 56g oil

• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar

• 3/4 cup / 150g brown sugar

• 1 egg

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 cup / 118g burgundy red wine

• 12 oz / 340g bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

• 1 cup / 120g dried cherries

Directions:

Oven 375°F / 190°C. Have ready 1 or 2 ungreased baking sheets.

1. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.

2. In another large bowl combine oil, sugar, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla.  Carefully stir in wine.  Stir in dry ingredients until fully incorporated, then add chocolate chips and cherries.  Dough will be soft, but shouldn't be too soupy.  If it is, add a touch more flour.

3. Spoon little mounds onto a baking sheet and bake for 6-8 minutes, until edges look set but center still looks wet.  Allow to cool for several minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack or counter to cool completely.

Pairs wonderfully with...the remainder of the bottle of wine you used to make these...

Jenny's Notes:

• Feel free to use any kind of red wine you like for these!  I have used the an Italian red, Savini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Riserva with great success, and the cookies in the photos I used a French red, Côtes du Rhône.  I chose to call these Burgundy because of the Burgundy wine region, which I think would be lovely in these, (the wine, not the region) and saying "Burgundy Cookies" is a whole lot easier than "Côtes du Rhône Cookies," no?  And, red (wine) plus brown (chocolate) makes burgundy.  Yes.  Maybe. Some other good wines would a pinot noir, cabernet, or merlot.

Yield 36 small cookies

Author Jennyblogs

Prep time

25 Min

Cook time

8 Min

Total time

33 Min

Print

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Burgundy Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Double chocolate chip cookies made with a splash of red wine and tart dried cherries.

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

• 2 cups / 240g all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup / 75g cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup / 56g oil
• 3/4 cup / 150g sugar
• 3/4 cup / 150g brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup / 118g burgundy red wine
• 12 oz / 340g bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup / 120g dried cherries

Instructions

1. Oven 375°F / 190°C. Have ready one or two ungreased baking sheets.
2. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
3. In another large bowl combine oil, sugar, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla. Carefully stir in wine. Stir in dry ingredients until fully incorporated, then add chocolate chips and cherries. Dough will be soft, but shouldn't be too soupy. If it is, add a touch more flour.
4. Spoon little mounds onto a baking sheet and bake for 6-8 minutes, until edges look set but center still looks wet. Allow to cool for several minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack or counter to cool completely.
5. Pairs wonderfully with...the remainder of the bottle of wine you used to make these...

Notes

Feel free to use any kind of red wine you like for these! I have used the an Italian red, Savini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Riserva with great success, and the cookies in the photos I used a French red, Côtes du Rhône. I chose to call these Burgundy because of the Burgundy wine region, which I think would be lovely in these, (the wine, not the region) and saying "Burgundy Cookies" is a whole lot easier than "Côtes du Rhône Cookies," no? And, red (wine) plus brown (chocolate) makes burgundy. Yes. Maybe. Some other good wines would a pinot noir, cabernet, or merlot.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

140.06

Fat

4.82 g

Sat. Fat

1.84 g

Carbs

23.42 g

Fiber

1.24 g

Net carbs

22.18 g

Sugar

15.64 g

Protein

1.73 g

Sodium

104.48 mg

Cholesterol

5.17 mg

Nutritional information is approximate. Based on 1 cookie.

https://jennyblogs.com/blog/2016/9/24/burgundy-chocolate-cherry-cookies

Double chocolate cherry cookies, dried tart cherries, double chocolate chip cookies, Burgundy cookies, wine, red wine

dessert, cookies

American

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @jenevamorris on instagram and hashtag it #jennyblogs

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