I am sold
I know this cookie looks wholesome. Actually, I’ll raise you one and say that it verges on homely. But this cookie speaks to me, and what it says is, Hey, baaaabe-eh. In this voice.
Meet Kim Boyce’s whole wheat chocolate chip cookie. This might be my favorite chocolate chip cookie, which is an absolutely insane thing to say, because until about a week ago, I thought that title belonged, forever and ever, to the New York Times chocolate chip cookie. I don’t know what I think anymore. Let’s just call this my new favorite chocolate chip cookie and leave it at that.
I first heard about this recipe from Luisa, and then Lecia mentioned it to me, too, and maybe Brian, and maybe you? However it got there, it’s been on my to-do list for a while, and last Friday, I decided that it was finally time to make a batch. So I did, and by Tuesday, I had decided that it was time for a second batch. That was barely 72 hours ago, but the last cookie disappeared shortly after lunch today. I did give about a third of the batch away, but still, I would like to state for the record that our household, which consists of two (2) people, put away roughly a dozen (12) cookies. I don’t know exactly what I expected from a whole wheat chocolate chip cookie, but I didn’t expect to want to eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
On Wednesday, before they were all eaten, we had unseasonably good weather, and the whole house was washed in that crazy gold light that comes only in the fall, and even then only on exceptional days, and it gave me the opportunity to photograph these cookies for you in their natural state, which is to say, with halos on.
Take my word for it. You need to try a batch. They may be built on a foundation of whole wheat flour, but they’re not health food, so don’t get hung up on that. They’re everything that a proper chocolate chip cookie should be: tender and chewy in the middle, crisp at the edges, and very forthcoming with the chocolate. But what I like most is that, on top of all that, you also get the subtly nutty, naturally sweet-and-savory flavor of wheat. You know digestive biscuits? Imagine a cross between a chocolate chip cookie and a digestive biscuit. Do you read me? Am I the only American who hears the words digestive and biscuit and instantly needs a snack? I hope not. Because that’s the kind of flavor we’re talking about here. And that flavor, that benevolent wheaty flavor, not only tastes good, but it also performs a valuable service: it tames the sweetness and richness - that occasionally sweat-inducing intensity, if you will - that is the seldom spoken-about dark side of any chocolate chip cookie. Thank you, whole wheat. Thank you, Kim Boyce. In other words, I am sold.
Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Good to the Grain, by Kim Boyce
Without really planning to, I’ve played around quite a lot with this recipe. I’ve only made it twice, but each time was in a different kitchen, with different ingredients and tools. Both times, the cookies came out beautifully. Here are some thoughts:
- A friend who had made this recipe suggested that I try making it with white whole wheat flour, so I bought a fresh bag and used it in my first batch. I loved the resulting flavor – lightly wheaty, almost bran-like – and I highly recommend it. For my second batch, I used a local brand of whole wheat flour, and it was plenty nice, but the wheat flavor was darker and heartier. If you’re after that digestive biscuit flavor, I would use white whole wheat flour.
- Because I am apparently getting ornery with age, I ignored Boyce’s advice to use cold butter. I honestly thought it was a typo, because I’ve always had a hard time creaming butter that’s even a little bit too cold. Instead, I used softened butter. (I left it at room temperature until it was still cool to the touch but took the imprint of a finger when I pressed it. Perfect for creaming.) It worked just fine, as you can see. But I’ve now done some poking around online and see that the recipe is indeed supposed to use cold butter, cubed for easier creaming. Oops! So, uh, never mind me. Do whatever you want.
- The original recipe calls for chopped bittersweet chocolate, and I tried it once that way and once with bittersweet chips. (I used Ghirardelli 60% chocolate in both cases.) I preferred the chopped chocolate because the pieces were smaller, so it gave the sense that there was more chocolate. But if you want to keep it quick and simple, chips will do the job.
- I made this dough once in a stand mixer and once with handheld electric beaters. The poor beaters had to labor a lot, and I wound up recruiting a sturdy spatula to help out, but it’s good to know that you can make do with whatever tools you have on hand.
- Boyce says that this dough is designed to be baked without chilling first. (This, I think, is linked to her use of cold butter. The cold butter likely keeps the dough cool and helps it spread less in the oven.) But I apparently am not only ornery; I also can’t follow directions. I scooped my dough, put it on a sheet pan, covered it with plastic wrap, and chilled it before baking. Some of the dough was chilled for about 1 hour, and some stayed in the fridge for two days. Chilling dough generally results in a thicker cookie, and mine were certainly nice and plump, which I like. So I recommend chilling the dough. And hey, I also noticed that the cookies that stayed in the fridge for two days were particularly flavorful. So “aging” the dough a bit isn’t a bad idea, either.
3 cups whole wheat flour (see note above)
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes (see note above)
1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped into ¼- and ½-inch pieces, or bittersweet chips
Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, and preheat to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. (If you have no parchment, you can butter the sheets.)
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, and whisk to blend.
Put the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, mix just until the butter and sugars are blended, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture to the bowl, and blend on low speed until the flour is just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the chocolate, and mix on low speed until evenly combined. (If you have no stand mixer, you can do all of this with handheld electric beaters and/or a large, sturdy spoon.) Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and then use your hands to turn and gently massage the dough, making sure all the flour is absorbed.
Scoop mounds of dough about 3 tablespoons in size onto the baking sheets, leaving about 3 inches between each cookie. (I was able to fit about 8 cookies on each sheet, staggering them in three rows.)
Bake the cookies for 16 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the cookies are evenly browned. Transfer the cookies, still on parchment, to a rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough.
These cookies are very good while still warm from the oven, but I find that you can taste the wheat more – in a good way – once they’ve cooled.
Yield: about 20 cookies
Meet Kim Boyce’s whole wheat chocolate chip cookie. This might be my favorite chocolate chip cookie, which is an absolutely insane thing to say, because until about a week ago, I thought that title belonged, forever and ever, to the New York Times chocolate chip cookie. I don’t know what I think anymore. Let’s just call this my new favorite chocolate chip cookie and leave it at that.
I first heard about this recipe from Luisa, and then Lecia mentioned it to me, too, and maybe Brian, and maybe you? However it got there, it’s been on my to-do list for a while, and last Friday, I decided that it was finally time to make a batch. So I did, and by Tuesday, I had decided that it was time for a second batch. That was barely 72 hours ago, but the last cookie disappeared shortly after lunch today. I did give about a third of the batch away, but still, I would like to state for the record that our household, which consists of two (2) people, put away roughly a dozen (12) cookies. I don’t know exactly what I expected from a whole wheat chocolate chip cookie, but I didn’t expect to want to eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
On Wednesday, before they were all eaten, we had unseasonably good weather, and the whole house was washed in that crazy gold light that comes only in the fall, and even then only on exceptional days, and it gave me the opportunity to photograph these cookies for you in their natural state, which is to say, with halos on.
Take my word for it. You need to try a batch. They may be built on a foundation of whole wheat flour, but they’re not health food, so don’t get hung up on that. They’re everything that a proper chocolate chip cookie should be: tender and chewy in the middle, crisp at the edges, and very forthcoming with the chocolate. But what I like most is that, on top of all that, you also get the subtly nutty, naturally sweet-and-savory flavor of wheat. You know digestive biscuits? Imagine a cross between a chocolate chip cookie and a digestive biscuit. Do you read me? Am I the only American who hears the words digestive and biscuit and instantly needs a snack? I hope not. Because that’s the kind of flavor we’re talking about here. And that flavor, that benevolent wheaty flavor, not only tastes good, but it also performs a valuable service: it tames the sweetness and richness - that occasionally sweat-inducing intensity, if you will - that is the seldom spoken-about dark side of any chocolate chip cookie. Thank you, whole wheat. Thank you, Kim Boyce. In other words, I am sold.
Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Good to the Grain, by Kim Boyce
Without really planning to, I’ve played around quite a lot with this recipe. I’ve only made it twice, but each time was in a different kitchen, with different ingredients and tools. Both times, the cookies came out beautifully. Here are some thoughts:
- A friend who had made this recipe suggested that I try making it with white whole wheat flour, so I bought a fresh bag and used it in my first batch. I loved the resulting flavor – lightly wheaty, almost bran-like – and I highly recommend it. For my second batch, I used a local brand of whole wheat flour, and it was plenty nice, but the wheat flavor was darker and heartier. If you’re after that digestive biscuit flavor, I would use white whole wheat flour.
- Because I am apparently getting ornery with age, I ignored Boyce’s advice to use cold butter. I honestly thought it was a typo, because I’ve always had a hard time creaming butter that’s even a little bit too cold. Instead, I used softened butter. (I left it at room temperature until it was still cool to the touch but took the imprint of a finger when I pressed it. Perfect for creaming.) It worked just fine, as you can see. But I’ve now done some poking around online and see that the recipe is indeed supposed to use cold butter, cubed for easier creaming. Oops! So, uh, never mind me. Do whatever you want.
- The original recipe calls for chopped bittersweet chocolate, and I tried it once that way and once with bittersweet chips. (I used Ghirardelli 60% chocolate in both cases.) I preferred the chopped chocolate because the pieces were smaller, so it gave the sense that there was more chocolate. But if you want to keep it quick and simple, chips will do the job.
- I made this dough once in a stand mixer and once with handheld electric beaters. The poor beaters had to labor a lot, and I wound up recruiting a sturdy spatula to help out, but it’s good to know that you can make do with whatever tools you have on hand.
- Boyce says that this dough is designed to be baked without chilling first. (This, I think, is linked to her use of cold butter. The cold butter likely keeps the dough cool and helps it spread less in the oven.) But I apparently am not only ornery; I also can’t follow directions. I scooped my dough, put it on a sheet pan, covered it with plastic wrap, and chilled it before baking. Some of the dough was chilled for about 1 hour, and some stayed in the fridge for two days. Chilling dough generally results in a thicker cookie, and mine were certainly nice and plump, which I like. So I recommend chilling the dough. And hey, I also noticed that the cookies that stayed in the fridge for two days were particularly flavorful. So “aging” the dough a bit isn’t a bad idea, either.
3 cups whole wheat flour (see note above)
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes (see note above)
1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped into ¼- and ½-inch pieces, or bittersweet chips
Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, and preheat to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. (If you have no parchment, you can butter the sheets.)
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, and whisk to blend.
Put the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, mix just until the butter and sugars are blended, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture to the bowl, and blend on low speed until the flour is just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the chocolate, and mix on low speed until evenly combined. (If you have no stand mixer, you can do all of this with handheld electric beaters and/or a large, sturdy spoon.) Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and then use your hands to turn and gently massage the dough, making sure all the flour is absorbed.
Scoop mounds of dough about 3 tablespoons in size onto the baking sheets, leaving about 3 inches between each cookie. (I was able to fit about 8 cookies on each sheet, staggering them in three rows.)
Bake the cookies for 16 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the cookies are evenly browned. Transfer the cookies, still on parchment, to a rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough.
These cookies are very good while still warm from the oven, but I find that you can taste the wheat more – in a good way – once they’ve cooled.
Yield: about 20 cookies
114 Comments:
I can almost taste how the nuttiness of the wheat would temper the sweetness of the chocolate. Well done--I'll be trying this recipe soon! It's so fun to try tweaked classics. I just made a gateau breton, for example, the other day, but rather than a traditional version it was David Lebovitz's buckwheat version with sea salt. So intriguingly delicious!
Great-looking cookies!
I'm glad you went with the King Arthur white whole wheat flour. I don't like them any other way.
Oh my! I wish you would have posted this a day earlier! My husband just deployed, now I'll be left to eat the whole batch! Darn ;)
I like your style, Molly! I will be baking these cookies as soon as I finish all the sweets in the house. Can't have more than two desserts going on at once, ya know? Thanks for sharing.
Do you know she's moved to Portland, OR, and is baking for Ristretto Roasters and the Daily Cafe? I've been lusting over the cookbooks for a few weeks and when I found out she was baking locally, I went and got her chocolate chip cookie with pumpkin seeds and other good things. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm......
I'm going to make her poppy seed buckwheat wafers this weekend so I can test the recipe before the holidays to accompany your amazing buckwheat cookies with cocoa nibs. My mom is allergic to chocolate and was very very jealous of all the love expressed for the buckwheat cookies that she couldn't try.
I am always touched by your writing, then by your pictures, then I get hungry (for food, words and life).
Your book is one of my most reached-for books on my shelf!
Thank you Molly.
I'm a huge fan of white whole wheat flower and found it's a good way of introducing a more interesting texture to recipes. Recently, I tried a chocolate cake which worked great so can't wait to make these, although there's a risk I'll eat them all myself.
I put a tiny sprinkle of sea salt on top of these cookies before baking...marrying the two best recipes that there are (the NYT's one and that of Kim Boyce) for chocolate chip cookie.
Thanks for making me crave cookies at 6:30 am on a Saturday morning! Now, on to the grocery store for the flour!
Great recipe and post!And like the others mentioned, your book is great! It is a hit right now at work, people grabbing it from me, reading, crying in the first recipe, and not returning my book for a week!!
How delightfully exciting. I confess, I would not have tried a normal wheaty cookie recipe of hers, just because there are so very many other fun grain recipes in her book.
So, thank you, honestly, and truly. You sold it well. I am sold too.
I share your love of digestive biscuits and can't wait to try this recipe.
I had to listen to Barry White while I read your post - perfect choice! Digestive biscuit? Yes please! I'll take mine with dark chocolate on top. I'm going to try these this afternoon. Thanks!
You're gonna make a person who burns everything cook:)
http://graspthesanity.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/GraspTheSanity
yummmm
Damn. I've been skirting Lecia's (and Kim's) raves for weeks, trying to get past the Halloween candy, anyway. Fat chance, at this point. Mention "digestive biscuits" and I'm sunk.
These sound fabulous! You have never led me astray as far as recipes go ...so I am definitely going to give these a whirl.
What do you think about 1/2 WW flour and 1/2 all purpose?
It always makes me happy to see a new post!
I believe digestive biscuits are the original comfort food (although I will say that the U.S. has a worthy competitor in the graham cracker) - so I can't WAIT to make these!
Thanks for brightening my day! I am a huge fan (obviously)
You caught my attention at digestives. They are so popular in our household that after I pick up my daughter from preschool, she regularly asks for tea and digestives for her snack. Of course, how could I not oblige?
Very much looking forward to giving these a try!
Wheat and chocolate? What a fabulous combination. I think these cookies would be divine.
Do you know how painful this is to read - your whole blog is painful to read - when I am living in my bedroom and my kitchen is in the midst of it's umpteenth week of renovation?
It's really painful.
I almost always add whole wheat flour to my chocolate chip cookies, but I haven't made any that are entirely whole wheat. I will definitely try it.
Great take on a chocolate chip cookie. Nice to hear the whole wheat tames the sweetness a bit as the latter can be overwhelming in sometimes in chocolate chip cookies. Thanks for sharing a great recipe.
As a Canadian, digestive biscuits are an awesome snack. I can not wait to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing. -Melanie
I am already convinced that dark chocolate goes better with whole wheat flour than plain one: my favourite snack is dark, nutty bread and dark chocolate. I'm already sold to these cookies even before trying them.
I think this would be an occasion where I sneak a healthy alternative (whole wheat flour) into a cookie without my husband even noticing. That would be an amazing feat!
OK, I'll have to try these. Your NY Chocolate Chip cookie recipe has been my favorite since you posted it and I've shared it with many people, so I have to try this recipe too. I'll let you know which one I prefer.
Molly!!! Oh my, you are so kind. I was meandering among my favorite blogs this morning, clicked on yours and thought "my, those look like my chocolate chips...could it be?!" Thank you for the post and support!
Also, been meaning to tell you that I saw some of your Delancey desserts on someone's blog (can't remember which one) but they were so drop dead gorgeous. I haven't yearned for a restaurant dessert in a long time and yours had me thinking all day. Cream was whipped to my liking and the fruit was so luscious!
oooh...printing off the recipe and going to make them this morning. in fact, i have been meaning the make the new york times cookies for ages too, so maybe i should make them both today and then i can do a side by side comparison! hoping i have enough of the white whole wheat flour left so i can try the WW cookies with that.
You had me at digestive biscuit.
I am so looking forward to these cookies putting Mcvities to shame!
My heart belongs to the chocolate chip cookie in King Arthur's Whole Grain Baking. That recipe uses barley flour and whole wheat flour - a great combination! The whole wheat brownie recipe in there is pretty amazing too.
I read digestive and chocolate and I got kinda excited.I am sold too!
Magda
Oh yeah, I've eaten these and they are WORTHY.
OH MAN! I wouldn't have looked twice at those cookies had you not written about them with such rapture. Now I need to make them pronto!
oh you had me a DIGESTIVE BISCUIT (which deserves the excitedly loud yelling all-caps). my faves are the chocolate-coated biscuits, so i think i need to make these RIGHT NOW :)
For quick creaming of cold butter, I often go to a grater - either box or a grating disc in a food processor.
I read your post at 8:00am. By 8:30 I was eating these yummy cookies. Oh My Goodness, they are perfect. Thanks.
Hi Molly, I have never posted on your blog before. I want to write first of all that I love substituting wheat flour in all my recipes (in fact it's the only kind of flour in my freezer) and am looking forward to trying these cookies. Also, I loved your book and wanted you to know it has inspired me very much in my cooking. I now make my own salad dressing and I grew my own roma tomatoes this year just to make your recipe for slow roasted tomatoes. They turned out wonderful! I have always tried to stew my tomatoes in water and these were so much better - like all the flavor of the whole tomatoe was concentrated into one bite. So, I wanted to thank you for the inspiration - you have a way of describing food that makes me want to cook and eat!
i just took the first batch out of the oven...had to try one...so crispy, chewy, warm and gooey!
i used whole foods 100% whole wheat pastry flour, did not chill the dough, and they came out beautifully thin which is the way we like them...thank you for the inspiration!
I think you sold me when you compared these to digestive biscuits crossed with chocolate chip cookies. You've got me looking for a third dessert!
I love Kim Boyce's book! Haven't tried the chocolate chip cookies yet though. They will certainly be the next ones on my list. Her Muscovado Sugar Cake is so delicious and especially perfect with a cup of tea!
Love the idea of a whole wheat cookie. Do you think whole wheat pastry flour would work with this recipe?
I have wanted Kim's book ever since Luisa first wrote about it on her blog, and for some reason I STILL have not managed to add it to my collection - don't worry, though, it is top of my Christmas list with instruction to my husband that just because it involves the word 'grain' doesn't automatically disqualify it for being too healthy! Perhaps these cookies will help turn him... :)
Those look delicious! I think I may be the only one who hasn't heard of digestive cookies though. I'm assuming digestive cookies would cause the obvious...
I might have to pretend that I didn't down an entire package of McVitie's last week and make these. I am a child of the 70's and early 80's, which means my mother often made chocolate chip cookies with whole wheat flour (and raw sugar) when I was growing up, so i'm sure these will smack of nostalgia. I'm pretty sold on my own brown butter brown sugar cookies though. maybe a tasteoff.
I figured there was no better way to use the extra hour of time this evening to bake these cookies. I divided the recipe in half (just in case I wasn't too pleased), used the King Arthur flour, and added 1/2 tsp of ginger. The result ... I love the grainy texture of the cookie! And there is the slightest hint of the nuttiness from the whole wheat. Thanks for providing another variation of the chocolate chip cookie. I have stuck with the one I fell in love with about a year ago and have been hesitant to try something new but I couldn't pass up the chance to use more of the whole wheat flour in a baked good. Thanks!
I like that you have trouble creaming really cold butter, too. I also have this problem. I thought it may have been just me, but hooray! I am not alone.
Yep. They astound me, actually. Love, love, love these cookies.
Digestive biscuit. That's really all it takes to convince me to try them. In England we enjoy our chocolate covered digestive's with a nice cup of tea. Now,far from home, I miss those chocolate digestive's. I'm guessing these will be a fantastic replacement.
The Barry White link was too funny (but necessary - my 10 and 9 year old kids have no idea who he is). Thanks for another great recipe and a write up that breathes excitement into baking (not a natural inclination for me). Looks like we are baking cookies today!
How fun - a blog post about a recipe I've already made! I found these so filling I couldn't eat more than one at a time. But 12 cookies in 3 days by 2 people = not even one per meal! Makes sense to me!
obviously, a chocolate chip cookie bake off is in my near future. as is purchasing kim's book, which has been on my list for a while.
For ONCE, I have all the ingredients on hand!!!
I'm already baking two quiches today, because my youngest hens have just started laying - this week the egg larder suddenly got much fuller, much faster. But even after 2 quiches, there will be plenty of eggs for a batch (or two, or three) of these cookies. Yum! I feel like I can taste them already - thanks for the great descriptions!
As a Southerner, I don't believe I've ever heard of digestives! Ha!
But as a health nut, I am very, very pleased to see WHOLE wheat cookies.
I've always pestered my sister (who is also a big fan of Orangette) to make desserts with whole wheat flour, and now I can hit her with this recipe! >:)
Thanks for the tip on the white wheat. I tried this recipe with whole wheat, and while I liked it, it was slightly more nutty/humble/less sweet than some liked. Perhaps the white wheat flour is the way to go.
I'm going to have to refer to this recipe when I'm in dire need of that perfectly british digestive biscuit when I return from england. good grief, do I know what you mean. I really cannnot wait to begin baking from good to the grain, too! (baking for one is scary!)
I just made a batch and they are delicious. Thank you. My cookie craving is quieted.
I was just looking at that recipe in Kim's book this morning and resisted the urge to make them for breakfast. They have been moved to the top of my "to bake" list!
So now I've added more for my "to do" list. I think this may be a brightening spot in my college kids evening one of these days so ... shhh ... it's a secret. I have to go now to the international aisle of my supermarket for digestive biscuits...
I'm excited to try this recipe, and I will use a local flour, too. :)
I get Washington-grown White Whole Wheat pastry flour from Fairhaven Co-op Flour Mill. I have loved every flour I have gotten from them. Whole Foods carries them in Seattle. Their whole wheat bread flour is heavenly to work with.
Thanks for the wonderful recipes you share!
I've only made the NYT ccc's about a thousand times, and if you say these are your new favorite, then I'm going to have to give them a run. Thanks and cheers!
Hi Molly!
First, I want to say that, as one who grew up listening to Barry White, I LOVED your surprise "cookie voice". I laughed and sang all the way through the song, it brought back great memories for me, thank you. I made the cookies from Kim Boyce's "Good to the Grain" and you are soooo right..... they are yummy! While we live in New York City, my husband and I love Seattle, so much so that we sent our son off to college there this past semester and he too has fallen in love with your city! We are looking forward to having dinner at Delancey the next time we visit!
This is my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe! Thanks for spreading the gospel of Kim Boyce.
Chocolate chip cookies are a favorite in our house, but I always find them too sweet. These sounded so good I made them this afternoon, and we love them. I used the white whole wheat flour, cold butter and bittersweet chips with a small handful of chopped chocolate. Too easy. Thank you for a new go-too cookie!
Molly these are great. Thumbs up from 6 of us. It's tough to find a cookie with both perfect taste and perfect texture.
I sprinkled coarse salt on a few of them; nice variation.
I could see also using toffee chips or maybe adding some malted milk powder
You make these sound soooo tempting. I'm bookmarking the recipe and we're trying them next weekend!!!
Just baked a batch and as promised, they are perfection (especially when still oven warm). Thanks for the inspiration, Molly!
It makes me want to stir melted chocolate through my breakfast oats rather than brown sugar and honey...
Mmm, chocolate in my oats. Delish. Molly, don't feel bad about not following directions--I made your butternut/apple soup last week with apple cider VINEGAR instead of cider. Opps! These cookies, however, I will follow to a T. Love me some digestive biscuits!
I have been hearing SO MUCH about this cookbook. Chalk another one up for it, it looks like.
Not only is it saying 'hey baaaaabeee...." but it's winking at you too. someone must have noticed this already...i'm sure. cheers kari.
I like how you are real here, admitting that you DO eat cookies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. These will be (hopefully) my next cookie venture!
I have never heard of this recipe... but it is quite similar to the one my mom has made since I was a kid! The only difference, my mom also adds a cup of oatmeal and 3/4 of each sugar. It is by far my favorite recipe... and even a bit healthier!
I just took the last tray of these out of the oven. I was skeptical of this recipe, but man oh man are they great!
My fella loved them, too. I'm sending him to work with a bunch of them, and I think he's about to be quite popular!
I made a batch yesterday, and only made one change - added chopped walnuts to half the batter. Both came out looking good, and I like the recipe a lot - so easy, and all the ingredients right in the cupboard - but I did find a sort of bitter taste to the cookies - was there something wrong with the flour? Or is this from the baking soda? I have noticed a similar taste sometimes when I make Irish soda bread.
Oh, Molly...this is perfect for my family. Hubby is Swiss and can't stand the overly sweet, toll-house variety cookies I make for the kids...and by using the white whole wheat flour, I think I can fool my pumpkinheads into eating something a little healthier (?) than our normal cookies. (I suppose that's an oxymoron--"healthy" to describe "cookies," but I'll take what I can get.) Can't wait to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing!
I've started using whole wheat flour instead of white (when possible) in baking, and I have to say... I like it better. WAY better. Thank you for this recipe!
I posted Saturday that I made these, and was not a fan, but apparently any dissenting comments don't make it on. I have enjoyed your website for some time, but now knowing this, I feel like I can't trust this site anymore. It would be nice to hear others opinions, good or bad, before using and spending money on ingredients.
It's all true. These cookies are amazing. The first time I tasted them I felt as if it was the first time I'd had chocolate chip cookies.
And yes--Boyce is in Portland. What a pleasure to be able to get one of her pastries at the cafe!
I also prefer using chopped chocolate--since you put it all into the dough (the inevitable chocolate dust as well as the chunks), the dough is enriched a bit by chocolate. Oh dear. I need to go make these again.
Quinn, I’m inclined to think it was the whole wheat flour. Whole wheat flour is much more perishable than white flour, and it goes rancid quickly. (You can often tell by smelling it, though not always. Sometimes in supermarkets without a lot of turnover, it's rancid even before you buy it.) I store mine in the refrigerator and throw it out after a couple of months. I wonder if that was it?
Anonymous, I apologize for the confusion! I often receive spam comments from anonymous posters, and I am sincerely sorry if I accidentally deleted your comment along with theirs. This cookie recipe didn’t work for you? Can you tell me what you didn’t like about it? I agree that it's important to be able to have a discussion, good or bad.
Thanks, Molly! That would explain why the bitter taste has only shown up in the soda bread from time to time also.
I'll make the cookies again, with fresh (I hope!)flour. I'll stick with the walnuts, though - I think that was a good modification!
thanks for the white whole wheat flour tip…i will give these a try!
Oh my yum. I made these with whole wheat pastry flour. I don't think I'll make a white flour chocolate chip cookie ever again. Thanks, Molly!
I just made a batch of these and they are INCREDIBLE! I am going to suggest adding them to the cookie selection at the bakery where I work! My friend has a gluten allergy and I wonder if this recipe would be as good gluten free...most gluten-free things taste like sawdust but these are pretty great so I am going to give it a try!
Her pastries are incredible!! We are so lucky to have her baking for us. Have you tried the figgy buckwheat scones? Ridiculous.
~daily cafe
Sold! I adore Homewheats!
Awesome! I've been wanting a whole wheat cookie recipe for ages so these ingredients of going on my shopping list asap. Can't wait to try them!
sigh. you sold me on digestive biscuits.
You had me at "digestive biscuit". I've been a fan for a long time, and the military has brought us to the Seattle area, so I hope to visit your restaurant soon. It's hard because we have a tiny one and no family around. Love your book, segments in Bon Appetit, and your blog! Thank you!
these are my new favorite chocolate chip cookie, and that's saying something. i love that they also happen to be, you know, pretty much the EASIEST POSSIBLE version (no chilling! no waiting for butter to come to room temp! glorious). i had 5 for lunch today, and i'm not a carb/sweets person at ALL. they do indeed get more digestive biscuit/faintly nuttier/more multidimensional once they cool. so, so good. thanks!
I'm a big fan of Carr's Whole Wheat digestive biscuits so I had to make these cookies the same day I read your posting. I used King Arthur Flour's White Whole Wheat flour and chopped Ghiradelli's dark chocolate. OMG,they are fabulous. My husband and co-workers thank you too.
Oh geez, I love digestive biscuits -- can't wait to try these; they sound AWESOME!
i have the book but yet to dive into the recipes. i supposed i've just found the first one! ; ) looks fantastic.
That closing paragraph about digestive biscuits really sealed the deal for me. Whole wheat and chocolate chips sound truly decadent together. It's a compelling argument to actually bake for a change...
darn it molly i can't stop eating these things! you're going to cost me 5 lbs of weight gain at least!
they are incredibly good...and what a relief to make a great choc chip cookie with only one type of flour!
Mmmmm.... I fell in love with digestive biscuits, especially the chocolate-covered ones, while living in Ireland last year. You definitely caught my attention with that description! I'm intrigued to try the recipe. I've been meaning to buy that cookbook for some time. Have you tried many of her other recipes?
In an attempt to satiate my craving for something sweet I once ate three bags of digestives in succession, without pause, in a dorm room in Copenhagen.
It was one of those times where you only continued eating because what you ate just didn't exactly meet the requirements for what you actually craved.
I can't stop eating these cookies too, but for a different reason. Thanks.
Perfectly baked cookies and can be a perfect afternoon treat for kids! ;)
What a great recipe; these look perfect. I've always wanted to try a chocolate chip cookie with wheat flour. I'll also never eat another chocolate chip cookie without thinking of Barry White's voice! :) Great post!
Molly - I'm having a tough time with this one because our household is a HUGE fan of the NYT chocolate chip cookie. When I first started reading this post a had the urge to click away...I loved knowing that the NYT cookie was the best out there and couldn't stand the thought of another cookie sneaking in and taking it's place. And, now I'm unsure. Guess I'll have to make some and decide for myelf. Oh well, there are worse things :)
Yum! Whole wheat has a way of sneaking up on you and stealing your heart sometimes! These sounds great.
Like the addition of wheat flour. It amazes me how many time one reaches for the regular white when the wheat can taste, just as good, or better. Will try with my Peanut Butter and Molasses cookies this weekend.
Paul
Molly, did you do anything special to get your cookies so thin? The problem I had, as I always do with whole wheat cookies, is that they came out thick and somewhat hard. I don't mind a hockey puck cookie that involves a bit more work to eat, but it's hard finding other people that do.
I used King Arthur regular whole wheat flour, and chilled butter (did not chill the dough before baking). I did flatten the dough balls with my palm, but the dough was very crumbly so they could only take so much flattening. Any ideas? I'm wondering if the chill-and-slice technique would yield cookies that are flatter and are more in the spirit of a digestive biscuit.
Molly - I'm adding nuts and calling it a day. Yum.
I just made these, and my housemate came into the kitchen, sniffed and said, "man, i wish you could blog a smell". She is so right. Delicious- thanks for the great recipe.
Perhaps you could check out my blog?
www.mynomnomnom.blogspot.com
I'm always looking to people to talk food with!
I don't have ONE favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. Maybe this one will do me in ;) Can't wait to find out...
Oh my, I do love McVittie's Digestives. I even have a TIN for them when I get them. It always reminds me of going to England in High School on a school exchange. The host would bring me a cup of tea and a McVittie's first thing in the morning.
Whole wheat cookies sound divine. And, while I'm at it, I must say that I made the Oatmeal Sandwich Bread (four loaves) to give to a few people today to thank them. One of the boys was begging me to give HIM a loaf of the bread too. Too bad it was just for the instructors this time around.
I'm going to have to try these, even though browned butter chocolate chip cookies are my favorite!!
I made these with 1/2 traditional whole wheat flour and 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour. Since I was already dead set on these cookies when I discovered that I was out of white sugar, I used all light brown sugar. The resulting cookies were scrumptious...I made them a bit smaller and baked for less time.
Thanks for sharing the recipe! I have been wondering if I should pick up this book and now see that I have no choice.
P.S. I think two people who share 12 cookies over the course of three days are showing a lot of restraint! This post made me wonder if I have really gone off the deep end of overindulgence.
I used half Whole Wheat and half White Whole Wheat. These are very good once they've cooled. The wheat flavor is too pronounced while they are warm. Kim is a brilliant baker, but seriously folks, 12 oz. of chocolate should be the minimum.
I agree with Anne, you really must try King Arthur's Crispy Crunchy Whole Wheat cookie recipe. It is awesome. Ditto their WW brownies.
Made them last night and had to bring most into work so i wouldn't eat myself into a sugar coma! Yum, loving the wheat flour addition!
tHANKS for the recipe :D
Kisses!
Oh I will definitely be giving this recipe a try...one of my culinary resolutions for this year was to find the ultimate chocolate chip cookie recipe. Possible my search may end here!
I am sure I posted about these if you've ever said anything about Kim Boyce. I LOVE these cookies. they are too addictive, so I've refrained from making them again, but dang, they're good.
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