Lightweight Cocoa Cookies

 

This cookie recipe is something I came up with looking for a very simple but rich chocolate cookie. I tried Dorie Greenspan's world peace cookies and although the taste was remarkable and delicious I had a hard time with the consistency of the dough. (It was a pain to handle) I wanted a slightly cakey but highly flavored cookie and that's what I got. Perfectly sweet, slightly rich. They are not the most complicated, they are not overly fancy-fied. Simply put they are a great  tasting cookie variation that meets the families desire for chocolate cookies not to mention the deep dark secret...they are lighter weight. Although not a true "low calorie" snack they are much better than the brand name of cookies that are 150 c-points and above. The best benefit of all for me is that it does not require a trip to the store to buy preservatives in a sack. Although somewhat of a modest cookie I assure you they are divine.

They would be divine with a filling however I've not had any luck keeping any around long enough to fill. These cookies were somewhat chewy and soft  and have a great flavor. They really reminded me of the low-cal cookies with marshmallow covered in chocolate...only a million times better.

5 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 cup all purpose unbleached flower

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

1/3 cup yogurt (I used nonfat vanilla)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon of water or milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cookie sheet (s) with silicone or parchment. I almost always only use one pan. It saves on cleaning and it insures that the cookies will cook evenly.

In a bowl melt butter. Combine cocoa powder and sugars with the butter and stir to combine. Add remaining ingredients and whisk together or stir together until smooth. Add milk, you may want more to thin the batter slightly. It should be a dough you can roll within your hands but not brittle or sandy.

Using a cookie disher scoop out equal portions of dough. Roll them in between your hands to form smooth balls. Place on prepared cookie sheet and flatten with the palms of your hands or a clean drinking glass. (Place about an inch apart, they do not spread too much) Bake for 8-10 minutes.Allow to cool slightly before removing. 3-4 minutes. If you remove them too soon they will crumble.

****8 minutes for a fudgy cookie, 10 minutes for a slightly more solid somewhat cakey cookie.