Skinny Chocolate Chip Cookies
Yield: about 24 cookies
Skinny Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft yet chewy and made with whole wheat flour and no butter!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Week is more than halfway over. So sad! Since I’ve been posting so many amazing yet indulgent cookie recipes, I figured it was only fair to post a skinny chocolate chip cookie recipe that is more of an everyday treat.
These “skinny” cookies still have sugar, but I’ve replaced the butter with coconut oil and applesauce. And no, you can’t taste either once the cookies are baked, promise! This recipe is also 100% whole wheat. If you need this recipe to be vegan, substitute 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds mixed with 1 tablespoon of water for the egg and use vegan chocolate chips.
Recipe Rundown
Taste: These cookies will totally satisfy your chocolate chip cookie craving. You really can’t taste the coconut oil or applesauce. The whole wheat flour gives these cookies a more nutty flavor.
Texture: The whole wheat flour also gives the cookies a nice chewy bite without being dense or crumbly.
Ease: Super quick and easy.
Appearance: I love how round and tall these are.
Pros: Quick, easy, and satisfies any chocolate chip cookie craving without all the guilt.
Cons: None.
Would I make this again? Absolutely. I’ve already made this recipe twice.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup room temperature organic virgin coconut oil
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup chocolate chips
Directions
-
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the coconut oil, applesauce, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until well combined. Beat in the egg and vanilla. On low speed, gradually beat in the flour mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Drop by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes, or until light brown. Let cool on wire racks.
Recipe Notes
If you make this recipe, be sure to snap a picture and share it on Instagram with #handletheheat so we can all see! 
About Tessa...
I share trusted baking recipes your friends will LOVE alongside insights into the science of sweets. I'm a professionally trained chef, cookbook author, and cookie queen. I love to write about all things sweet, carb-y, and homemade. I live in Phoenix, Arizona (hence the blog name!)
32 Responses to “Skinny Chocolate Chip Cookies”
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I love swapping out butter for coconut oil. It is still so good, but healthy at them same time! These cookies (and all the cookies this week!) look so good! Since it is friday I am thinking maybe a batch is in order! 🙂
If I don’t have coconut oil, do you think I could just use 1/4 cup of butter at room temperature?
Love it! Going to try this recipe for sure.
Swapping coconut oil for butter is my favorite! These looks amazing…and I love the whole “skinny” thang goin’ on!
Tessa, you know all the right things to say to me. Skinny, chocolate, and cookies. I love using coconut oil and applesauce in my baking too! By the way, I like having a crispy edge on my cookies. Do you think I could flatten them out more and they would hold up? Thanks!
I’m a cookie addict,and this version is incredible…you could eat a thousand and never feel guilty!
🙂
kiss from France
I haven’t used coconut oil but these cookies look great!
Can someone please explain to me the draw of coconut oil? Isn’t it incredibly high in saturated fat?
But I must say, these cookies look great! I love whole wheat cookies, they are just more satisfying.
@Sarah O.
Its funny you should ask that, I was just talking about that in my dietetics class earlier this Monday.
Info on Eatright.org explains it pretty neatly. Although coconut oil is high in saturated fat, the medium chain fatty acids in VIRGIN coconut oil raises both “good” and “bad” cholesterol. With that in mind, there is some evidence “suggesting that coconut oil intake may be associated with a neutral, if not beneficial, effect on cholesterol levels.”
All in all, avoid partially hydrogenated oils. “Choose virgin coconut oil and use it in moderation. Despite emerging research, the recommendation is still to limit your total saturated fat intake.” Hope that helps!
http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6442477202&terms=coconut%20oil
This is a great recipe! I love using coconut oil in place of butter. My kids loved the cookies so much that my 8 year old asked if she could take some to her teacher. 🙂 Thank you!
Tried these cookies on a whim and they turned out FANTASTIC! I am always on the hunt for a good “healthy” cookie. I have tried a few whole wheat cookie recipes, hated them, and given up. So glad I stumbled upon this recipe! Not only do the look picture perfect, but they taste AMAZING! Thanks for the recipe!!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
These were so delicious! I altered a few things, such as using half WW flour and half all purpose, I used a chia egg to replace a real egg, used a combination of white and dark chocolate chips, and added some coconut flakes. I also topped them with a few dried cranberries to make them festive for holidays! They got RAVE reviews and I will most definitely be making them again! Thanks for the inspiration and wonderful recipe.
That’s awesome! Your changes sound super tasty and festive – glad it worked out for you 🙂
These actually worked! Very yummy.
My first bitch have a bit of more of a “cake” feeling rather than a cookie – so I let them bake for an extra few mins (closer to 15) to get the bottoms nice and brown.
Wanting to experiment with my next batch…maybe 2 eggs instead of 1. more apple-sauce?
Curious to know if anyone else experienced this – and tweaked the recipe at all??
P.S> ghiradelli milk cholcate chips made this oh so special..
I made these today and they turned out great! Thanks for the recipe. 🙂
These sound great, especially since I am looking for ways to eat healthier and “skinnier.” I was wondering if anyone knew how many calories they were per cookie?
I’m not sure but one of these calorie calculators should give you an idea: http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-calculator.asp
Have you figured out the calories Nathaniel? I am interested to know as well 🙂
109.4 calories per cookie, assuming the recipes does make exactly 24 cookies.
Sorry, correction – 117 calories per cookie.
Thanks for sharing this info!!
Do they need to be refrigerated before baked? Also what are the calories of the regular cookies?
Thanks
Nope, no need for refrigeration. The commenter above you calculated the calories.
These are fantastic! I did use truvia sugar and brown sugar. They have such a great flavor! Big hit with the family. I cook really healthy which means we don’t keep much desserts in the house but this is such a healthier option. Thanks so much!
could you double the applesauce called for in place of using coconut oil if you were avoiding oil? Thanks!
These are fantastic! my new go to recipe for chocolate chip cookies. Thanks!
Super forgiving! I can’t truly review this recipe because I made so many alterations, but I CAN say that after subbing self rising flour for the wheat, adding corn starch and peanut/almond oil, and baking at three different temperatures (375, 300, 350–because I can’t leave well enough alone), they still turned out wonderfully!
Do watch them though, as they bake quickly (or maybe just mine…). They’re light and puffy, definitely a cakey kind of cookie, but with a nice little crisp that butterless recipes usually lack! Thanks!
These are the best cookies I’ve ever made. I can’t do dairy, so these are wonderful, and healthier too! I skipped the 1/4 cup of granulated sugar and they came out perfectly sweet. I also added a handful of shredded coconut and used course sea salt. Thanks for the great recipe!
These look great! Can I use all purpose flour instead of whole wheat and if so how much? Also, can I use any substitute for the applesauce? Thank you, the reviews are very encouraging!
I made this recipe twice in the last 24 hours to use up some applesauce and they are DELICIOUS! One person who claims not to like applesauce ate one and was surprised to hear it was an ingredient. I’ve handed out the recipe several times now. I didn’t have whole wheat flour on hand (some wheat sensitivity anyway), and they came out great with regular flour. Maybe I’ll try half-and-half sometime in the future! I also added a few M&Ms on top 🙂
Definitely a keeper. Guilt free and yummy!