Indio Date Walnut and Dark Chocolate Cookies
Description
Pack these cookies into a lunch box or picnic basket, or serve them with fresh fruit or sorbet.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, unsalted, at room temperature (do not use a reduced fat version)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg white
- 1 cup flour*, white whole-wheat
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
- 1 cup dates, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup California walnuts, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips, semisweet, or semisweet chocolate, chopped
*Note: White whole-wheat flour maintains the benefits of the whole-wheat kernel, but is milled from wheat that is light in color. It is available in many supermarkets. If you cannot find it, regular whole-wheat flour may be substituted.
PREPARATION
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or coat with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large bowl combine the margarine, honey and vanilla and beat until blended. Add the egg and beat until smooth.
- Combine the whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt (if using) and sift them together. Add to the first mixture and stir until you have a cohesive dough, with no streaks of unblended flour. Add the dates, walnuts and chocolate chips and stir to mix evenly throughout the dough. The dough will be quite stiff.
- Using your hands, shape the dough into walnut-sized balls and place about 3 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. With your fingers, press each cookie down into a disk about 2 inches across. Bake about 12 minutes, until the cookies have puffed slightly and are lightly browned around the edges. Cool for a couple minutes on the sheet; then transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely. Form the dough and bake the remaining cookies the same way.
- Store in an airtight container. The cookies will keep several days at room temperature, or can be frozen for longer storage.
NUTRITION
- Calories: 100 cal
- Total Fat: 5 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 10 mg
- Sodium: 25 mg
- Carbohydrates: 13 g
- Dietary Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 2 g