Perfect Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies

...And the cookie making continues. What? Did you really think the coming of the new year would suddenly inspire me to adapt healthier eating habits? Siiiiike. Okay in all honesty, I did want to share something non-sugar-laden with you guys today, like an actual meal that's nourishing and all that good stuff. But, then I made these cookies over the weekend and I loved them so much that I could not delay sharing them with you! The healthy stuff can wait, you NEED this recipe in your life right now!


Technically speaking, these aren't completely unhealthy because they've got coconut oil and coconut oil is most definitely a superfood. So I don't feel too guilty about sharing these so soon into the new year. Plus, you guys loved the first version of these I posted a few months back, so I knew for a fact you'd be interested in the perfected version. A couple of you wrote to me about having issues with the cookies' texture coming out right. Well, I promise that you won't run into any issues here! These are perfect, fool-proof, and fail-proof coconut oil chocolate chip cookies. You won't find any better!


Let's talk about the adjustments made to the recipe. For starters, there's a lot less flour, baking powder, and eggs. Well, mostly a lot less baking powder, and a bit less of the other two. You see these three ingredients are the primary suspects in the case of a cake-like cookie, so they had to be adjusted. Once that was taken care of, the sugar was also decreased. Sugar causes spreading, and nobody likes a flat cookie; thick and chewy is where it's at. Dark brown sugar is the best at adding that chewy factor.


And so is a lower baking temperature. The previous cookie recipe I followed instructed me to bake the cookies at 400 degrees F. That is a big no-no. You gotta give cookies their time; let the sugars caramelize and the edges brown slowly. 350 is the optimal temperature for these cookies.


All of those factors combined (along with a few minor ones) create the gorgeous cookies you see before you today. Soft and thick in the middle with chewy edges. The ULTIMATE cookie texture, in my opinion. And of course, they're crazy delicious as well! The coconut flavor is present but it's not overwhelming. If you absolutely cannot tolerate the taste of coconut, you can use refined coconut oil and these will taste just like regular chocolate chip cookies! Well, not regular, since these are phenomenal!


Needless to say, these will be the only chocolate chip cookies I make from here on out. And I won't be missing butter one bit!

Perfect Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield: Approximately 16-20 cookies

Ingredients:

1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup coconut oil, room temperature
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, room temperature
pinch of vanilla powder (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.

In another bowl, using an electric hand mixer, cream together coconut oil and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until well-combined. Gradually pour in dry ingredients, beating until well-incorporated after each addition. Stir in chocolate chips.

Using a medium cookie scoop (about 1 and 1/2 tablespoons), scoop out balls of dough onto prepared cookie sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart from one other.

Bake for 9 minutes, or until edges are just starting to turn light brown. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Slightly adapted from Tracey's Culinary Adventures