Healthy Disguise Chocolate Chip Cookies

 John and I purchased a boat recently, and have been spending almost every waking, non-working moment since cruising around the Ohio River. (It is, in fact, safe to boat on the Ohio. Even to get into the water!)

One of the things I love about boating (there are many things I love about boating), is eating. Not that long ago we ate homemade chocolate chip cookies on a friend's pontoon. These cookies looked, quite literally, like the perfect specimen of the classic chocolate chip cookie. Right color. Right size and shape. Right smell. But as I was chewing, I noticed something strange about the texture. No one else seemed to notice, but there was a chewy, somewhat stiff nature to them that a traditional, flour-only chocolate chip cookie wouldn't have. Whatever this was, it had to have been finely ground in order to disguise it. I knew it had to be some sort of healthy addition. After failing to puzzle it out on my own, I asked the hostess. The answer? Oatmeal!

I found the idea of grinding oatmeal to a powder in order to hide its addition genius, and immediately had to try it myself. I started with the original Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookie recipe. The Nestle recipe is the essence of perfection. No substitutions should be made to it. None! This should be made into a law. (Full disclosure: I substituted.) You cannot pull a cup of flour out for a cup of finally ground oatmeal, period, end of discussion. The cookies wouldn't hold their form when laid on the sheet, the dough was gooey even after I chilled it, then they wouldn't harden after baked, and remained much stickier. (I'm not good at admitting failures. John had to unceremoniously dump these in the trash for me. They'd have sat on the counter, forever waiting for someone to try to pry them apart, if he hadn't.)

How much oatmeal to add, that was the question. I figured one cup was too much, especially as an addition. It would create a great deal more dough, reducing the chocolate chip per bite ration, which I certainly didn't want to do. After my successful batch however, in which I did half a cup, I think one cup wouldn't have hurt, so long as the chip count is upped.

This batch turned out beautiful! You couldn't even tell the oatmeal was in there, which was different from the cookies we had on the river. I'm guessing either A) she added a full cup, B) I refined my oatmeal more, or C) both of these. Either way, they tasted great, and had a good deal more whole grain fiber than your normal cookie. Next time I'd like to try using whole wheat flour, instead of refined.

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Healthy Disguise Chocolate Chip Cookies

by Adapted from Nestle Toll House August-8-2012

Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies, but with ground oatmeal for a healthier kick

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup ground oatmeal (start with 3/4 cup old fashioned oatmeal)
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup softened butter
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 1/4 cups Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chips

Instructions

1. Preheat over to 375 degrees F2. Take 3/4 cup old fashioned oats, place in blender. Grind until semi-fine to fine.3. Combine oatmeal, flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in a large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.4. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes, then remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Details

Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 5 dozen cookies