Low
Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies
Made with Xylitol
and Coconut Palm Sugar
By Kimberley
Stewart
Makes 3 dozen
Beat together:
·
1+1/3 cup butter
·
1+1/2 cup Xylitol sweetener
·
1/2 cup Coconut Palm Sugar
·
1/2 cup brown sugar (I cut back the CPS because
it had a strong flavor, but it didn’t taste strong once it was mixed into the
batter, so you may want to try a full 1 cup of CPS and omit brown sugar.)
Mix in:
·
2 eggs
·
2 tsp vanilla
·
1 tsp baking soda
·
1/2 tsp salt
Stir in:
·
1+1/2 cups whole wheat flour
·
2 cups white unbleached flour
Mix in:
·
2+1/3 cups chocolate chips (more or less)
Pre-heat oven to 350 d.
Once dough is ready, spoon drops
of dough (small golf ball size) onto greased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-11 minutes. The bottoms and sides of cookies will brown,
but the top will stay soft and moist, not crunchy on top. Let cool on cookie sheet for 10 minutes, then
transfer to a rack…or into your stomach!
I think they taste the same as a regular soft chocolate chip cookie – I would
never know the difference, and I am EXTREMELY picky about my chocolate chip
cookies!
Info on Xylitol
and Coconut Palm Sugar:
Xylitol is a sweetener naturally produced by your
body. Manufactured Xylitol is used in
sugar-free gum, mints, and other similar foods.
It has 40% less calories than sugar, is low-glycemic and gluten-free,
and can be replaced 1:1 with regular granulated sugar. It can be used in cooking and baking, but not
for any yeast product. As an added
benefit, numerous peer-reviewed studies have shown that regular consumption of
Xylitol helps fight tooth decay and reduced cavities over time. Many dentists are starting to promote Xylitol
products to their patients to help protect their teeth.
I am always skeptical of sweeteners that claim to “taste
just like sugar” and be as sweet.
Usually, it is too sweet and has a weird aftertaste. But upon recommendation by my dentist, I
ordered a 1 lb bag of Xylitol to see if I could actually bake with it, and make
really delicious chocolate chip cookies without sacrificing texture or
taste. When I opened the bag and sampled
the Xylitol crystals, I really liked the taste!
No aftertaste at all for me, although some people online have reported a
“cooling” sensation as the crystals melt.
And they actually do melt in your mouth – sort of like eating cotton
candy. So, I was hopeful!
Next I opened the bag of Coconut Palm Sugar (CPS) I had
also ordered. CPS is also a sugar
substitute, made from the nectar of coconut palm blossoms. The nectar is dried and then crushed into granules.
CPS is preferable to brown sugar because it is not refined sugar cane, but a
natural sweetener that retains its nutrients, incl. potassium, magnesium, zinc,
iron, vitamin C, and vitamins B1, B2, B3, and B6. It has a low glycemic rating of 35 so it
slowly absorbs in your bloodstream. It
looks like coarse brown sugar, and the taste is a little strong (to me), like
burnt caramel. I was hesitant to switch
it 1:1 with brown sugar in my recipe.
The brands I bought were made by XyloBurst: http://www.xyloburst.com/index.php
However, I found the same XyloBurst sweeteners for a
cheaper price at: http://hudsonhealthfood.com/categories/Xylitol-Sweeteners-/
