SHOWSTOPPING CHILI COOKIES

Submitted by Banks

"The chili powder adds a nice smokiness without being spicy, and the chocolate chips are irreplaceable. The whole cookie carries deep nuances and flavor that's unique and irreplaceable. Are you making these for die-hard traditional cookie lovers? Never fear! I served these to my mom, who loves more traditional foods and thought chili cookies sounded gross, and she loved them so much she had one every morning with her coffee! As a bonus, these can be dairy-free and vegan when made with the correct chocolate chips."

 

• Ready In: 25mins
• Ingredients: 10
• Yields: 2-3 dozen cookies
• Serves: 12-24

ingredients

• DRY INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1⁄4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons smoked dried ancho chile powder (You can use any red chili powder that's not too spicy)
• 3⁄4 teaspoon salt

• WET INGREDIENTS

• 2⁄3 cup brown sugar
• 1⁄3 cup finely chopped dates (I used 4 large Medjool dates)
• 1⁄2 cup coconut oil
• 1⁄4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons applesauce
• 1 cup chocolate chips

directions

1. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, chili powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Combine the brown sugar, dates, coconut oil, water, and applesauce in a large bowl, beating until well-blended. Obviously it'll still be lumpy because of the dates; this is great. You just don't want chunks of coconut oil.
3. Gradually add the flour mixture until it forms a cookie dough. You may have to add more flour, depending on the density of your flour to begin with and how moist it is where you live. Since my flour is very dense and I live in a dry place, my cookie dough wasn't sticky at all. I could form it into perfect balls, and the cookies turned out slightly cakey. You could add more flour until you get this result, or you could keep it wetter and experience a less cakey cookie.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (177 C). Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
5. Take generous spoonfuls of cookie dough, roll them into balls using the palms of your hand, and flatten slightly on the cookie sheet. (Or, if your dough is wetter, just drop them straight onto the sheet from your generous spoon.) Keep them 2 inches apart.
6. Bake until the edges are set, 10-15 minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool, and eat!
7. NOTE 1: At high altitude, the cookies may take longer to bake. Keep the temperature the same, but you may decrease the baking soda by 1/4 tsp if you want.
8. NOTE 2: If you want your cookies with some spice, you could add some hot chipotle powder. You could also sprinkle sea salt on top of the uncooked dough before baking. The cookie dough was so good by itself (and eggless!) that you could even roll it into balls and dip in chocolate for Cookie Dough Truffles.
9. NOTE 3: Instead of using all coconut oil, sometimes it's easier to scoop some coconut oil into the measuring cup and then top it off with veggie or olive oil. It makes it easier to get the exact measurement.
10. This recipe is inspired off a recipe from Sam Talbot in his book 100% Real Food.

Reviews

[Ariana TeLondes]

This is the cookie of the year. The spices combine to create flavors that pop in your mouth. If you don't like salty-sweet desserts (which I love) I would recommend you add less salt.