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Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies with Orange and Apricots

(recipe, Ellen Jackson)

Introduction

The very best place to begin adding whole grains to your diet is in something familiar. You probably won’t want to rely on these cookies to meet all of your whole-grain requirements, but each cookie does have six grams of whole grains. Drink to that with a glass of cold milk. The vinegar might seem like a strange addition. Giving the baking soda something to react to accounts for the unexpected lightness of these crisp cookies.

Ingredients

  1. 1 cup white whole-wheat flour
  2. 1 cup barley flour
  3. 1 tsp. salt
  4. ½ tsp. baking soda
  5. ½ tsp. baking powder
  6. 6 oz. (1½ sticks) unsalted butter
  7. ¾ cup dark brown sugar, packed, or ¾ cup light brown sugar plus 1 tablespoon molasses
  8. ¾ cup granulated sugar
  9. Zest of one large orange, finely chopped
  10. 1 Tbsp. instant espresso powder (see Note)
  11. 2 tsp. vanilla
  12. 1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
  13. 1 egg
  14. 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
  15. 1 cup diced dried apricots

Steps

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two baking sheets or line them with parchment paper.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the whole-wheat and barley flours with the salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
  3. Using an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter with the sugars, orange zest, and espresso powder until smooth.
  4. Add the vanilla, vinegar, and egg to the butter-sugar mixture, stirring to incorporate, then mix in dry ingredients.
  5. Stir in the chocolate chips and apricots by hand. (It’s OK if the dough isn’t completely cohesive.)
  6. Drop the batter by tablespoons onto the baking sheets and bake until golden brown, about 16 to 18 minutes. Rotate the sheets halfway through. Cool for five minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Note

Instant espresso powder is available at most supermarkets. Try the Medaglia d'Oro or Ferrara brands. For a double-chocolate cookie, add 1/4 cup baking cocoa to the dry ingredients. Read more about baking with unusual flours in Ellen Jackson's Culinate 8s on wheat flour and non-wheat flours.