"less guilt" chocolate chip cookies

Sometimes, even (or especially) when you're dieting, you just really need a warm, gooey chocolate chip cookie. If you're like me and you love chocolate chip cookies more than any other food in the world, then it's kind of imperative to living happily. These cookies are seriously delicious and I can't believe that they're only 85 calories per cookie (as opposed to the typical 130 calories in most chocolate chip cookies).

Let's get real for a minute though. These are still not healthy so I'm not going to label them as "healthy cookies". I see these so-called "healthy" cookies on Pinterest and it just makes me laugh. Sweetened with banana or agave or dates or whatever is still sweetened. So let's just be honest and call it what it is - a treat. I will call these "less-guilt" cookies though because they have whole wheat pastry flour, egg whites, applesauce and only a teeny, tiny bit of butter in them. So, I guess they're healthier than my original recipe! I took these to my neighborhood block party and thankfully, everyone gobbled them up and loved them! I never even told them they were "less guilty"! That's a win in my book.

Adapted from Skinny Taste (I love this website! Check it out if you're trying to lose a few pounds!)

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 Tablespoons salted butter, melted (I am going to try these with EV coconut oil next or I'm betting you could omit this altogether)

1 egg white

2 Tablespoons unsweetened apple sauce

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (must be pastry flour!)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (I used these)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two Silpats on cookie sheets (or just spray cookie sheets but the Silpats are so much better!)

Whisk flours, baking soda and salt in a bowl until combined. In a separate large bowl beat sugars, butter, egg white, apple sauce and vanilla until light and fluffy. Scrape down sides of bowl and slowly incorporate dry ingredients until well combined. Fold in chocolate chips. 

Using a cookie scoop, place on cookie sheets about 1" apart. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes (mine needed 12 minutes) and let cool on a wire rack. Store in a plastic container.