I guess I’m on a bit of a cookie kick, but I’ve been wanting to make these cookies ever since Kim Boyce came out with Good to the Grain. I love baking with whole grains – it adds a nuttiness and a different dimension to baked goods that just doesn’t happen when using white flour. Plus people feel a little less guilty eating baked goodies when I tell them they’re whole grain.
It’s not enough that they’re whole grain, though. I actually ground my own flour for these. Someone at work asked if I grew the wheat too. Uh, no. But I was the lucky winner of a Nutrimill (thanks to Anna at Cookie Madness!) and this was the first chance I’ve had to use it.
The Nutrimill is really easy to use, just dump the grain into the hopper and turn the knob. The freshly ground flour smells so warm and wheat-y, although the sugar and butter and chocolate in the cookies overcomes any subtle differences that might occur from using freshly milled flour. I can’t wait to make bread with it.
I made up the dough late at night and baked them up before work the next morning. I was hoping an overnight in the refrigerator would help the structure but they still turned out flat. Flat but chewy. I hate flat cookies. Not so much that it’ll keep me from eating them (chocolate chip cookies are a particular weakness for me).
I’m thinking the flat cookie syndrome could have a couple of causes. First, I weighed my flour. I guessed 120 grams per cup – but that was just an educated guess. The recipe calls out volumes, not weights. Second, I wonder if my leavening is too old? I can’t see how that could be possible given the amount of baking I do, but since many of my cookies lately have been flat, it might be part of the problem.
Despite my complaints about the flatness of the cookies, they’re terrific. People at work raved about them, and I even had one. I can’t wait to make more of the recipes out of Good to the Grain! If you’d like the recipe, just click on the link below – Fine Cooking has the recipe posted.
- Whole-Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies (Good to the Grain)
Hi Sheri–I think yours still look tasty despite being flat! :) I wonder if the home-ground flour had anything to do with it. Maybe your flour ended up finer than mine? I used King Arthur. I don’t know about you, but I kind of love when my first attempt at a cookie recipe isn’t perfect…a good excuse to make the cookies again!