Healthy Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
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Last updated on Dec 02, 2024
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These soft and fudgy healthy chocolate crinkle cookies are made with whole wheat flour, applesauce, maple syrup and coated in confectioners’ sugar. They’re the perfect addition to your holiday cookie tray!
Today I’m sharing a holiday classic with an EBF spin: healthy chocolate crinkle cookies!
If you’ve never had a chocolate crinkle cookie before, they’re basically a mix between a soft cookie and a fudgy brownie. They’re coated in powdered sugar before baking, which when baked creates “crinkles” in the cookie.
Apparently the original chocolate crinkle cookie recipe was created by Helen Fredell and first made an appearance in Betty Crocker’s 1957 cookie cookbook, “Cooky Carnival” and they’ve been a holiday favorite ever since!
The classic chocolate crinkle cookie recipe is made with butter, white flour and white sugar, but in true EBF fashion I swapped a few ingredients to make a healthier version. Even though these cookies are a tad healthier, they’re still just as delicious. You won’t even be able to tell the difference, trust me!
Why You’ll Love These Cookies
- Soft and chewy – These cookies have the perfect texture with a crackly, sugar-coated exterior.
- Fudgy – They taste just like a brownie but in cookie form.
- Healthier treat – A classic holiday cookie made with better-for-you ingredient swaps.
- Simple ingredients – You only need 10 basic ingredients to whip these up!
Ingredients Needed
- whole wheat pastry flour – a whole grain, nutrient-dense flour that results in tender and chewy cookies. My go-to brand is Bob’s Red Mill whole wheat pastry flour. If you can’t find whole wheat pastry flour you can also use white whole wheat flour, a blend of all-purpose and regular whole wheat flour or just regular all-purpose flour.
- cocoa powder – adds the chocolate flavor to these cookies! Make sure to use unsweetened cocoa powder or cacao powder.
- baking soda – helps these cookies rise.
- salt – brings all the flavors together.
- egg – helps bind the wet and dry ingredients together.
- coconut oil – a great alternative to butter that helps to keep the cookies moist. You want the oil to be in a liquid state so warm it a bit if necessary before measuring.
- applesauce – provides moisture and a subtle sweetness to the cookies.
- maple syrup – the perfect natural sweetener for these cookies, in my opinion.
- vanilla extract – for a flavor enhancer.
- confectioners’ sugar – also known as powdered sugar. It’s what we’re rolling the dough in before baking. As they bake and expand in the oven the cookies will form “crinkles.”
Substitutions & Notes
- Want to add more chocolatey goodness? Mix in chocolate chips to the batter before chilling the dough!
- Oil: You could swap the coconut oil for vegan butter, regular butter or another neutral oil like avocado or olive oil.
- Sweetener: If you don’t have maple syrup on hand you could always use a different liquid sweetener like honey, agave syrup or date syrup. I haven’t tried these cookies with dry sugar like coconut sugar so I’m not sure how they’d turn out.
- Flour: I like using whole wheat pastry flour for these cookies, but you could use all-purpose flour instead. If you need to make these cookies gluten free, I bet a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour substitute will work just fine. Let me know in the comments if you try a gluten-free version!
- Egg: I haven’t tried swapping the egg for a vegan substitute like a flax egg so I’m not sure how the cookies will turn out, but let me know if you try it in the comments below!
- Applesauce: I haven’t tried a replacement for the applesauce, but I bet mashed banana or even Greek yogurt would work well!
How to Make Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
These healthy chocolate crinkle cookies are a December baking favorite with their rich chocolate flavor and classic powdered sugar coating. Follow these simple steps to whip up a batch for your holiday celebrations!
Step 1: Mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
Step 2: In a separate large mixing bowl whisk together the egg, coconut oil, applesauce, maple syrup and vanilla extract.
Step 3: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well until just combined.
Step 4: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Add the powdered sugar to a shallow bowl. Once ready, scoop the dough into balls using a cookie scoop or Tablespoon.
Step 5: You want about 1 1/2 Tablespoon of dough per cookie. Then roll each cookie dough ball into the powdered sugar. Place dough balls onto the baking sheet, but don’t press them down!
Step 6: Bake cookies for 12-13 minutes. The cookies should spread and crinkle and the edges should appear to set. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly on cookie sheet. Then move cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Tips For Success
- Rolling in the powdered sugar: When applying the powdered sugar to the cookie dough balls, be sure to tap the cookies lightly after rolling them in the sugar. This will help remove any excess sugar and give the cookies a more consistent coating. If you are baking in a hot or humid location you may end up with the powdered sugar melting into the dough. A tip to help with this is by coating the dough in granulated sugar first, then heavily coating in powdered sugar.
- Chill the dough: Chilling the dough helps to prevent them from spreading too much while baking. It also helps to give them a more defined shape. Chilling the dough also helps prevent the powdered sugar from melting into the dough before baking.
- Use room temp ingredients: Cookies are best when the ingredients are at room temperature because the dough will spread evenly and the cookies will be more uniform in shape. Room temperature ingredients also mix together more easily, so you’ll end up with a more consistent dough.
How to Store Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days or in the fridge for about a week. For longer storage, you can store these cookies in the freezer.
Freezing baked cookies: Let the cookies cool completely then store in a freezer-safe container with parchment paper in between each layer.
Freezing unbaked cookies: Roll your dough into balls, then place in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake, let the dough balls thaw in the fridge, roll in powdered sugar and bake!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, chilling the dough is super important. It helps firm it up so it’s easier to work with and makes sure the cookies spread just right to get those beautiful crinkles.
If your cookies didn’t crinkle, the dough might not have been cold enough, or you might not have rolled them in enough powdered sugar. Don’t be shy with the sugar—it’s key for that signature look!
Yes! You can make the dough the day before. Just keep it covered in the fridge until you’re ready to roll and bake.
More Holiday Cookies to Try
- Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
- Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
- Healthy Sugar Cookies
- Almond Crescent Cookies
- Healthy No Bake Cookies
- Snowball Cookies
- Almond Butter Espresso Cookies
- Healthy Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Lemon Ricotta Cookies
- Oatmeal Scotchies
- Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles
- Molasses Cookies
Be sure to check out all of the healthy Christmas cookies as well as the full collection of cookie recipes here on EBF.
If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.
Healthy Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ⅓ cup whole wheat pastry flour
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
- ¼ cup applesauce
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar), for rolling
Instructions
- Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
- In a separate large mixing bowl whisk together egg, coconut oil, applesauce, maple syrup and vanilla extract.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Cover dough with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour in the fridge.
- Preheat oven to 350ºF and line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Add powdered sugar to a shallow bowl and using a cookie scoop or Tablespoon, scoop dough and roll into balls (you want about 1 ½ Tablespoon dough per cookie). Then roll each ball into the powdered sugar.
- Place dough balls onto the prepared baking sheet. Do not press down!
- Bake for 12-13 minutes. Cookies should spread and crinkle and the edges should appear set.
- Remove from the oven and let cool slightly on cookie sheet then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Video
Notes
- Storage: Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days, in the fridge for about a week, or in the freezer for longer storage. To freeze, cool baked cookies completely or freeze unbaked dough balls, then thaw, roll in powdered sugar, and bake when ready.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Have you ever made the crinkle cookies in other flavors? My husband doesn’t eat chocolate. Crazy, right? 🤣
I haven’t tried it! You’ll have to let me know if you test it out and how the cookies turn out.
Very good! I had to do some subs: for the the flour, I did half whole wheat flour and half all purpose flour. For the maple syrup, I did honey. For the applesauce, I did a smash ripe banana. First batch turned out well, but I wanted them sweeter, so I added dark chocolate chunks to the next batch & they were great!!! A definite success for being a healthier version of the regular chocolate crinkle cookies I make (:
WOO! This sounds delicious, I am so glad you are enjoying these cookies and they turned out great for you. Thank you for sharing your review + star rating, I really appreciate it!
I don’t have apple sauce at home is there any substitutes for this?
Thanks!
Hey Caylin – I note some substitution ideas in the post, but mashed/pureed ripe bananas or Greek yogurt might work well. I haven’t tried either substitute, so I’m not sure how the cookies would turn out, but definitely let me know if you end up trying either option and how the cookies turn out!
Hi- can these be made with a flax egg to accommodate vegan?
Hi Kathy – I haven’t tried swapping the egg in this recipe so I am not sure how they will turn out, but if you give them a try, let me know how it works for you! Enjoy!
Absolutely loved this recipe! I made it with all purpose gluten free flour (same measurements) and they are delicious! Definitely a soft cake like texture, with slight brownie taste. Will be making these again!!
Excellent! I am so glad you are loving this recipe and the GF version came out great, Lauren! Thank you so much for coming back and sharing your review & star rating, I truly appreciate it!
Yum!!! We made these with Bob’s Red Mill GF 1:1 blend and they turned out great! They were moist and fudgey as advertised, and not super sweet which was nice. Might add a splash of peppermint extract next time?
YES! That would be delicious, peppermint + chocolate = the BEST! Let me know how they turn out if you give that a try. Thanks so much for coming back and sharing your review & star rating, Sara, I really appreciate it.