Whole Wheat Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies {Naptime Everyday}

What’s Going on Today: Stocking up for back to school.

Tonight’s Menu: Back to School Eggplant Parmesan, Green Beans with Almonds, Wine (for Dad), Sparkling Water (for me!)

Naptime Goals: Make Whole Wheat Dark Chocolate Chip cookie dough and prepare Eggplant Parmesan.

It’s hard to believe it is back-to-school time again – but it is! I know a lot of people get stressed out thinking of back to school food ideas but I actually find it kind of fun. It gives me a reason to break out old favorites, bake a few loaves of zucchini applesauce bread, and get ready for cold-weather cooking. This year I’ve also been inspired to give my sweets a healthier twist. Part of this is due to me keeping the baby weight gain in check, but part of it is because I’ve come to really love the earthy sweetness of whole wheat flour.

I’ve seen a lot of delicious looking whole wheat cookies around but none that have been quite the texture that I like. To make this version I used my favorite crispy chocolate chip cookie recipe, swapped half the white flour for whole wheat, and replaced semisweet chocolate chips for dark chocolate chips. I love the way dark chocolate chips pair with the darker whole wheat cookie.

While my daughter was recovering from her first sleepover (i.e. napping on the sofa) I whipped up the dough and popped it in the fridge. Then I baked it after she was asleep later that evening. The cookies crisped up as they cooled and by the next morning I had the most amazing cookies on my hands. They were just the right texture, a little crispy on the exterior with a soft center. The dark chocolate chips gave them a more sophisticated flavor than my everyday semisweet variety, though not to much that my daughter didn’t like them. While I don’t pack a lot of sweets in her lunchbox I think one or two of these cookies will be just the thing to welcome her home with after her first week of school.