Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate and Toasted Walnuts

I enjoyed making a healthy cookies last weekend so I had to give it another go this weekend.

 

My mother-in-law gave me a little package of Belgian chocolates; they were heart shaped.  She said she gave them to me because she loves me. Sweet!  I decided to put them in cookies.  I weighed the chocolates and they weighed about 2.5 ounces. I chopped them with my Pampered Chef food chopper and it turns out it was about 1/2 cup finely chopped chocolate.  Of course you don't need heart shaped Belgian chocolates to make these cookies.  Your favorite chocolate chips can be substituted.  I think my Belgian chocolates were dark chocolate as opposed to milk chocolate.  I don't know much about chocolate.  I was amazed when I chopped up the Belgian chocolates that just the warmth of my hands started to melt the chocolate... which meant I had to lick my fingers.

 

 

These cookies are just a slight variation of the Cranberry, Orange, and Pecan Oatmeal Cookies I made last weekend.  When my husband saw me making cookies today he said, "you should just make the cookies you made last week!"  I guess he really liked them.

 

Turns out he likes the Chocolate Walnut version, too.  Maybe he won't eat so many and he'll leave more for me if I tell them they are rather healthy? 

Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate and Toasted Walnuts

INGREDIENTS

Wet Ingredients
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup light corn syrup (Karo)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 whole large egg
2 egg whites from large eggs
3/4 cup light brown sugar (packed)
1/4 cup granulated sugar

Dry Ingredients
1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour (*)
1 1/2 cups all purpose unbleached flour (*)
1 teaspoon salt (I used iodized salt because it's finer than kosher salt)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 cups whole oats
3/4 to 1 cup walnuts (chopped)
1/2 cup chopped Belgian chocolate or 1/2 to 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line baking trays with parchment paper.

In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the walnuts until they become fragrant and turn a shade or two browner; set aside to cool and then chop coarsely.

Combine all of the wet ingredients in a large bowl. Stir with a whisk to combine well and set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, combine the two flours, salt, and baking soda; stir with a whisk to combine.  (*) Lightly measure the flours. That is, fluff up the flour, spoon it into the measuring cup, and then sweep the measuring cup with the back of a knife to level (as opposed scooping the flour out of the canister or bag... this can result in compacting the flour in the measuring cup and adding too much flour). 

Dump the flour mixture into the wet ingredients all at once and stir by hand until almost combined.  Add in the oats, chocolate, and chopped walnuts. Stir until all ingredients are well distributed. 

Scoop dough onto parchment lined cookie trays. Each cookie should be about the size of a walnut or a slightly rounded tablespoon. I use a cookie scoop that look likes a little ice cream scoop.  Slightly flatten each cookie with fingertips moistened with water. If desired, sprinkle about 1/8 of a teaspoon (or less) of granulated sugar on top of each cookie.

Bake cookies in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.  Allow cookies to cool on cookie sheet for a few minutes, then transfer parchment paper and cookies to counter top to cool completely.  Store in an airtight container.