Flourless Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Tate's is a bake shop that makes amazing -- but not necessarily super healthful -- cookies. A friend (and fellow Tate's fan) asked me to Full Belly Sisters-ize Tate's Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies. Of course, I said yes!


I swapped the sugar in the original recipe for Sucanat, which is basically unrefined dried sugar cane juice with its natural molasses intact (meaning it provides some nutritional value in the form of some iron, calcium, potassium). Succanat is still caloric like sugar, of course, so I did cut it from 3/4 cup to 1/2 cup. I also swapped the semi-sweet chocolate chips for the more nutritious dark chocolate and reduced the amount used.


In order to retain the original cookies' sweetness, I added minced prunes. These dried plums seem to have bad poop-related connotations for many people, but prunes are actually just super-sweet, super-healthful bites of goodness! They are high in fiber, as well as potassium, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, iron and calcium. In case you're still feeling iffy about the idea, let me assure you that you won't really taste the prunes; you'll just hit some tiny, chewy, sweet bits and say "mmmm" as you eat your cookies.


One more important point: peanut butter is the main ingredient in these cookies, so choose your jar carefully. Ideally, you should use one that either just has peanuts or has peanuts and salt. If it has hydrogenated oils and/or sugar, avoid it.

Adapted from Tate's Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies recipe:
Ingredients
(yield: 24 cookies)

• 1 cup natural peanut butter 
• 1/2 cup Sucanat (can substitute raw sugar or light brown sugar)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate (70% or more cocoa)
• 1/3 cup minced prunes (about 10 prunes)
• 1/4 tsp salt (if using unsalted peanut butter)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place parchment paper on two cookie sheets. In a medium bowl combine the peanut butter, Sucanat, egg, vanilla, baking soda and salt (if using). Add the minced prunes...

...and the chopped dark chocolate.

Mix together until the chocolate and prunes are evenly distributed throughout. Scoop heaping teaspoonfuls of the dough.

Using your hands, form into balls and press down a bit to flatten. You should be able to easily fit a dozen cookies on each cookie sheet; they don't spread much.

Bake for about 12 minutes. Put the cookie sheets on a rack to cool for five minutes or so.

 Then move the cookies off the sheets to a rack to cool.

These are especially delicious when still warm - the chocolate is melted and smooth.

 Peanut butter cookies just call out for milk.

UPDATE: A girl, a guy, furkids and food tried our cookies—check out their post!