Bored with baking the same old chocolate chip cookie? Try these Peanut Butter & Cocoa Nib Oaty Cookies for a change. The cocoa nibs add a chocolatey crunch without the added sugar.
Total Time Investment:
30 minutes
The problem with children is that they require constant feeding. Constant. Apparently I have not been adequately performing my parental duties of late. Apparently there should be something to eat in the house at all times. Preferably something with chocolate.
When I need to make something quickly I inevitably turn to biscuits (or cookies if you prefer). If I focus, I can usually make and cook a batch within half an hour. If my focus is off, they might takes as long as 45 minutes.
If I bother to ask The Princess what she wants me to cook, the answer is inevitably choc chip biscuits. I could just make the same recipe over and over, but I get bored baking the same thing and I am constantly looking for alternatives. So when I stumbled across these Nutty Peanut Butter and Choc Chip Oatmeal Cookies by Brandi at Bran Appetit (thank you Pinterest) I decided to adapt them for my own purposes.
I like to use cocoa nibs in place of chocolate chips in my baking. So what are cocoa nibs I hear you ask. Cocoa nibs are formed during the initial process of chocolate making. Dried cocoa beans are crushed into small pieces, and then ground further to form the cocoa mass that is used in chocolate. Those small pieces of crushed cocoa bean are called cocoa nibs.
As the cocoa nibs are formed during the initial stages of chocolate making, they do not contain any added sugar. I find them to have an intense chocolatey flavour, and they add a lovely chocolatey crunch to baked goods. Some people can find the nibs bitter due to the lack of sugar, but we quite like that in our house. Personally, I find the bitterness of the nibs is often tempered by the sweetness of the muffin or cookie to which they have been added.
These biscuits are not overly sweet, with deep chocolate undertones. According to The Princess “they’re actually not that bad.” High praise indeed. At least she now has something to eat.
Meal Prep Tips & Tricks
- Freeze batches of the cookies and bake directly from frozen. To freeze, shape the cookies as directed, place on a lined baking tray, and place in the freezer until solid. Bag and label the cookies with the cooking temperature, and cooking time. When ready to cook, place in the oven as normal and bake for an additional five minutes.
- Bake large batches of the cookies and freeze. Defrost frozen cookies at room temperature prior to serving. Frozen cookies placed in a lunchbox will defrost by lunchtime.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Plain (all-purpose) flour and wholemeal wheat flour can be used in place of the spelt.
- Raw sugar can be used in place of the rapadura sugar, although the cookies will be slightly sweeter.
- The rolled oats can be replaced with any other flaked grain.
- Chocolate chips or finely chopped chocolate can be used in place of the cocoa nibs.
- Walnuts can be used in place of the pecans.
* This post was originally published on 25th April 2015
Peanut Butter & Cocoa Nib Oaty Biscuits
Ingredients
- 65 g (1/2 cup) spelt flour
- 75 g (1/2 cup) wholemeal spelt flour
- 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 90 g (1 cup) rolled oats
- 40 g (1/2 cup) dessicated coconut
- 60 g (1/2 cup) cocoa nibs
- 25 g (1/4 cup) chopped pecans
- 110 g (1/2 cup) softened unsalted butter
- 40 g (1/4 cup) rapadura sugar
- 65 g (1/4 cup) peanut butter
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175C (155C fan forced)
- Sift together the spelt flour, salt and bicarbonate soda. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine the oats, coconut, cocoa nibs and chopped pecans. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together.
- Add the peanut butter and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Beat in the egg and vanilla extract.
- Fold in the sifted flour and mix until combined.
- Stir through the remainder of the ingredients.
- Drop spoonfuls of the mixture onto a lined baking tray. Flatten each biscuit slightly.
- Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until golden brown.
- Allow to cool on the tray for a few minutes before moving them to a rack to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container.
You have just given me a giggle for the night so thank you! I agree with your summary of the nibs, they do balance the sweetness of baked goods. They are also supposed to be really good for you 🙂 This is a lovely recipe. I am always on the look out for good biscuit recipes for the kids.
Pleasure and thank you : ) The nibs are supposedly good for you but I like the fact that by using them you cut out all the other additives in chocolate. Added bonus that the child actually likes them.
I’ve never used cocoa nibs in baking before, so you’ve got me intrigued! I love that it has no added sugar. Ill definitely give it a try!
I love the cocoa nibs in baking Julie. They add crunch as well as a chocolate flavour, which is great for texture.
I know exactly what you mean about kids that are constantly hungry! Mine need food every two hours! These cookies look absolutely delicious. I love that you have used spelt flour, which is so much better than wheat. I bet they taste absolutely delicious
I think you are lucky with two hour gaps Katrin. Mine grazes from the moment she comes home from school until dinnertime 😉 I use a lot of spelt in my baking, as I love both the health benefits as well as the taste.
Ive always wondered what cocoa nibs are…. can’t wait to make these!
I remember when I found out what they actually were Michele, and I was like “Is that all they are?” 😀 Now we love them, so I hope you like them too.
I’ve never used cocoa nibs before. Trying these for sure!
I hope you like them Erin 🙂
What delicious biscuits/cookies. 🙂 My daughter would ADORE these, as she’s into anything sweet these days, and I love the addition of cocoa nibs. YUM.
Thanks Erin 🙂 I hope she likes them as much as my daughter does.