As of today, my big sister is 16 days overdue. I have literally spent every day of the past month anxious and on edge, waiting for news of my nephew’s arrival. When she told me last night that she was heading into the hospital to be induced, I instantly started sobbing. Even though I have known for 42 weeks (!) now that she is going to have a baby, it is all of the sudden very real. My big sister is going to be a mom!
As if sleeping wasn’t hard enough for me these days, last night I may have gotten 2 hours total. Every 20 minutes or so I rolled over to check my phone, just to see if there was news of his impeding arrival. But this little bugger is the most stubborn baby, and seems to be avoiding each and every attempt to bring him into the outside world.
So while my sister is sending hourly text updates, and letting me know that she’s having small contractions and watching movies in her hospital bed, I am anxiously pacing around my house looking for distractions and things to calm my nerves. Things like baking…
Coconut Oil Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients: (makes 2 dozen cookies)
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup almond butter
- 1/2 cup organic cane sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp flax + 3 tbsp water
- 1/4 cup soy or almond milk
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
Instructions: When the urge to bake came on quickly, I knew there was one small issue. I was out of Earth Balance (vegan butter), and baking and butter typically go hand in hand. I decided to see the grocery shortage as an opportunity to try something else, and reached for one of my favorite alternative fats – coconut oil.
The reason coconut oil can work as a good butter or Earth Balance replacement is that it’s a saturated fat, and solid at room temperature (like butter), so it’s more stable than using something like canola or vegetable oil.
Combine the coconut oil, almond butter, and sugar in a mixer, and beat until fluffy. (I use unbleached cane sugar, which is why mine is brown.)
In a small dish to the side, combine the tbsp ground flax with 3 tbsp water, and let it sit for a few minutes until it becomes a “flax egg.”
Slowly add the flax egg, vanilla, and milk to the mixer, and beat until combined. In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt.
Mix wet into dry on low speed until just combined. Taste the dough. YUM.
Fold in the chocolate chips! You will notice that the dough is much more greasy and shiny looking than you are used to – that’s the coconut oil spreading the love throughout the cookie dough.
Scoop out onto a greased cookie sheet, one dozen at a time.
Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees or until the edges are golden brown.
Best served piping hot, with an ice cold glass of milk nearby.
Even though coconut oil and almond butter are both things that are relatively high in calories, you’re not actually using much of either in the total recipe. As far as flavor goes, a little goes a long way, and you can definitely taste a hint of both in these dense but dreamy cookies.
For as rich and decadent as they sound, they are actually only 95 calories per piece. Which means that you can definitely afford to eat more than one, which is always a good thing.
Gooey and chocolatey. Just screaming to be dunked, right?
Enjoy!
I’ll be nervously munching these at my desk as Nephew Watch 2011 continues throughout the day…
92 Comments so far
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These look wonderful! Good luck with Nephew Watch! ;)
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Oh those look absoltely amazing! I seriously have to recreate those! I’ve been seeing so many good recipes today. I hope your sister is doing okay!
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a) God bless your poor sister! She must be so uncomfortable! Hope your nephew makes his debut SOON!
b) Thank you for finally giving me some kind of idea of what to do with my massive bottle of coconut oil! I never know what to use it for!
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Wow, you read my mind. I was literally just thinking about making choc. chip cookies after work but somehow incorporating coconut oil in them. Thanks for taking the leg work out for me! I’ll be making these tonight :)
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Those cookies look sooo good! I need to get some coconut oil. It seems like the entire blogger world has coconut oil except for me! Good luck to your sister. Hopig for a safe delivery and healthy baby boy!
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:O they look SO good!
My coconut oil jar thing has a very narrow top (like a miniature wine bottle) so would they still work if the coconut oil was melted (cos it’s the only way I can get it out)? I’m guessing yes, but I want to double check :-)
Oh, and your poor sister! 16 days OD, she must be very uncomfortable! I was 14days overdue and my mum was FED. UP.
I hope the inducing goes well :)
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:08 pm
Melted should still work. It’s going to melt in the cookies anyways!
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Oh these sound insanely delicious! I love how thick the cookie cooks up, and the chunks of amazing chocolate chips. I’ve gotta grab some coconut butter to try this out!
I hope your sister is doing well and the little baby decides to come out soon :)
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I was JUST about to look at your tweets from the weekend. Since I was gone I thought for sure I missed the birth announcement but I guess I didn’t! Cookies are the best distraction. Good luck to your sis!
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Look delicious!! And yes, it’s always nice when you can have more than 1 :)
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Yummy! My husband is in the middle of a 4-week dairy free elimination diet to check for allergies, so these might have to go on our list. He loves baking pies, so we also want to try a coconut oil pie crust.
The state (liquid vs. solid) of the coconut oil at room temp depends on your definition of room temp. We do use some A/C in the summer, but we set it pretty high (around 80 degrees). At those temps, our coconut oil is definitely more liquid, so we’ll need to refrigerate it to get the right consistency to imitate butter.
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These look lovely… yum!
16 days late now? My goodness, your poor sister. She must be a saint! (Hopefully being overdue doesn’t run in the family? For your sake!). Good luck to her today! It HAS to happen today, right? :)
~
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these look amazing! i’m so glad you were out of earth balance – i bought a jar of coconut oil on a whim and it just sits there – staring at me. Fresh baked cookies tonight? I think so!
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I’m probably going to buy the coconut oil from your amazon store but not just yet – is there anything annoying about having it in my cart but not purchasing yet? I’m never sure what the etiquette is on that! I couldn’t find another option, like saving it to my wish list.
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:08 pm
Haha sorry I’m late to this. No worries at all about the shopping cart. I can’t even see that stuff! Hope you like it! :)
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Wow, that dough looks better than the cookies! (almost!)
16 days overdue??? Poor girl!
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These cookies look insanely good!! What a great way to distract during Nephew Watch!! Best of luck to your sister as she becomes a mom :)
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Wow 16 days past her due date! I went 9 before being induced. I too had a stubborn boy and after they did everything possible to get labor started, it just never did. My water even broke on it’s own. So at 11 days past my due date they had to go in for the little guy. He was comfortably hanging out in some weird position. Hope your nephew arrives soon!
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Also – sending enter-baby-to-the-world vibes to your sister!!
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Looks good! And good luck to your sister!
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email me when you hear anything about rebecca, OK? =)
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These look great! I’ve become such a fan of coconut oil in recent months. :)
Good luck to your sister! I hope you get to meet your nephew soon! :)
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Woo hoo for your sister! How exciting.
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16 days I can’t even imagine. All mine came early. Here’s too a quick conclusion to nephew watch 2011.
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Mmmm, I have all these ingredients (except chocolate, but I will deal).
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I understand. My aunt had her fifth baby (cousin #37 for me!) on June 1st, but had so much energy as I just wanted the baby to come. My aunt was four days early, but for the month before I thought she was going to have the baby because her others have been two to three weeks early. Safe to say all my cousins and I were ecstatic when baby Philip finally arrived – technically early, but way after we thought he would be born!
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Vegan, Yippee! Thanx for sharing:)
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You read my preggo-cravings. I’m making this ASAP. And I hope your sister is doing well! 42 weeks . . . holy moly!
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Oh no, I feel for her. Being over due and being induced…neither is fun. I’ll be thinking about her and the little one today. The cookies look like a perfect distraction! I love coconut oil in baked goods especially cookies!
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I hope your sister is okay! I am surprised they let you go that many days over without inducing you sooner… cookies look AH-MAZ-ING!!!!
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This is perfect. I was just looking for a recipe to make for a co-worker’s birthday tomorrow.
I hope your nephew gets here soon!
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Good luck to your sister and early congratulations. What an exciting day!
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You had me a coconut oil :)
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OMG those look divine! I need to make these babies asap! I love coconut oil and any recipe with it as an ingredient is a must! Thanks for sharing!!
Early congrats to your sister and to you! That is so exciting!!
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Good luck to your sister! That baby is going to be HUGE when he finally comes out! And those cookies look totally scrumptious. Could you sub coconut butter, or does it have to be oil?
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:07 pm
Coconut butter will be a bit more rich and thick, but it still would probably work!
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These look so good! They may have to be my weekend baking project. I just made your artichoke hummus recipe from O magazine and it is delicious!
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:07 pm
Oh YUM! Glad you liked the hummus!
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Praying for your sister! Maybe you can send her a batch of these cookies… (:
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Mmm…those cookies look like a delicious distraction. I hope you hear news of your nephew’s arrival soon!
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What an exciting wait! And now you’ll have treats to bring the new mommy.
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These look amazing! I have been thinking of ways to use my newly acquired coconut oil and I can think of nothing better than baked goods!! :)
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Thanks for the recipe! Just made them and they taste great!
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Cookies are just…plain…awesome!
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Mmm…I would so take the role of the Cookie Monster today if I was around those! lol.
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Oh gosh! 16 day overdue! Let’s hope overdue babies don’t run in the family. I hope your sister’s labor is easy as pie and her baby is healthy too. Congrats on becoming an aunt!
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Those cookies look delicious! I’ve been wanting to make some cookies with coconut oil :)
I hope your sister has a save delivery and I’m thinking of you all! I know how stressful that can be!
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I was JUST thinking about how I would love some chocolate chip cookies! Thanks for the recipe.
Best wishes to your sister!!
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Yummy! I hope your sister has a short labor.
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Those cookies look so good! I have a ton of coconut oil; now I know what else to make with it! :-)
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These look absolutely delicious, Em! I’m not suprised, though, you are quite the baker after all :)
I wonder if I could sub peanut flour or oat flour for the all purpose and whole wheat?
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:06 pm
Yes, definitely try the subs! And let me know how it goes. :)
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I hope that your nephew comes soon! I can’t imagine waiting for so many days (weeks actually!).
Those cookies look amazing!
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It’s like you knew I’ve been craving chocolate chip cookies and wanted a new recipe to try… These look delicious!! :)
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Good luck to your sister!!
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oooh how exciting re your sister!!!!
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Hope your sister is doing well!! Thanks for the great recipe.
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That is so exciting! I would be pacing and anxious too if that were my sister. Soon you’ll be an aunt!
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These cookies are literally in my oven right now! I subbed sunflower butter for the almond butter (nut allergy), used a real egg and used coconut milk instead of soy…the dough was amazing!! I’m thinking some coconut flakes might be a good addition!
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Your poor sister!!!! My friend is 6 days overdue today and I know how miserable she is so I can only imagine how awful your sister must be feeling! :(
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Still no baby???
The cookies look really tasty, too!
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Those cookies look amaaaazingg! And combining coconut oil + almond butter (aka, two of the most incredible-edible things in existence)? Brilliant ;)
Sending love to your sis! I, myself, was a whopping 16 (SIX. TEEN.) days late entering the world… I was born, naturally, the day before doctors were going to forcably remove me, healthy and happy. All I’m saying is – all in good time, he’ll come when he’s ready :)
izzyy
xo
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Looks delicious! Is it important to use pastry flour? I always have a hard time finding it in other grocery stores.
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:06 pm
No you can definitely sub out the pastry flour!
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Just made this recipe! I was out of almond butter, so I used peanut. I also made bigger cookies, so that the recipe yielded a dozen rather than 2 dozen and they turned out really soft and fluffy. A winning recipe, thank you! Good luck to your sister!
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:06 pm
So glad you liked them!
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Your poor sister! I’m very surprised they’ve let her go 16 days – a very long time these days! Hope all goes well & can’t wait to see pics of the new little guy :)
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These look INCREDIBLE and I may just have to try tehm with the tub of coconut oil sitting in my pantry! :)
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Emily, these are my kind of cookies! Love the recipe!
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Can “whole wheat flour” be used in place of the pastry flour?
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Emily Malone Reply:
June 16th, 2011 at 12:05 pm
Yes, definitely. Might be a little denser, but will still work!
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Awww good luck to your sister!
I didn’t even know it was possible to be 16 days overdue. I thought for sure that being induced or a c-section was required at that point. Gah, that poor thing!
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Emily, I can’t get over how mouth-watering those cookies look. Coconut oil is just the best… :) Sending happy energy to your sister!
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Your sister could totally use some of those cookies after she delivers. She’ll need her energy–my 1 mo takes it out of me.
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Want to make these ASAP! Maybe on Friday after work…
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Your poor sister! I can’t imagine being that overdue. Hopefully she and her son are doing well.
I never use butter or oil when baking. I once used applesauce to lower calories and found that I find the texture of my baked goods SOOOOO much better that way. I get my healthy fats elsewhere, but man I freagin’ love applesauce!
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Wow, these look so incredible! I’m not craving them :)
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Yummmm :P
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LOVE that phot with the the glass of milk in the background…very enticing!
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Coconut oil and almond butter are two of my favorite ingredients to bake with! I can already imagine how great these cookies must have smelled coming out of the oven… :P
Hopefully your nephew comes along very soon!!
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I was 16 days overdue with my first! They induced me overnight and I felt like I had to wait FOREVER. I pushed for less than 5 minutes and there he was… My delivery was sooo easy it was worth all the waiting! Crossing my fingers that your sister will have a nice and easy delivery!!
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making these today :)
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Those look soo good. Almond butter + coconut oil + choccolate is a great combo!
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These sound so delicious. I’m a big fan of almond butter and coconut oil, so I don’t see how I wouldn’t love these.
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These look delicious! I will definitely be trying out coconut oil in more recipes!!!
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I’ve been wanting to make these for a while now, they were definilty worth the wait. They were so yummy! Thanks for another great recipe.
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Emily. I made these cookies tonight for my entire family and they were AMAZING. I may have had 3. Ok 4. Fine 5 don’t judge me ;-) All of your recipes that I have made are delicious-thank you for them!!
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Emily Malone Reply:
October 10th, 2011 at 10:18 am
No judgement here. So glad you liked them! :)
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Has anyone tried making these gluten free? If so, what kind of flour would you suggest?
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Amazing cookies!! I used all white whole wheat flour and brown sugar, but otherwise followed your recipe exactly. I didn’t get quite two dozen cookies, but that might have been because I couldn’t keep my fingers out of the dough!
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Emily Malone Reply:
May 27th, 2012 at 9:42 am
So glad you liked them!!
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These were so good! I used just AP flour and peanut butter. I couldn’t believe how soft they were. Awesome cookies!
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