Whole Wheat Peppermint White Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

I have been seriously obsessed with holiday baking this December. I don’t know if it’s baby girl in my tummy trying to make up for my serious sugar aversion during the first two trimesters, when just the smell of something sweet would send me running away crying and puking, or if it’s just a strange side of my nesting instinct as we head into the final 6 weeks or so of pregnancy. Either way, I keep wanting sweets and am dreaming up all sorts of ingredient combinations. Yes, literally dreaming as well as daydreaming.

Last week, the idea of peppermint white chocolate chip cookies kept permeating in my brain. I had several bits and pieces of mini candy canes left over from my Hot Cocoa Mug Cookies that I created for SheKnows, and thought they would be perfect to experiment with.

But I really didn’t feel good about all the white flour and sugar we were consuming this month. After years of not even having the stuff in the house, I’d been baking with it non-stop for various other sites and companies who wanted easy baking recipes, and I really wanted to create a holiday cookie that had at least some nutritional value.

Fortunately, I have a recipe for Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies that I’ve perfected (what? Thought I’d posted that already! Okay, look for it next week.), so I simply adapted it with white chocolate chips and candy cane pieces.

For the sugar, I used sucanat, which is dehydrated cane juice.  Unlike white or brown sugar, it is unrefined and unprocessed.  It retains the molasses, so has a molasses taste, which gives some great flavor in addition to sweetness.  I’ve read a lot of conflicting claims on the health and nutritional benefits of sucanat, so I’m not going to make any claims here other than what both sides confirm as fact.  Sucanat is the most natural form of sugar and is organic.  It contains small amounts of various vitamins and quite a bit of potassium and also has less sucrose than refined white sugar.

I order my sucanat from Azure Standard, which is far cheaper than I’ve ever seen it in stores or online. You can buy sucanat on Amazon, which is currently about $12 for a 2 lb bag, but my 2 lb bag from Azure Standard is just under $6! It’s even cheaper if you buy in bulk, which we do once a year. Azure Standard is also where I buy my bulk whole wheat from, which we grind ourselves. But even buying bulk whole wheat flour already ground is cheaper from them than in stores. I highly encourage checking their site out to see if there’s a drop point near you.

The sucanat I get tends to be a bit coarse compared to granulated sugar. While this is no problem for using in cooking, stirring into drinks, or really wet recipes like banana bread, I find it doesn’t work as well for baking things like cookies and cakes. Not to worry. I just give it a quick whir in the blender to get it to a finer consistency, then measure it out again.

I used Ghirdadelli white chocolate chips because they don’t have a bunch of unnecessary fake ingredients like artificial flavors. I used regular old mini candy canes for the peppermint candies, but if you really want to go a healthier, more natural route, there are organic peppermint candies that are naturally sweetened and dye free. But mini candy canes are probably your cheapest option.

To crush up the candy canes, I put them in a zip top bag and then beat them to pieces with a rolling pin. Corban really loves this step and comes over to march in time with my hitting.’

While these cookies are still dessert, they are a much healthier holiday cookie option, and something I feel a lot better about feeding myself and my family.

This Friday, the day after Christmas, I’ll be sharing Corban’s new favorite snack, an Olaf snowman made of cheese! Meanwhile, Eric, Corban, and I hope you and your family have such a wonderful Christmas and holiday season full of joy, love, and laughter. Merry Christmas!

Looking for more whole wheat baking recipes? Here are some of my favorites: