Low fat! Cocoa fudge cookies

Yes, another low-fat winner from the talents of Alice Medrich. I saw this recipe a few weeks ago on Baking Sheet and bookmarked it to try. A low-fat cookie that tastes like a brownie? Hell, yeah! It's worth having a low-fat biscuit recipe up your sleeve anyway, and seeing it was one of Alice Medrich's indicated that it'd be guaranteed not to taste low-fat. Her things rarely do; I'm a big fan, as evidenced by my postings about her fallen souffle cake, chocolate layer cake, souffles and lemon yoghurt cake.
I actually made these about a month ago for mother's day. The present I ordered for mum from Amazon hadn't arrived so I came home late from a concert on the Saturday, whipped up the mixture, stuck it in the fridge and baked them up the next morning to take up to her for breakfast with a cup of tea. I know, warm chocolate biscuits for breakfast is bit over-the-top, but what more decadent way to spend the morning in bed?
I had plans to photograph them for the blog but they all disappeared!! She took some to work, where the girls reckoned they were the best chocolate biscuits they'd ever tasted, couldn't believe they were low-fat, and demanded the recipe. So, in the interests of other people who may be interested, and so I could actually post about them, I whipped up another batch.
Now, Nic notes that this recipe was published in Cooking Light magazine, so from that I'm assuming that it is a low-fat recipe. I've never seen a Cooking Light magazine, but from what I've heard it's about cooking......umm....light, yeah? They have a fantastic texture: a crispy shell encasing soft, almost gooey insides. They're light, and not greasy. Luxurious taste without the luxurious calorie count.
Read on for the recipe:

Cocoa Fudge Cookies
(from Cooking Light, recipe by Alice Medrich)
1 cup plain flour
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
7 tbsp cocoa powder (unsweetened)
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup dried tart cherries or cranberries (or mini chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350F (175C).
Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.
In a large, microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter in the microwave. Stir in cocoa powder and sugars. Stir in yogurt and vanilla extract. Add flour and mix until just combined. Stir in cherries or mini-chocolate chips, if using.
Drop tablespoonfuls of batter onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Press down slightly to flatten; cookies do not spread a lot.
Bake at 350F/175C for 9-12 minutes or until set and slightly firm at the edges. Allow to cool on the pan for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes 2 dozen.

Note: *Adding mini choc chips and topping with nuts probably ups the fat content a bit, so leave them out if you're concerned about that.

*Refrigerating the mixture overnight made biscuits with a less "perfect" texture and shape. Using the mix immediately seem to produce a better looking and better textured biscuit.

Tagged with low fat