Okay, so you know those absolutely amazing cookies that you find at the grocery store in the bakery section? Yes, you know the ones... The ones that are soft and light and fluffy and perfectly sweet and delicate with their melt-in-your-mouth amazingness?
Those cookies have been known to be a problem for me in the past. I mean... how can you pass them up? Especially during the holidays?
A few years back I started looking for that recipe. I tried several different variations and only ever managed to find one that was perfect. ...One recipe that produced a cookie was exactly like the ones at the store.
The only problem that still remained was... they were anything but good for you.
I've basically taken that original tried-and-true recipe and trimmed it down as best I could without losing the amazingness of that cookie.
The first thing I did was swapped out some of the regular flour for some whole wheat white flour. If you're going to be bad, you may as well get some good in there too! At least you can say you had some whole wheat, right?
I also substituted in some sweetener for about 1/3 of the sugar originally called for. Why? Well, if you can get away with less sugar, then why not? For the cookie dough, I used a light butter rather than full fat. Again, if you can get away with it... do it!
I made a few other minor changes as well, and still ended up with a perfectly light and decedent cookie that has over 50 calories less per serving than it's store bought counter part. Plus, I know exactly what in these cookies since well... I'm one that put it all there!
I'm telling you, they taste almost exactly like the original.
TheSkinnyFork.com - Originally Posted 12/15/14 A tasty homemade version of the soft and froster sugar cookies you know and love! They're lightened up with a few simple swaps and taste AMAZING. Prep Time: 10 Minutes + 4 Hours Chilling • Cook Time: 5-7 Minutes
Servings: 32 • Serving Size: 1 Cookie • Calories: 159 • Fat: 7 g • Saturated Fat: 4 g • Carb: 25 g • Fiber: 0 g • Protein: 2 g • Sugar: 14 g • Sodium: 109 mg
Cookies:
• 1 1/4 C. All-Purpose Flour
• 1 1/4 C. Whole Wheat White Flour
• 3/4 Tsp. Baking Soda
• 3/4 Tsp. Salt
• 1/2 Tsp. Baking Powder
• 1 C. Sugar
• 1/2 C. Sweetener
• 1/2 C. (1 Stick) Softened Butter
• 1 Whole Large Egg
• 2 Egg Whites
• 1/2 C. Plain Fat Free Greek Yogurt
• 1/2 C. Neufchâtel Cream Cheese
• 1 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
Frosting:
• 1/2 C. (1 Stick) Softened Butter
• 1 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 2 C. Confectioners' Sugar
• 1/2 C. Confectioners' Sugar Substitute
• 2 Tbsp. Unsweetened Almond Milk
Directions:
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the 1 1/4 C. all-purpose flour, 1 1/4 C whole wheat white flour, 3/4 Tsp. baking soda, 3/4 Tsp. salt and 1/2 Tsp. baking powder together; set aside.
In another large mixing bowl (or the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment), cream together the 1 C. sugar 1/2 C. sweetener, and 1/2 C. butter until light and fluffy.
Add in the egg and the 2 egg whites one by one, to mix each in until well combined.
Beat in the 1/2 C. greek yogurt, 1/2 C. cream cheese, and 1 Tsp. vanilla until it all comes back together.
Finally, add in the flour mixture by 1/2 C. increments, stirring to combine in between each addition.
If your dough is a little too thin, add in another tbsp. or two of flour until it thickens up enough to your liking. I tend to let mine be a little thinner since I know the following day I'll be adding in more flour during the rolling and cutting process!
Line a large bowl with plastic wrap and transfer the dough to it.
Wrap it up tightly and chill in the fridge for at least four hours, but overnight is best!
When ready, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. and line a baking sheet (or two) with parchment paper; set aside.
Transfer the chilled dough to a floured surface and roll it out to be about 1/4" thick.
I divided my dough into four equal increments to work with, rather than the entire batch all at once.
Cut your cookies out into your desired shape.
I used a regular 3" sealing lid to a mason jar and got exactly 32 cookies. I know... I'm just fancy like that.
Transfer the cutouts carefully onto the prepared baking sheets and place in the oven to bake for 5-7 minutes or until the edges are just starting to turn brown.
Remove from the oven and immediately transfer to a wire rack to cool.
You don't want them to continue to cook on a hot baking sheet!
While your cookies are cooling, whip up the frosting.
Beat the 1/2 C. softened butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy then add in the 1 Tsp. vanilla and beat again until well combined.
Add the 2 C. powdered sugar and 1/2 C. confectioners' sugar substitute in to the butter in 1/2 c. increments and beat on the lowest speed to combine in between each addition. Finally, add in the milk and beat again.
If the frosting is too dry, add another 1/2 tbsp. of milk at a time to get the desired consistency. Or if the frosting is too thin, add in 1/2 tbsp. of powdered sugar at a time until you get your desired consistency. I found that the 2 tbsp. of milk was just perfect for what I wanted.
Once cooled, frost your cookies!
Add any sprinkles or desired toppings that you might want.
I just went with traditional holiday sprinkles.
Serve right away or store in a sealed air tight container for 3-5 days.
Enjoy!
Step-by-Step Photos:
Nutritional Claims: Low Sodium • Low Potassium • Kidney Friendly • Vegetarian • Pescatarian • Peanut Free • Soy Free •Fish Free • Shellfish Free • Pork Free • Red Meat Free • Crustacean Free • Celery Free • Mustard Free • Sesame Free • Lupine Free • Mollusk Free • Alcohol Free • Kosher