Gambling With Chocolate Chips

   Every now and then, I announce to my family "We are going to have a taste test."  I know they think I'm nuts, but they humor me.  They understand my commitment to this blog and well...what can I say?  They love me even with all my idiosyncrasies. 
   Last night, we gathered around the kitchen island and tested three popular brands of 100 calorie chocolate chip cookie packets (Nabisco Chips Ahoy Thin Crisps, Keebler Right Bites and Nabisco Snack Wells).  Then, in the end, we tried the new Who Nu? nutrition rich chocolate chip cookies.  (For the purposes of the test, Who Nu was not included.  Primarily because, though it is a healthier chocolate chip cookie, it did not fill the 100 calorie base line)
  We pulled out three paper plates and wrote the numbers 1, 2 and 3 on each.  Then, underneath, we wrote the corresponding names of the three 100 calorie brands we were testing.  To make it a more "blind" test, we turned the plates around and hid the boxes.  In the end, we all chose the Snack Well's as our number one 100 calorie pack cookie.  The Nabisco Chips Ahoy Thin Crisps came in second place two to one.  The Keebler Right Bites came in third (again two to one).  So, what did we prove in our imperfect little family experiment?  Based on taste alone, when you are looking for a 100 calorie chocolate chip cookie snack, stick with Nabisco products.
                                  Thin Crisps                                Right Bites                                    Snack Wells  
Sugar                          7 grams                                    8 grams                                         8 grams
Protein                        1 gram                                     less than 1 gram                             1 gram
Carbs                          18 grams                                 16 grams                                       16 grams
Calories from fat          25                                           25                                                  35
Sodium                        140mg                                    95mg                                             100mg
Iron                              4%                                          2%                                                 4%
Each packet of tiny cookies has less than 1 gram or less of dietary fiber and zero trans fat.    

   Now, if you are looking for something a bit more substantial, try the new "Who Nu?"  nutrition rich cookies.  A serving size of three cookies is 150 calories.  To me, they tasted a bit more like regular cookies you would buy in the store.  My husband dunked his in a glass of milk...said they were too dry without it.  Our teenager left his on the counter and ran out to hang with his friends.
  Anyway, here's how they stack up...150 Calories per 3 three cookie serving size, 9 grams Sugar, 2 grams Protein, 22 grams Carbs, 60 Calories from Fat, 100 mg Sodium, 3 grams Dietary Fiber, and zero trans fat.  However, they also contain a percentage of Vitamins A, B6, B12, C, D, E, K, Calcium, Iron, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Niacin, Folate, Biotin, Pantothenic Acid, Iodine, Zinc, Copper, Manganese and Chromium.
  I like the advertisement for the Who Nu? cookies.  They claim they have as much fiber as oatmeal, as much calcium and Vitamin D as an 8oz glass of 1% low fat milk, as much Vitamin C as a cup of blueberries, as much iron as a cup of cooked spinach, as much Vitamin B12 as a cup of cottage cheese with fruit, as much Vitamin A as an 8oz glass of tomato juice, and as much Vitamin E as 2 16oz cups of carrot juice.
   Then again, you could just skip the sweets and buy the oatmeal, milk, blueberries, spinach, cottage cheese, fruit, tomato juice and carrot juice, right?  I don't know about your family, but I might get my teenager to eat half of that.  Of the above mentioned items, he'll drink milk (whole milk), and he'll eat uncooked carrots and fruit.  Though he will eat many veggies, spinach is not even an option.  Most days, I am happy to get him to eat anything that doesn't include cheese in the title...grilled cheese, cheese pizza, mac and cheese, string cheese, spray cheese, etc... If I can persuade him to nibble on these cookies now and then, it will go down as a win in my book.
   Next time we gamble on chocolate chips, I might try homemade.  Maybe I could sneak in some whole grains.  Try this recipe.

  Ingredients

Wet

3/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce

1/2 stick unsalted butter (or you could try a butter substitute)

3/4 cup honey

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

2 eggs/egg whites

Dry

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup whole grain rolled oats

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. fine sea salt

In the end

12 oz. package of Chocolate Chips (dark chocolate if you can find them).  

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Now just mix and bake them like a batch of normal chocolate chip cookies.  In a mixing bowl, combine all the wet.   Stir them together with a spoon.  In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients.  Now carefully stir in the dry ingredients in with the wet.  Next, stir in the chocolate chips. Place cookies on baking sheet and bake at 350 for 10 – 12 minutes.  You achieve a lot just by minor substitutions.  

  Still seem like a lot of work?  At our house, my husband makes the cookies.  See?  Simple.  No work at all.  : )