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Category Archives: Cookies


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Double Chocolate Peppermint Biscotti

2015 has been quite the year for us. I just finished my first year of grad school and I am transitioning to a new job that will allow me to be at home with Mike once again. While I have loved my work in Madison the last 2 1/2 years, being away from my husband during the week was more difficult than I had anticipated. I’m sad to be leaving a great job and my wonderful coworkers, but I am excited to see what opportunities my new position will bring.

Christmas is just a few days away, but the weather outside is more spring-like than winter. I’m not sure how I feel about the lack of snow. I’m trying to find ways to get into the Christmas spirit and this biscotti really hit the spot. The double chocolate base pairs perfectly with the white chocolate and candy canes. It’s sweet and crunchy and perfect with a mug of hot chocolate or some coffee.

Double Chocolate Peppermint Biscotti | doughseedough.net

I made my go-to Andes mint cookies for a cookie exchange last week, but I think that these biscotti will be my new holiday treat. So easy, so festive, and so good!

Double Chocolate Peppermint Biscotti | doughseedough.net

I want to wish you and your loved ones a very merry Christmas and a wonderful new year!

Double Chocolate Peppermint Biscotti

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
8 ounces white chocolate chips
3/4 cup crushed peppermint candies

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 1 – 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and add eggs in, one at a time, until well combined. Scrape down the sides and add in the vanilla extract.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.  Add the dry ingredients and semisweet chocolate chips into the butter mixture and mix on low speed until just combined.
  4. Lightly flour a work surface. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the dough onto the work surface (it will be very sticky) and lightly dust with flour. Using your hands, shape the dough into a ball and divide into two even pieces.
  5. Form the dough into a log by rolling it back and forth. Place the logs onto the prepared baking sheet and press the dough into a longer log that is about 2 inches wide and 3/4 inch high. Make sure to leave enough room between the logs to allow them to spread slightly during baking.
  6. Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking pan for a couple minutes, or until just cool enough to handle.
  7. Using a sharp knife, cut the logs diagonally into 3/4 inch slices. Turn the biscotti onto their side and bake for 10 more minutes to allow the biscotti to crisp up. Allow biscotti to cool for 5 minutes on the pan and move to a wire rack to cool completely .
  8. Once biscotti are cool, it’s time to decorate them. Line the baking pan with a clean sheet of parchment paper.
  9. Place white chocolate chips into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for about 1 minute, stirring every 20 seconds, or until chocolate is melted and smooth.
  10. Dip one side of the biscotti into the melted chocolate, using the back of a spoon to make sure the biscotti is evenly covered. Sprinkle with crushed peppermint candy. Repeat with the remaining biscotti, re-heating the chocolate as needed.

recipe adapted from Once Upon a Chef

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Thick & Chewy M&M Cookies

Thick & Chewy M&M Cookies | doughseedough.net

I took today off work with the hopes of getting stuff done around the house. My garden is a jungle of weeds. I need to dust, vacuum, and do approximately 20 loads of laundry. Instead of doing anything productive, so far today I have made bourbon caramel apple cinnamon rolls, biked to Baskin Robbins for ice cream, and watched a shameful amount of Netflix. I decided to blog a bit so I could cross at least one thing off my “to do” list.

I’ve been meaning to share this cookie recipe with y’all for a while. I first made them in the winter, during my search for the perfect chocolate chip cookie. I tested several recipes, and decided that Cook’s Illustrated’s Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies were the winner.

I’ve been making them 4 dozen at a time ever since with a variety of mix-ins – chocolate chips, M&Ms, nuts… basically whatever your heart desires. Mike told me that he prefers them with M&Ms, so I’ve been making them with just M&Ms ever since. The best part of this recipe? Unlike this awesome cookie recipe, it doesn’t require any overnight refrigeration. That means instant gratification. Enjoy them this holiday weekend with some red, white and blue M&Ms! Happy Independence Day, everyone!

Thick & Chewy M&M Cookies | doughseedough.net

Thick and Chewy M&M Cookies
slightly adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

2 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
12 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups of any combination of the following: chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, M&Ms, nuts

  1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, salt, and baking soda; set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix butter, brown sugar, and sugar until blended. Mix in egg, yolk, and vanilla. Add in dry ingredients until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
  4. To form the cookie: Scoop a heaping tablespoon of dough and form it into a ball. Using the fingertips of both hands, pull the ball into two equal halves. Rotate the halves ninety degrees so that the jagged edges are facing up. Gently press the halves together to form a single cookie dough ball, being careful not to smooth out the jagged surface. Place the dough 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
  5. Bake cookies for 10 – 13 minutes, or until cookies are a light golden brown and the outer edges have started to harden. Let cookies cool for 5 minutes on a cookie sheet before transferring to a cooling rack to cool complete.

Thick & Chewy M&M Cookies | doughseedough.net


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Cinnamon Chip Snickerdoodles

Taste-testing is something I take very seriously. I taste-test to make sure the food I make and post about isn’t absolute garbage and… well, because I really love to eat. I can usually control myself and take a bite or two of a dessert before packaging it all up and sending it off to friends, coworkers, and family members. These cookies, though… I took one bite, loved it, and took another, and another. Before I knew it, I had eaten 2.5 cookies. I then proceeded to eat 2.5 more after I Instagrammed the evidence of my lack of self control.

Cinnamon Chip Snickerdoodles | doughseedough.net

I have already professed my love for cinnamon chips in this post. This takes my love to a whole new level. I purposefully left the remaining 4 dozen cookies in Appleton so I wouldn’t be tempted to eat the whole batch during the work week. Trust me, folks. There is nothing better than a soft, chewy cinnamon-y snickerdoodle cookie studded with cinnamon chips.

Cinnamon Chip Snickerdoodles | doughseedough.net

Cinnamon Chip Snickerdoodles

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups all-purpose flour
10-ounce bag (1 1/2 cups) cinnamon chips
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

  1. Preheat oven to 375°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl, beat together butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar and light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl a couple times. Mix in eggs and vanilla until well combined. Stir in cream of tartar, baking soda, and flour until well combined. Mix in cinnamon chips.
  3. In a separate, shallow bowl, mix together 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll in the cinnamon sugar. Place dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until edges or golden brown. Let cool on baking sheets for one minute before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.

 

makes 4 dozen cookies


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Pistachio and Dried Cherry Biscotti

I can’t really remember how (or why) I started making biscotti. But for as long as I can recall, my mom has always requested biscotti as her gift for just about everything – birthday, Mother’s Day, Christmas… Thanksgiving?

Pistachio & Dried Cherry Biscotti | doughseedough.net

I usually make some sort of chocolate biscotti, but this time I opted for something new – pistachios + dried cherries. How did it turn out? Amazing. Better than any of the chocolate-based biscotti I’ve ever made or tasted. Better than any biscotti I’ve ever had, period. I’m dreaming of the day that I can make these again – I’m hoping to get my hands on some delicious Door County cherries!

Pistachio & Dried Cherry Biscotti | doughseedough.net

Pistachio and Dried Cherry Biscotti

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon orange zest
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup dried cherries, roughly chopped
1 cup unsalted, shelled pistachios

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix for 30 seconds to combine.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, orange zest, lemon zest, vanilla extract and almond extract. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and beat on low speed until dough is crumbly and just combined, about 1 minute. Knead dough with your hands for another minute until dough comes together. Fold in cherries and pistachios.
  4. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and divide in half. Dust hands with flour and shape each piece of dough into a 16-inch long log. Transfer logs to prepared baking sheet and use your palm to flatten into a 2-inch wide strip.
  5. Bake until biscotti is lightly browned and set, about 30 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Allow cookies to cool slightly on the baking sheet for 15 minutes.
  6. Turn oven down to 250°F. Line a second baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  7. Transfer biscotti logs to a cutting board and slice diagonally into 2/3-inch thick slices*. Arrange pieces, cut side down, on prepared baking sheets.
  8. Bake biscotti for 20 minutes. Flip biscotti and bake for an additional 20 minutes or until cookies are crisp. Carefully transfer cookies cooling rack and let cool completely. Store in an air-tight container until ready to serve.

 

*Most recipes call for cutting biscotti with a serrated knife, but I’ve had better luck with my super-sharp Santoku. Do as you wish!

 

recipe very slightly adapted from Bon Appetit


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Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

I’ve been on a peanut butter kick lately. The rate at which I’m whipping through jars of peanut butter is kind of alarming. Peanut butter on toast with bananas or with some orange marmalade is a daily occurrence. Sometimes, I just eat a spoonful of peanut butter. I made these cookies because I needed another way to get peanut butter into my mouth. These peanut butter cookies are amazing. Soft and chewy and oh-so-addictive. They also happen to be the perfect Wisco to St. Louis road trip snack. Portable peanut buttery goodness.

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies | doughseedough.net

 

 

I kind of regret not making more. Because the drive back home from STL is going to be very, very sad 😉  Do yourself a favor and make a double batch right away.

 

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies | doughseedough.net

 

 

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup natural creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt

  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together baking flour, baking soda, sugar, and brown sugar. Stir in peanut butter, applesauce, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Sprinkle with salt to taste.
  3. Roll dough into balls about one inch in diameter and place two inches apart on a baking sheet. Bake for 8 minutes or until cookies are golden brown and cracked on top. Let cool completely on baking sheet.

 

recipe adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie


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Easy Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I’ve been craving oatmeal raisin cookies like crazy. I tried to get past my cravings by eating oatmeal with raisins, chocolate cookies with raisins, and just plain ol’ raisins. Nothing worked. I finally gave in and whipped together a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies from the sad assortment of ingredients I had in my pantry. They turned out wonderful – chewy, moist, and the perfect amount of sweetness. It’s nice when experimental baked goods turn out okay 🙂

{dairy-free} chewy oatmeal raisin cookies | doughseedough.net

Dairy Free Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
makes 12 cookies

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet or line with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together coconut oil, brown sugar, and sugar until well combined. Mix in applesauce, honey, egg, and vanilla extract.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together oats, flour, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon. Stir into wet ingredients until combined and then stir in raisins. Dough should be very sticky.
  4. Roll into 2-inch balls and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Gently press down on dough to flatten cookies slightly. Bake in preheated oven for 10 – 13 minutes or until edges are firm. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.


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Dairy-Free Double Dark Chocolate Cookies

There are some “food holidays” that I’m a big fan of. For example: January 1 is National Bloody Mary Day. I celebrated (unintentionally) by downing 5 of these delicious concoctions on my on my way home from NJ. Then there are food holidays that I will never celebrate because I find them unappealing – National Fig Newton Day (January 16th) or because I’m allergic – National Strawberry Ice Cream Day (January 15th), or a combination of allergy/gross – Whipped Cream Day (January 5th) and Milk Day (January 11th).

Dairy-Free Double Dark Chocolate Cookies | doughseedough.net

But today, January 10th, is a pretty great day – National Bittersweet Chocolate Day! As it turns out, this month’s recipe swap theme is Holiday Baking/Cooking. I figured that there was no better way to celebrate Bittersweet Chocolate Day than with some delicious cookies! I was assigned Ashley’s blog, Cheese Curd in Paradise. I knew her Double Dark Chocolate Cookies would be perfect. I made some slight changes to her recipe to make them dairy-free.

Dairy-Free Double Dark Chocolate Cookies | doughseedough.net

Dairy-Free Double Dark Chocolate Cookies

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, combine coconut oil, canola oil, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until well combined. Beat in egg and vanilla extract.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Pour into sugar mixture and mix until combined. Add in chocolate and stir until evenly distributed.
  4. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto prepared baking sheets.
  5. Bake for 12 minutes or until edges just start to set. Let cool on baking sheet for 1 minute and let finish cooling on cooling racks.

 

A big thanks to Sarah at Taste of Home Cooking for hosting! Click on the link below to check out the other delicious swap recipes!

 


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Really Freakin Awesome Vegan Oatmeal Cookies (aka Vegan Turtle Oatmeal Cookies)

Happy 2014 to everyone! I hope you all had a relaxing holiday season filled with love, food and lots of time with family and friends.
DSD Christmas | doughseedough.net
With the new year comes many resolutions. Usually resolutions revolve around eating better and working out. And they usually end a few weeks into the new year.
I’m hoping that 2014 will be a year of better health for me – less visits to the doctor, less stomach issues, and no more running injuries. I’m not going to deprive myself of foods that I love (cookies!) or force myself to run through an injury. I made many changes in 2013 that I think will lead to a much happier 2014 – I left a stressful job and started a new adventure in a city that I adore. I started doing yoga to reduce running injuries. I went dairy-free to make my body happy.
Really Freakin Awesome Vegan Oatmeal Cookies (aka Vegan Turtle Oatmeal Cookies} | doughseedough.net
I hope in 2014 I can continue to cultivate my dairy-free cooking skills. I am so thankful for the dairy-free bloggers out there that have provided me with endless recipes to try out and make my transition into the dairy-free world a little bit easier. I’ve added a dozen vegan/dairy-free/special diet blogs to my blog reader and once in a while a stumble across a recipe that really catches me.
This time, it was Angela over at Oh She Glows and her vegan turtle cookies. I saw the cookies on her blog and they were baking away in my oven not 24 hours later.
I am obsessed with them. My family is also obsessed. I honestly cannot get enough of these cookies. I was a bit disappointed at first because they didn’t seem “turtle-y” at all. But I quickly got over that because these cookies are just downright delicious. So I think in this case turtle = really freakin’ awesome. So I guess in my house I’ll call these the “really freakin’ awesome vegan oatmeal cookies”.
Really Freakin Awesome Vegan Oatmeal Cookies (aka Vegan Turtle Oatmeal Cookies} | doughseedough.net
Vegan Turtle Oatmeal Cookies
yields about 20 cookies
1 3/4 cups pecan halves
2 cups rolled oats, divided
3/4 cup + 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 cup unpacked dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
3 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
2 tablespoons almond milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup pitted dates
1/4 cup vegan mini chocolate chips
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place pecans onto a lined baking sheet and toast for 8 – 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted and fragrant. Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.
  2. Place toasted pecans into a food processor with 1 cup of the rolled oats and process until coarsley chopped, being careful not to over process into a fine powder.
  3. Pour the pecan/oat mixture into a large bowl and add in the remaining 1 cup rolled oats, 3/4 cup flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
  4. In a separate bowl, stir together maple syrup, melted coconut oil, almond milk, and vanilla extract. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
  5. Place dates onto a cutting board and sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon flour. Dice dates, sprinkling wth more flour as needed to prevent dates from sticking to each other and the knife.
  6. Fold dates and chocolate chips into dough and mix until well distributed.
  7. Roll dough into golf-ball sized balls and press it between the palms of your hands to flatten. Place cookie onto a parchment lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough, placing cookies a couple inches apart.
  8. Bake in preheated oven for 12 – 15 minutes or until cookies are golden browned on the bottom. Let cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.
recipe very slightly adapted from Oh She Glows 


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Vegan Ginger Molasses Cookies

These cookies are a soft and chewy and so dang good. Rolling them in sugar before baking gives them a slightly crunchy outside. It’s a step that’s not really necessary, but very highly recommended. They have a nice amount of spice to them and are guaranteed to make your home smell a-ma-zing. Vegans and meat-eaters alike will love these cookies.

Vegan Ginger Molasses Cookies | doughseedough.net

Vegan Ginger Molasses Cookies
makes 2 dozen cookies

1/3 cup vegan butter substitute (I used Smart Balance)
2 tablespoons stevia
1/4 cup sugar, plus extra for rolling
1/3 cup molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons water
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, mix together butter substitute, stevia, sugar, molasses, vanilla and water until well combined.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, and baking powder. Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix until well combined.
  4. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and roll in sugar. Place cookies 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.
  5. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to firm up. Let cool for 5 minutes on baking sheets before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.

recipe adapted from Lunch Box Bunch


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Dairy-Free German Chocolate Cake Cookies

This past weekend was wonderful. It was a quiet weekend, but it was perfect. Mike got his wisdom teeth out (ouch!) and it snowed all day on Saturday so staying inside and vegging out was just what we needed. I shoveled for the first time in like… 5 years, and it was surprisingly relaxing. I ended up baking two types of cookies, some muffins, and made some soup. So, yeah, I would consider it a pretty successful weekend. To round it all out perfectly, I received a surprise early Christmas gift.

Dairy Free German Chocolate Cake Cookies | doughseedough.net

I grabbed a package off our front stoop thinking they were the boots I had ordered. Then, I realized that the box was far too small to contain boots. And the package was sent from Amazon, not Macy’s. I ran inside and ripped it open. I pulled out a huge bag filled with Enjoy Life’s (dairy-free) mini chocolate chips and chocolate chunks.  Then I pulled out a cookbook I’ve been eyeing for a while – Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. The entire time, I was babbling “What the…? Who sent this? Oh my goodness, oh my goodness!!” At the bottom of the box were two slips of paper. The first one – blank. The second one had the answer – the gift was from Ashley and Nick, some of our closest friends. It’s amazing how someone can make me so happy from the other side of the world.

dairy free baking | doughseedough.net

After all this, I knew I had to use some of the chocolate chips. I settled on a recipe that had caught my eye last week – German Chocolate Cake Cookies from Food Network. These cookies were rich and chocolatey and captured all the goodness of German chocolate cake without being overly sweet.

Dairy-Free German Chocolate Cake Cookies | doughseedough.net

Dairy Free German Chocolate Cake Cookies
makes 3 dozen cookies

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1/3 cup dairy-free butter substitute, softened (I used Smart Balance)
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup stevia
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Special Dark)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dairy free mini semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut
3/4 cup chopped pecans

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and set aside.
  2. Place coconut oil, butter substitute, brown sugar, and stevia in a large bowl. Beat with a hand mixer on medium speed until well combined. Mix in eggs and vanilla.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add dry ingredients into butter mixture until well combined.
  4. Stir in mini chocolate chips, coconut, and pecans until evenly distributed.
  5. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until edges are firm. Let cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.