A goal of the new year is to be healthier. One way that I hope to achieve it is by making healthier choices when it comes to my sweet treats. One way of doing that is to include some whole grains in your recipes vs. only using all-purpose flour. I turned to the flour company that I trust for my baking needs, King Arthur’s Flour Company.  I love the gingerbread cookie recipe I found on their site.

The company has an entire cookbook dedicated to the use of whole grain in recipes. It is called King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking. I have a sweet tooth so I decided to focus on sweet treats that I can make and hopefully change out for my regular baking treats.

The first recipe that I tried was a Spice and Sweet Drop Cookie Recipe. The cookie was full of flavor and had a nice crunch on the outside. It reminded me of this really spice flavored ginger cookie my dad makes without the ginger. I ended up give away a batch of these cookies to friends for a present and it was well received. I would just add sparkling sugar to the top of these cookies for an added sugar crunch. Otherwise, it was a perfect winter cookie treat with a dash of healthy wheat instead of pure all purpose flour.

The second recipe that I tried was a Honey Cake. I thought this would be a good celebration cake to create since the last honey cake recipe was a big hit. I was wrong. This recipe was the least successful. It was dense and dry. The flavor was lacking. I ended up chunking since no one was eating it. I will happily stick to my last recipe when it comes to honey cake. Even if it was less healthy since it is made from all purpose flour.

The last recipe that I tried was Date Squares. I love dates. I love the sweet flavor and chewy texture. The recipe also include walnuts for a nice nutty texture. This recipe was easy to wipe up and before I knew it I had a full batch of squares dishes out. The squares puff up much more than expected when it was in the oven. It turned a thin batter into nice brownie like consistency. I simply topped with sugar and watch the squares be devoured. Everyone loved the brownie like texture. They also liked the sweet taste so it was like dessert but had less calories than your traditional brownie. It was a real winner and the most successful recipe I tried. I am definitely keeping this recipe on file to pull out when my sweet tooth craves a treat.

Whole grains in your baked goods maybe an easy way to have healthier options for dessert. However, I think whole grains doesn’t work for every bake. The recipe that the grains are used in can change the texture and density of the final product. I think this cookbook is a great introduction to the use of whole grains. However, I will only use a handful of whole grain recipes instead of the whole book. So feel free to cook up some of these bakes yourself and tell me what you think.