Recipe: Sin-Free Chocolate Chewies, Savannah Chocolate Chewies, Carlton's Chocolate Chewies

Chocolate Chewies - ingredients
"powdered sugar, egg whites, cocoa, chocolate chips, and sea salt."

Perhaps you could adapt one of these recipes. Good luck!

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Savannah Chocolate Chewies
(re: Safeway Chocolate Chewy)
Board: Copycat Recipe Requests at Recipelink.com
From: Fran ...FL 11-20-2007
MSG ID: 1428840
MSG URL: Savannah Chocolate Chewies Re Safeway Chocolate Chewy

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SIN-FREE CHOCOLATE CHEWS
(Similar to Whole Foods Chocolate Chewies)
Source: King Arthur Flour
Makes fourteen big (3 1/2-inch) cookies

"Ultra-chewy, rich chocolate cookies with no added fat? And no gluten? Impossible! But it's true: these flourless chocolate cookies get their texture from egg whites and their flavor from cocoa powder (which represents the only fat in the recipe). Plus they're easy to make: Just stir together a few simple ingredients, chill the batter for a few hours, scoop onto a pan, and bake. You won't believe the delicious result."

2 1/4 cups (9 ounces) confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder
1 cup (3 ounces) cocoa powder, Dutch-process or natural
3 large egg whites
2 teaspoons vanilla extract*

Whisk together the sugar, salt, espresso powder, and cocoa powder.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together the egg whites and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients to the egg whites, and mix at low speed of an electric mixer for 2 minutes. The batter will seem dry at first, but will become shiny and smooth as it mixes. Cover the bowl, and refrigerate the batter for 3 hours, or up to overnight.

WHEN READY TO BAKE:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Thoroughly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.

Drop the dough in ping pong-sized balls onto the prepared baking sheets; a tablespoon cookie scoop works well here.

Bake the cookies for 12 minutes, reversing the pans (top to bottom, bottom to top) midway through. Remove them from the oven, and cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

VARIATION:
You'll lose the low-fat appellation, but to take these cookies over the top, add 1 cup (6 ounces) chocolate chips to the batter before scooping. Bake as directed.

*For gluten-free cookies, be sure to use gluten-free vanilla.

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CARLTON'S CHOCOLATE CHEWIES
Source: Rather Sweet Bakery
Makes about 4 dozen cookies

2 cups whole pecans
3 large egg whites*
2 1⁄4 cups powdered sugar
6 tablespoons good-quality unsweetened cocoa powder
Pinch of kosher salt
1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Arrange the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer and toast them for 7 to 9 minutes, until darker in color and aromatic. Remove from the oven, transfer to a bowl, let cool, and coarsely chop.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.

In a large bowl, briskly whisk the egg whites until foamy, about 30 seconds. Stir in the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, salt, vanilla, and pecans. Using a 1-inch-diameter scoop, drop spoonfuls of dough 11⁄2 inches apart on the prepared pans.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until set and shiny, with zigzag cracks on top. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pans for 5 to 10 minutes. Using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely. The cookies will keep for up to 1 week in an airtight container or 3 weeks tightly wrapped and frozen.

RATHER SWEET VARIATION:
This cookie is amazingly adaptable and can handle up to two additional ingredients. I have tried numerous add-ins. My favorites are 1 cup quartered dried cherries, 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut, and 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips. Nut haters can leave out the pecans, substitute one or two of the add-ins, and make the cookies as directed above.

*To skip the hassle of separating egg whites from yolks, especially if you have no plans to use the leftover yolks, look in the dairy case of your local natural foods store for small containers of pure egg whites. One egg white equals about 1⁄8 cup. Do not use egg substitute, which is formulated with added fat to simulate an egg without cholesterol.