MNN - Mother Nature Network

Can't bear another round of insipid, frosted snowmen? Then you've come to the right place. All of the cookie recipes gathered here have a secret. Just like Clark Kent, beyond their handsome exteriors they possess superpowers — albeit by means of harboring super foods in their ingredients, not by donning tights and breaking into flight.

 

The beauty of super-food cookies is that they are creative confections that don't sacrifice taste or texture, and are imbued with great bursts of healthful ingredients that may have you leaping tall buildings in no time. Case in point: The Cranberry and Pecan Shortbread Cookies pictured above.

 

Brandied prune and chocolate chunk

Prunes get such a bad rap. Here in the United States they are more aligned with Bengay and Metamucil than with the loveliness that they really are. They have a dense, moist flesh unusual for dried fruit, and a deep floral-plummy flavor that makes them the perfect accomplice for chocolate and baked goods. There's a reason that the French laud dried plums and make all kinds of yummy things with them.

 

Plus, prunes are an excellent source of fiber, potassium, vitamins A and B-6, and non-heme iron and they land themselves on many a list of best super foods. Therefore, try this: Brandied Prune and Chocolate Chunk Cookies.

 

Green tea ginger shortbread

We're not going to claim that this recipe for Green Tea Ginger Shortbread will yield a warm plate of seriously health-food cookies, but there's no denying the butter, and refined flour and sugar in these pups.

 

On the other hand, they have green tea and lots of ginger in them, which gives them a healthy kick. And if you try swapping some of the plain white flour with white whole wheat flour, they will be well on their way to being health food. Kind of.

 

Pumpkin whoopie pies with maple cream cheese frosting

Click over to the never-ending pumpkin post to get the skinny on the super-food-filled Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting.

 

Chocolate fudgey vegan oatmeal cookies

Cocoa! Oatmeal! Flaxseed! Dried Cherries! If you thought oatmeal cookies were good for you, these Chocolate Fudgy Vegan Oatmeal Cookies are even better. And although the healthier things in life aren't always the tastiest, these provide an exception to the rule.

 

Grown-up fig newtons

All that needs to be said for these Grown-Up Fig Newtons, aside from the fact that they're gluten-free and rely on all healthy ingredients, is this: The figs are soaked in port and pomegranate juice for 24 hours. (A double batch of figs may be in order.)

 

Fig and pine nut

Does it get any more Christmas-y than Fig and Pine Nut Cookies?

 

Figs (as in figgy pudding) and pine nuts (as in Christmas trees) are both super tasty super foods and paired together make the super-est holiday cookies.

 

Date and hazelnut

Hello, little globes of wonder. These Date and Hazelnut Cookies are kind of not really cookies if you consider that they are not baked, but in our opinion, that makes them all the better. That, and the fact that they are made of dates, nuts, seeds, berries, and little else. Like fancy balls of bird-food for elegant people.

 

Almond, cranberry and quinoa

We'd like to kiss the cookie concoctor who came up with the idea of adding super-duper super food quinoa to a cookie that already has super-food oatmeal and super-food cranberries in it, as in these Almond and Cranberry Quinoa Cookies.

 

White bean blondies

There will be no "dumb blonde" jokes made about White Bean Blondies, simply because replacing much of the butter and flour with a super food is so obviously smart.

 

Chocolate puddle

Crispy-crunchy on the outside and "puddly" on the inside, Chocolate Puddle Cookies have three cups of super salubrious walnuts and more than half a cup of antioxidant-happy cocoa in them. And no flour!

 

Lemon and blueberry sandwich

What would a collection of super-food cookies be without blueberries somewhere? We would be remiss to omit the darling of the super-food set, so here you go: Lemon and Blueberry Sandwich Cookies.

Do you have healthy cookie recipes or ingredient swaps adding a boost of super-power? Let us know in the comments!
 

Related on MNN: 5 less-decadent desserts and snacks

djwtwo

 

This story was originally written for Treehugger. Copyright 2012.