Gluten Free, Less Guilt M&M Cookies (made with COCONUT SUGAR!)

I received copious amounts of M&M's for Christmas (maybe my family knows it's my favorite candy?) so I needed a good recipe to give me an excuse to eat them.  Since I adore Better Batter's flour mix, I decided to make a healthier version of chocolate chip cookies… swapping my favorite candy for chocolate chips.  They are a soft and chewy cookies, very reminiscent of Soft Batch cookies but with less fat and less sugar.   Rather than use granulated sugar, I used coconut sugar.  Next time I may try the recipe with full coconut sugar because it was so successful in this recipe.  I'm a pretty big fan of them and so was the Hubs :)

COOKIE COOKIE COOKIE!

Ingredients

1/2 cup of butter (room temp - can use soy butter or other dairy-free butter)
1/4 cup non-fat Greek Yogurt
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 large egg (room temp - or you can substitute 1 Tbsp flaxseed mixed with 3 Tbsp water for a vegan version)
2 Cups Better Batter Baking Flour (or you can sub regular/whole wheat flour)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 tsp cornstarch
1 cup M&Ms


Directions

1. Add butter and greek yogurt to a large mixing bowl and beat together for about a minute on a medium speed.  Add both sugars to the mixture and cream on medium until light and fluffy.  Mix in the egg and vanilla, then set aside.
2. In a separate bowl combine the remaining dry ingredients (except the M&Ms!).
3. Gently mix in the chocolate until its evenly distributed throughout the batter
4. Cover the bowl with saran wrap and refrigerate the dough for an hour MINIMUM.  
5. Remove the dough from the fridge and allow it to rest at room temperature for about 5-10 minutes.  While it is resting, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with oil
6. Roll the dough in one tablespoon increments.  Place the balls about an inch or two apart on the cookie sheets and flatten them slightly
7. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes (warning:  They really won't get brown on the edges since the dough stays true to its form.  You may just have to do the finger test to make sure they are done to your liking)
8. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely
9. Since they are soft, be sure to store them in a covered container…. that is, if you have any to store :)