Rye Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

There are many different types of flour that can be used in cookie recipes. Whole wheat flour, oat flour, coconut flour and almond flour cover just a few of the options. In this recipe, I’ve used some rye flour. These Rye Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies are a wonderful way to expand your chocolate chip cookie repertoire. The cookies are tender, buttery and loaded with chocolate chips – complimented by the unique flavor of rye. If you’re a fan of oatmeal cookies, but haven’t had rye flour before, that will give you a little more of an idea of what the flavor profile is like.

Rye flour is milled into flour from rye berries and you’ve probably seen it used most often in rye and sourdough breads. Rye is nuttier and slightly more sour (a flavour that you’ll really only see in sourdough breads – so don’t let that put you off!) than wheat flour. It also contains less gluten than wheat flour. In breads, this means that loaves are denser than those made with only wheat flour. In cookies, less gluten means that the cookies will be more tender. Rye also tends to absorb a bit more liquid than wheat flour, so I recommend pressing the cookies down slightly before putting them into the oven to ensure an even spread.

The cookies themselves come together quickly and easily. Chocolate chunks or coarsely chopped chocolate is going to give you the most rustic look to the cookies and ensure you get plenty of chocolate in every bite. I used dark chocolate that was coarsely chopped, however semisweet chocolate chips will get the job done efficiently, as well.

I topped the cookies with a pinch of flaky sea salt before baking. It brings out the nuttiness of the rye and adds a mouthwatering contrast to all those chocolate chunks. I like to make them a bit bigger and a bit thicker than some of my other cookies to get the most rye flavor. If you want a slightly smaller cookie (1-inch of dough), reduce the baking time by 1-2 minutes. The cookies should be baked until they are just set and allowed to cool on the baking sheet until they’ve firmed up. They’re ready to eat right away and will keep for a couple of days in an airtight container once they have cooled.

Rye Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup rye flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups chocolate chunks
1 tsp coarse or flaky salt, for topping

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, rye flour, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract until smooth, then gradually blend in the flour mixture until dry ingredients have been completely incorporated. Stir in chocolate chunks until well-distributed.
Shape into 1 1/2 inch balls (I used a medium-sized cookie scoop) and arrange on prepared baking sheet, allowing about 2-inches between cookies for spread. Gently press each cookie down to flatten slightly. Sprinkle with flaky salt.
Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until cookies are set around the edges and have a hint of gold to them. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 4-5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.