Low-fat cookie recipes for the holidays?

A reporter phoned this week to ask for tips on how to make holiday recipes healthier. Can I suggest substitutions for unhealthy ingredients, she wants to know.  I think I know what she's after: substituting applesauce or pureed prunes for butter, using whole wheat flour instead of white flour, olive oil pie crusts, and that sort of thing...

Pureed fruits, vegetables, and beans can sometimes be successfully used to replace some of the fat in baked goods. You can even buy a commercial "fat replacement" product made out of prunes.  And whole grain flour can sometimes be incorporated into recipes with good results.  Disappointing results are also possible--even probable, if you don't know what you're doing.

When using healthy substitutes, you need to use some common sense.  Using whole wheat flour instead of white flour may work well in a dense, spicy cookie like Hermits but I wouldn't suggest attempting whole wheat angel food cake, for example.  Likewise, substituting fruit or beans for fat is probably not a good idea for a thin crisp cookie that relies on butter to produce its texture. But it would probably work well in brownies or a cakier cookie.

Unless you have enough extra time and ingredients to do a lot of experimenting, I think it's wise to stick to recipes from reliable sources that have been developed and tested for success.  Here are some terrific recipes featuring whole grains and other healthy tricks that have been designed to bring out the best in wholesome ingredients:

A Fruit Cake To Love (4 out of 4 forks; 100% would make it again)
Full of dried fruits, nuts, and even oil-cured olives, this cake is high in fiber and flavor

Deep Dark Chocolate Cookies (4 out of 4 forks, 93% would make it again)
No butter or flour, plenty of heart healthy isoflavones

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip (and Bean!) Cookies (3 out of 4 forks, 75% would make it again)
Three quarters of the butter has been replaced by beans, for a low-fat, high fiber treat

Chocolate Marble Cheesecake (3 out of 4 forks, 80% would make it again)
Low-fat dairy products produce a light and creamy filling in a crushed almond crust

Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls (3 out of 4 forks, 71% would make it again)
Soft, pillowy dinner rolls made with 100% whole wheat

Whole Grain Cranberry Apple Scones (3 out of 4 forks, 92% would make it again)
Mostly whole grain flour; buttermilk and apple juice make them moist and sweet without excess butter and sugar

Search for more recipes on our sister site Epicurious.com