[Article updated on 19/09/2023]
We’re tackling 3 sweet treats that you know well: the cookie, the brownie and the donut. So, in your opinion, which is the least caloric of the three?
Before reading on
I’m not an expert in this field, but I am passionate about nutrition and health.
The articles you’ll find on my site are the result of in-depth research that I’d like to share with you. However, I would like to stress that I am not a health professional and that my advice should in no way replace that of a qualified physician. I’m here to guide you, but it’s important that you consult a professional for specific questions or medical concerns. Your well-being is important. So be sure to consult the appropriate experts and take the best possible care of yourself.
We don’t leave any more suspense, here is the answer: well it’s the donut the least caloric of the three!!
The composition of a donut
For 1 Donut, which I chose with sugar, (=70g = 279 Cal), we end up with a sugar equivalent of 6 pieces.
So, in these 6 pieces of sugar, there are sugars that are interesting for your body, provided by flour for example, but there are sugars that are much less interesting for your health, provided by pure sugar: this is precisely THE problem. of all the pastries and you will see that it will increase with the other 2 sweets.
For those who may not know, a donut is a sweet pastry that is fried, with a hole in the middle.
The classic donut, the most common and best known, is the sugar donut.
It’s actually a donut dough made from flour, butter, eggs, yeast, milk, sugar, a little salt…and oil for frying!!
And of course, if you add a very sweet or chocolate icing, or even a chocolate spread or salted butter caramel filling, then yes, it’s delicious, but you blow up the calorie bill!
Did you know that donuts also exist in a savory version?
Fresh goat cheese/walnuts, basil/dried tomatoes, salmon/olives, beetroot glaze and pistachio pieces or ricotta, crème fraîche and poppy seeds… all variations are possible!
Why is the donut “holey”?
According to one of the existing versions, a naval captain, tired of eating fritters at sea which gave him indigestion, asked his cook to cut out the center to lighten it.
There is also a second version which says that it was his mother who prepared donuts for him which he ate at the helm of his ship and that one day, having difficulty maneuvering his rudder at the same time as he was eating , he impaled it on one of the handles! As he was delighted with his find, he asked his cook to prepare donuts with hollow cores!
It’s up to you to choose the version you prefer!
Which is lower in calories between the cookie and the brownie?
Well that’s ite Brownie! : this dessert is the sugar equivalent of 7 pieces of sugar (320 Cal for 1 part of 70g).
So, the brownie is a chocolate cake, melting in places, which is baked in the oven.
The ingredients needed to make the brownie are sugar, eggs, flour, butter and chocolate.
The best known recipe is the one with pieces of walnuts or hazelnuts. But there are other recipes with pieces of salted caramel or with white chocolate and the brownie is generally accompanied by custard or whipped cream.
You have understood that here, again, the calorie content can quickly increase depending on the versions!
The cookie: the most caloric!
It is the most caloric of the 3 desserts offered today with its equivalent of 9 pieces of sugar (360 Cal for 1 cookie of approximately 70g).
The cookie is a small, dry, round biscuit from the United States. It is made from flour, sugar, eggs, butter, salt, yeast and chocolate chips. Once again, we find some with pieces of nougatine, pieces of hazelnuts or other treats…
And I have a tip for the greediest but especially the most in a hurry among you: do you know the “Mug Cookie”?
It’s actually a cookie baked in the microwave, without dishes, just with a cup and in 5 minutes!
The result is delicious; so yes, the cookie does not have a conventional shape, I grant you, but the taste buds don’t care…
And you can try for those intolerant to Gluten with corn and millet flour (15g each), the result is also very good.
To summarize
- The donut: the least caloric despite being cooked in an oil bath.
- The brownie: a caloric intermediate
- The cookie: the most caloric and the sweetest
Obviously, we don’t eat it every day, so no problem!