Breakfast Cookies
I call them Breakfast Cookies because they are so healthy that my family eats them for breakfast and I don’t feel bad about it one bit! They are jam-packed with nutrition and naturally sweetened by dates and super ripe bananas, no sugar is added! When you bite into this soft and chewy cookie, you will be reminded of banana bread. A yummy way to start the day or finish a meal without feeling guilty about it!
Backstory…
These Breakfast Cookies came about when I was desperate for something sweet, but couldn’t have any refined sugar. My husband and I decided to try the Autoimmune Protocol Diet (aip) for 30 days. Sounds delicious, right? I hear you… it had its ups and downs, but that is a story for another post. The bottom line is that if we hadn’t done it, I never would have made these “cookies.” So I guess everything happens for a reason:-) Depending on which ingredients you choose to add, they can be AIP, Paleo, Vegan, Egg Free, Dairy Free, Nut Free, Soy Free and Gluten Free. I think we have everyone covered with this one!
How to Make Breakfast Cookies
Begin by pureeing bananas, dates, applesauce and coconut oil in a food processor. When it becomes a smooth paste, add your flour of choice (I use Bob’s Red Mill Almond Flour or GF Quick Oats), cinnamon, vanilla, baking soda and lemon juice. Blend that until it is well combined. Add the dried fruit and coconut to the mixture, pulsing a few times to combine it without turning it to mush.
Spoon them onto a parchment lined baking sheet and shape them how you’d like them to bake. Unlike other cookies, these won’t spread or rise so the result coming out of the oven will look a lot like what goes in! Let them cool after baking so that they hold their shape and they are ready to eat!
More Yumminess to Check Out
Conventional cookies to discover Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, Almond Cut Out Cookies, Dirty Snowballs and College Dorm Cookies. On a healthier note, check out Unbelievable Fruit Dip, Apple Bites or Double Chocolate Bites. There’s also a lot you can create with Cashew Cream as a base!
Breakfast Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 very over-ripe bananas ((about 1 cup mashed))
- ½ cup applesauce ((unsweetened))
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- ½ cup pitted medjool dates ((make sure they are soft, if not, soak them in warm water for 15 mins. then drain before using))
- ⅓ cup coconut flour/almond flour/GF oatmeal (I like Bob's Red Mill for all of these)
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup finely shredded unsweetened dried coconut
- ⅓ cup roughly chopped dried fruit without added sugar ((try a mix of any of your favorites like apples, raisins, cranberries, cherries, apricots, pineapple, mango, figs))
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a food processor, puree the bananas, dates, applesauce, and coconut oil until it is a smooth paste.
- Add the coconut flour/almond flour/oatmeal, cinnamon, vanilla, baking soda, lemon juice/vinegar and blend until combined.
- Add the dried fruit and coconut & pulse a few times. Don’t run it long enough to puree the dried fruit, just enough to incorporate it.
- Spoon or scoop dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment. Shape them however you’d like. These cookies don’t spread, so make them the shape and size you want prior to baking.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes. They may already be dark in color, so if it is hard to tell if they have “browned,” just look for them to have some structure before taking them out of the oven. Let the cookies cool completely, before you gobble them up!