Breakfast Cookies are nutritious and the perfect meal as you head to school, pop out to your workout or to the office. Let’s make a batch! Breakfast Cookies recipe from Weelicious.comPin

As my kids get older I notice more and more that lunch can be a slippery slope. One day the lunchbox comes home totally empty, while other days it’s halfway-to-completely full as kids tend to get preoccupied chit chatting or immediately bolt to the playground at lunchtime to let off some steam. 

Nutritionally kids tend to get what their bodies need, so it’s no cause for alarm, but parents understandably get unnerved when they notice their kids haven’t eaten much during the day. That’s why breakfast is so important. Knowing your kids left the house with full bellies in the morning can make your after-school encounter with an untouched lunch box a little less unsettling. 

But why do I hear so often from parents that breakfast is the bane of their existence? It doesn’t have to be if you have batches of Breakfast Cookies on hand. You heard me right, Breakfast Cookies

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, give a kid food in the form of a pancake like Banana Bites, put it on a stick (consider French Toast on a Stick) or call it a cookie and it will almost guarantee they will be excited about eating it.

Breakfast Cookies recipe from Weelicious.comPin

These Breakfast Cookies are awesome because they have tons of protein, Omega-3 fatty acids to support brain development and carbohydrates — all things you want to get your kids going first thing in the morning. 

For moms who prefer not having all the butter of a traditional cookie, I’ve reduced what this recipe would normally call for and replaced it with apple sauce, which also gives these cookies a naturally sweet and moist texture.

If everything I’ve told you so far hasn’t gotten you excited enough, these Breakfast Cookies freeze beautifully before or after you bake them so all they require is a quick pop in the toaster. How easy is that? Your kids will be so happy being sent off to school fueled with cookies and you’ll actually feel good about the breakfast you served!

What’s your favorite on the go food when you’re running out the door in the morning?

Pin

Breakfast Cookies

5 from 2 votes
Servings: 1 cookie
Author: Catherine McCord
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients  

  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup apple sauce
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 2 cups old fashioned oats
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup shelled pistachios
  • 1/2 cup dried cherries
  • 1/2 cup flax seeds

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Place the butter, apple sauce and maple syrup in a bowl or standing mixer and beat until well combined.
  • Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until smooth.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
  • Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet and mix to incorporate.
  • Fold in the pistachios, cherries and flax seeds.
  • Using a small ice cream scoop or 2 tablespoon measure, drop dough onto Silpat or parchment-lined baking sheets. Use the palm of your hand to gently press down the cookies, as they do not spread during baking.
  • Bake for 15 minutes and remove to a cooling rack.
  • To Freeze: Before baking, after step 7 place in the freezer for 1 hour and then transfer to zipper bags. When ready to bake add an additional minute to the cooking time.
  • To Freeze: After baking, place in freezer bags and freeze up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Calories: 150kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 100mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g
Did you make this recipe?Mention @Weelicious or tag #weelicious!

About the Author

Catherine is a mama of three. A Kentucky girl living in California. Here’s what I know: all kids can be great eaters and mealtime must be easy. I create simple, healthy recipes the whole family will love.

Comments

  1. These turned out amazing! Not too sweet….healthy, but they don’t taste too healthy for my fam. They ate many!

  2. I have loved this recipe for awhile. However, my daughter has a severe dairy allergy which includes hutter. Is there any non-soy substitute i can use in place of the butter? Thanks!

  3. My youngest son is allergic to apples. In the past I have tried substituting oil for applesauce in breakfast cookies but I felt as though the texture was off once I did that. Do you have any other suggestions?

  4. I am having difficulty feeding a 2 . 5 toddler. Hoping to get some recipes that will appeal to him. Thanks

  5. Thank you Catherine, almost every recipe I have tried from this website has been a hit and I feel bad I have never left a compliment!. I changed this one up a bit and used raisins and walnuts and coconut oil in place of butter. I appreciate knowing I can come here to find nutritious recipes for my family but I have to say, I usually cut back on the amount of sweetener you call for and things still taste great! (Here I used less than 1/4 cup maple syrup. I think 1/2 cup would add too much sweetness that this recipe- and my kids!- really don”t need.) Thanks again!!

  6. Tasty but came out dry – could have been since I used sesame seeds instead of pistachios – to make it nut free and used st dalfour jelly for part of the apple sauce quantity. I really like using these sugar-free jellies especially since raw berries go bad so quickly, take a while to wash and are often sour. Will try again but maybe with some coconut oil…

  7. First time I baked the breakfast cookies, they came out dry and dense. My family didn’t liked them much. This time I baked a new batch with 1/2 cup butter 1/2 cup apple sauce, 1.5 cup of flour and 1.5 cup of baby oats. I also cut the pistachios in smaller pieces. Result? It’s fantastic! It’s not even breakfast time and I’m having a cookie right now 🙂

  8. found a lot of good recipes on this site – this one, however, for us was very bland. no one finished their first cookie. love the idea though!

  9. Thanks for Ingredients and Preparations for this cookies for breakfast Definitely going to try my hands on this 🙂

  10. […] with oatmeal or biscuits instead of honey/jam), hot chocolate and toast, toast and peanut butter, breakfast cookies, baked oatmeal, ricotta pancakes, overnight waffles, french toast, popovers, and fruit with yogurt […]

  11. […] Slightly adapted from Weelicious.com. 3.2.2708 Looking for more kid-friendly healthy recipes?  Visit my Healthy Bites for Kids […]

  12. […] thinking about trying breakfast “cookies” for my little pop tart eater next […]

  13. Would you recommend salted or unsalted pistachios? Also, if I substitute ground flax seed, is it still the same 1/2 cup? Thank you!

  14. Just put a batch in the oven! I used sliced almonds instead of pistachios. The batter tastes a little salty…hope it evens out in the baking process! Cant wait to try the finished product with my kiddos! Thank you

  15. […] going to make these myself, but I am going to try and find someone else to make them for me… Breakfast Cookies! Made with apple sauce, oats, flax seed, pistachios, dried cherries and other good […]

  16. Use the same amount as the applesauce called for. Just make sure it is softened before using it!

  17. My daughter eats very little (always has) and needs to put on a few more pounds- I have the hardest time finding healthy foods that still have plenty of calories! What if I wanted to use all butter instead of subbing with applesauce? How much would I use?

  18. […] Breakfast Cookies also look awesome. Plus they are banana-free, for those of you who don’t like that particular […]

  19. These are delicious! My son was thrilled to eat a cookie for breakfast, and I enjoyed one with my coffee. I used pumpkin seeds, raisins, dried cranberries, and dried coconut instead of the cherries and pistachios just because it’s what I had on hand. Next time I’ll make a double batch and freeze them! Thank you for sharing!

  20. We are on a roll here because I couldn’t get my butter (which was left out a long time and very softened) to incorporate into the applesauce/butter mixture. I still made them and they came out well. Though I do wonder if they would be even better if I was able to make that mixture “light and fluffy” as Catherine writes. I used my KitchenAid Stand Mixer with the flat beater. Do you use that or the wire whisk?

  21. I feel silly, but my butter did not come close to mixing with the apple sauce and syrup. What did I do?

  22. Oh and for the fat I used some greek yogurt and applesauce as well as some earth balance spread. Its amazing to me that you can use whole milk yogurt or applesauce or even avocado can as a substitution for oil. I only recently discovered this. As well as an egg free option using ground flax seed. Love it!

  23. I found a recipe similar to this yesterday in my Joy of Cooking cookbook only it had wheat germ, lots of oats, honey, flax and i used toasted coconut,sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds along with chopped dates and they are the bomb! I love anything that I can hide goodness in for my 2 year old thats usually too busy playing to really want to eat. Thanks for all the great ideas and recipes!

  24. Hi Catherine,

    Thanks for sharing this. What would you recommend in place of applesauce? 1:1 substitution of 1/2 cup softened butter (i.e. total of 3/4 cup butter)?

  25. Excited to make these! I went out and got the cherries and pistachios, only to come home and realize I’m out of flax. Any suggestions for a substitue, or can the flax seeds be left out?

  26. I made theae last night and they turned out great. I gave one to my two year old daughter this morning. She must have thought she hit the jackpot since she never gets cookies in the morning. All I heard was, “mmmm”, and “Mommy, this is a yummy cookie” as she ate the entire thing. Thank you for a creative way to get her to eat a nutritious breakfast and for making my life easier by not having to go through the usual breakfast debate. The other nice thing about your recipes is that adults like them too so I only have to prep one thing. Thank you!

  27. Any suggestions for how to adapt this using stevia. My family has rid our diet of added sugars with the exception of stevia. Would it even work? Could you substitute peanut butter or something like that for a binding agent?

  28. I haven’t made them with wheat germ, but I feel like it would be a great substitute.

  29. Has anyone tried a GF version? Maybe grind oats into flour and add some rice or potato flour? I may try millet and amaranth but was hoping not to waste a batch of the other goodies in case they don’t turn out!

  30. Yes! You could use an kind of dried fruits like raisin, blueberries, cranberries, even diced figs.

  31. Janis, I subbed dried unsweetened cranberries and white wheat flour and it seems to work fine, although mine are taking a little longer to cook through. I think I should have flattened my dough balls down a little to make them more uniform circles.

  32. Excited to make these, but I’m missing something – where do you add the applesauce? With butter and syrup?

  33. I’ve made them walnuts and the were delicious. Lots of omega’s that way too. You can truly use any kind of nut or seed that you enjoy!

  34. These look great! However, I am not a huge fan of pistachios. Can you suggest a good substitute?

  35. It’s like you read my mind! ?Yesterday my kids barely touched their lunches, and it was all things I know they really like, so I’ve been focusing so much more on breakfast and after school snacks (which are really mini-meals). I’m going to try these tonight! Thanks Catherine!

  36. I think almond flour would be too oily as the base flour. What other flours do you use or like?

  37. Yup, pistachio question from me too! Would love to make these with my son’s preschool but need to be nut free. Any other suggestions?

  38. Can’t wait to make these today !,any suggestions for subbing the pistachios ? Me n my daughter love them but boy boy not so much 🙂 Thx!

  39. I was thinking the same thing. Any recipe I use flax seed in calls for grinding it first. For some reason, I seem to remember reading that it makes the good stuff easier for your body to get to. Although I could totally be making that up 🙂

  40. I feel like that would totally work! Will you let me know if you do it? Take an image and put it on Instagram, Twitter or FB tagged #weeliciousrecipes!

  41. Will definitely be making these! I’m wondering, could I make the 2 cups of oats into an oat flour consistency instead?

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