This morning Miss G and I decided to try making something new for breakfast… Cookies! Not the traditional kind, of course. Healthy, hearty ones that fill you up and start your day off right. And I’m glad to say that despite my nonchalant ‘Ah, sure we’ll throw that in too’ attitude, they turned out pretty well.
Here’s our line up of ingredients… Old-fashioned oats, pumpkin seeds, raisins, ‘just apples’ applesauce (we just used the store bought stuff this time around, but homemade would of course be better), ripe bananas, cinnamon, and organic coconut oil and vanilla (which somehow didn’t make it into the photo…)
To start, my mini sous chef peeled our bananas and popped them into the food processor.
Then she added a capful of pure vanilla…
A generous amount of applesauce…
Some cinnamon…
And a dollop of coconut oil.
Then we blended everything up until it was mostly smooth, with just a few little chunks.
With our wet mixture transferred into a large mixing bowl, Grae added some organic old-fashioned oats…
Some raw pumpkin seeds…
And some raisins…
And gave everything a good stir.
The result was oats that were completely coated in the banana/applesauce mixture, but not ‘wet’ or batter-y (if that makes any sense).
We then dropped large spoonfuls of the mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, using the back of the spoon to shape them into little mounds, and popped them into the oven.
Fifteen minutes later, out came these soft, moist little oatmeal mounds. Now… Do they taste like a real cookie? No. Do they taste like a healthy bowl of cinnamon oatmeal compacted into a portable little serving? Yes! And the best part is that they’re not at all crumbly. To the point where I let Grae snack on these while in the Ergo on our recent house hunting adventures because I knew they wouldn’t crumble all over our potential landlords’ floors… Win!
Sugar-free, Dairy-free, Flour-free Cinnamon Raisin Breakfast Cookies
(recipe loosely based on this one from irocksowhat)
- 3 small ripe bananas
- 3/4 cup of ‘just apples’ applesauce
- 1 teaspoon of organic coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 capful of pure vanilla
- 2 cups of organic old-fashioned oats
- 1/3 cup of raw pumpkin seeds
- 1/3 cup of organic raisins
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Add the wet ingredients (plus cinnamon) to a food processor (or good blender) and mix well. Pour the contents into a large mixing bowl and add dry ingredients. Mix until everything is evenly coated.
Drop spoonfuls of the mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, using the back of a spoon to form them into mounds. Bake for 15 minutes and allow a couple of minutes to cool. Store in an airtight container on the counter for a few days, or pop them in the freezer and defrost as needed.
Enjoy!
Ooh, these would be great for the days we need to get out of the house quick. Sprout won’t eat much unless he’s been awake for about an hour, so getting anywhere in the morning is difficult. I’m sure I have all but the pumpkin seeds in the house, but I think the cashews we have might be a good substitution.
By the way, I just discovered how great cashews are for little people: they’re quite easy to chew & their shape makes them much less of a choking hazard than, say, peanuts, hazelnuts or almonds. :)
Cashews would be great in the cookies! In fact, I think you could really get away with just about anything if you keep the dry ingredients at approximately the same measurement… Dried cranberries, pecans, raw almonds, sunflower seeds, hemp hearts, walnuts, and even chia would probably be yummy.
Cashews are a huge hit in our house and they’re a huge treat as we don’t normally keep them in the house (my hubby and I would snack on them constantly!) While I had thought of the easier to chew bit, I’d never thought of them being less of a choking hazard! I like that. I should probably buy some now. :)
Hmmm.. this may be the way to get my oats in my diet! Been wanting to eat more oats to help with milk supply… but can’t bring myself to eat oatmeal every morning… must try. Thanks!
Definitely! Try adding them to smoothies too. We do 1 frozen ripe banana, some plain yogurt, a generous pour of almond milk, a tiny bit of pure vanilla, a scoop of almond butter, and a scoop of old-fashioned oats and its delish!
mmmm looks yummy! Any suggestions for a banana alternative? thanks :)
Hmmm… That’s a tough one, Xandra, as I really think the bananas are what hold these cookies together. You could try a sweet potato mash, but it would definitely be an experiment! :)
hmmm we’ll see! i’ll let you know how the experiments go :)
Please do! I’m anxious to hear how things go for you. Good luck!
My daughter has to get out of the house quick in the morning and this will be perfect