Throughout my childhood, I looked forward to Easter almost as much as Christmas. Although the holiday came with far fewer presents, the Easter Bunny still stopped by while my brother and I slept and left Easter baskets filled with goodies… Just like how Santa stuffed our stockings!
So early Easter morning, typically before the sun started peeking out over the horizon, my brother and I dashed downstairs and skidded to a stop at the kitchen table. Once Mom snapped our picture for her photo albums, we began pawing through the shiny plastic grass in our special pink (mine) and blue (my brother’s) baskets.
The Easter Bunny hid most of our treats inside of plastic eggs, so we rattled each one to guess its contents before popping apart the two halves, watching at the candy spilled out. Milk chocolate eggs, a few peanut butter cups, plenty of Starburst-flavored jelly beans (our favorite!), some chocolate kisses… And if we behaved, Mom even let us have a piece or two before church!
To make sure the Easter Bunny remembered our house (and gave us the best candy!), we always set out something for him the night before, just like with Santa. But instead of milk and cookies, we left a plate of carrots and bowl of water on the table. My brother and I thought he’d appreciate that a little more!
Yet now as an adult, I realize my family’s Easter Bunny might have enjoyed Santa’s cookies more than plain carrots… So I’m finally combining the two for our family’s Easter Bunny into these Healthy Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies! They have the same chewy texture as classic cookies but the sweetness level of muffins (just in case the Easter Bunny “taste tests” a few too many pieces of the candy meant for the kids!). And with just 74 calories, these cookies come with none of the guilt!
Think your family’s Easter Bunny would like these too? ?
This is the next installment of my clean eating oatmeal cookie recipes series! ← Have you tried any of those others yet? (The apple pie and almond joy ones are two of my more popular recipes!) Just like the other recipes, these contain no butter, refined flour or sugar… But they taste just as chewy and delicious as traditional oatmeal cookies!
To start, you’ll need whole wheat flour (or gluten-free!) and instant oats. Instant oats are also called “quick cooking” or “one-minute” oats. They’re not the same thing as what comes in those individual brown paper packets! Instant oats are sold in canisters right next to the old-fashioned oats at the grocery store.
It’s extremely important to measure the flour and oats correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. Too much of either will dry out your cookie dough and make your cookies taste cakey, rather than chewy. This is especially true of the oats because they act like little sponges and soak up moisture from your cookie dough!
So I highly recommend a kitchen scale. ← That’s the one I own and love. It’s been the best $20 I’ve ever spent! I use it to make every recipe that I share with you here on my blog (and in my Healthier Chocolate Treats cookbook!) because it ensures my treats turn out with the perfect taste and texture every time.
Instead of refined sugar, you’ll sweeten your cookies with pure maple syrup. Make sure you buy the real kind! Skip the pancake syrups and sugar-free syrups because those contain corn syrup or artificial ingredients, which we’re avoiding in this healthier recipe. The only ingredient on the label should be “maple syrup,” and it generally comes in thin glass bottles or squat plastic jugs. I’ve also bought it online here for a slightly discounted price!
To make sure these qualify as breakfast cookies (not dessert ones!), you’ll only add half the amount of maple syrup as you’d use in my dessert oatmeal cookies. To compensate for the missing liquid, you’ll stir milk into your cookie dough!
For the classic carrot cake flavor, you’ll mix in cinnamon, a hint of nutmeg, and freshly grated carrots. Don’t substitute the store-bought pre-shredded carrots! Those are too thick and dry, and they don’t soften while baking. You’ll want to grate your own carrots because they’re much juicier and have an infinitely better flavor.
Ready for breakfast? ??? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your breakfast cookies and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Healthy Carrot Cake Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies | | Print |
- 1 cup (100g) instant oats (measured like this and gluten-free if necessary)
- ¾ cup (90g) whole wheat or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg white, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60mL) pure maple syrup, room temperature
- 5 tbsp (75mL) nonfat milk, room temperature
- ¾ cup (68g) freshly grated carrot (about 1 medium, peeled first!)
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, egg white, and vanilla. Stir in the maple syrup and milk. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Gently fold in the carrots. Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- Drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops onto the prepared sheet, and flatten to the desired thickness and width with a spatula. Bake at 325°F for 10-13 minutes. Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Instant oats are also known as quick-cooking or minute oats. They come in large canisters, just like old-fashioned oats. They are not the ones in the small flavored packets of oatmeal. To make your own, add the same amount of old-fashioned oats to a food processor, and pulse 10-12 times or until they’re about half of their original size.
For a gluten-free version, use gluten-free instant oats and the following gluten-free flour blend: ½ cup (60g) millet flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) tapioca flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) brown rice flour, and ½ teaspoon xanthan gum. Most store-bought gluten-free blends will work as well, if measured like this.
Any milk will work in place of the nonfat milk.
Do not substitute store-bought pre-shredded carrots. They’re too dry and won’t soften during baking, and their flavor is blander compared to freshly grated carrots.
For more tips and answers to ALL other questions {including substitutions and videos!}, see my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♥ Healthy Oatmeal Raisin Breakfast Cookies
♥ Healthy Blueberry Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
♥ Healthy Carrot Cake Granola
♥ Healthy Carrot Cake Scones
♥ Carrot Cake Protein Muffins
♥ Carrot Cake Bran Muffins
♥ Healthy Carrot Cake Pancakes
♥ Healthy Single-Serving Carrot Cake Mug Cake
♥ …and all of Amy’s other healthy oatmeal cookie recipes!
Hey Amy!
Can I substitute all or some of the maple syrup with something else lower in sugar? I was thinking maybe stevia?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Jenna! What’s the exact brand and stevia product that you’d like to use? (Almost every brand and product has a slightly different sweetness level, so that info will help me give you the best substitution possible!) 🙂
Hi
Can I substitute almond milk for non-fat milk?
Julie
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Julie! I’ve actually answered this exact question in the Notes section of the recipe, located directly underneath the Instructions. I know it can be easy to miss! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these cookies!
Hello Amy!
Fantastic recipe!!!! These are my go to quick breakfast option!
Do you think it’s possible to add flaxseed meal and brewers yeast to help with my milk production??
Thank you
I’m so glad you’re enjoying these oatmeal cookies Aimara! That means a lot to me that you’d call them your go to! 🙂 I think you should be fine if you add a bit of each! If the cookie dough looks too dry with the addition of those dry ingredients, then just add a little more milk until it’s the right texture. I’d love to hear how they turn out if you try that!!
Hi Amy, i like your recipes and website content! For the carrot cake recipe my dough was little runny when I started putting on baking tray, its very hot by us, can it be because of the weather being extremely hot?should I chill the dough for longer in fridge? What is the oven temp in degrees Celsius? Please also add in your recipes the oven temp in degrees Celsius.
I am a novice baker, so any tips will help.
Thank you
Kind regards,
Natasha from South Africa
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Natasha! Yes, this cookie dough will be a bit more runny if the weather or your kitchen is really hot. How much did your cookies spread while baking? Did you flatten them a lot before baking?
Hi no I did not need to flatten them as it was runny once placed on baking tray. They spread alot, twice size, and they crumbled.
Thanks
It’s my pleasure Natasha! I’m always happy to help! 🙂 If the cookie dough was that runny when you placed it on the baking sheet, then I’d recommend reducing the milk by 2 tablespoons (so only 3 tablespoons, or 45mL) and chilling the cookie dough an extra 15-30 minutes. It’s probably the hot weather that’s causing your cookies to spread so much, so during the cooler months of the year, it could be that you’re able to use the full amount of milk! (When I’ve baked these cookies while using my really hot photography lights in my kitchen, the heat from the lights causes them to spread a lot too, but when I bake these cookies using no lights and just letting sunlight stream into my kitchen, they don’t really spread at all!) I’d love to hear how those modifications turn out for you!
Hi Amy,
Do you know about how many calories are in each cookie? I would guess two would probably be a fair amount for a healthy-ish breakfast.
Thanks!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Bonnie! The full nutrition information, including calories, is actually included directly underneath the recipe. I know it can be easy to miss! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try them!
Just made these this morning and they are GREAT!! I only had rolled oats at home so I used that as a substitute, and just let the oats absorb the liquid in the mixture a little it longer. It also allowed the mixture to turn thicker, as it was runny right after mixing. I noticed, however, that mine didn’t spread out as it baked. It just kept it shape, slightly rounded on top because I used an ice cream scooper. But the insides were moist, and really tasty! Thank you for this recipe, can’t wait to bring some to the office tomorrow to share!
I’m so glad you loved these cookies Irene! That’s the best kind of compliment, if you thought they were worthy of sharing with your coworkers. Thank you so much for sharing that with me! 🙂 Yes, these cookies don’t actually spread while baking… That’s why I mentioned to flatten them to the desired thickness and width with a spatula in Step 3. But I’m really happy the insides stayed moist and delicious for you!!