Healthy Almond Butter Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
These breakfast cookies are soft and chewy, just like regular “dessert” cookies, yet they’re made of entirely wholesome ingredients. Lightly sweetened with a subtle almond butter background and lots of cozy cinnamon notes, these healthy breakfast cookies are a delicious way to start the day. They’re great for snacks and breakfast meal prepping too! Leftovers will keep for at least five days (if not longer!) if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup (64g) homemade creamy almond butter (see Notes!)
- ¼ cup (56g) unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp salt
- ¼ cup (60mL) pure maple syrup
- 5 tbsp (75mL) unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 1 cup (100g) instant oats (gluten-free if necessary and measured like this)
- ¾ cup (90g) oat flour (gluten-free if necessary and measured like this – see Notes!)
- 1 tsp baking powder
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together the almond butter and applesauce until smooth and creamy. Stir in the vanilla, cinnamon, and salt until fully incorporated. Stir in the maple syrup. Stir in the almond milk. Pour the oats and oat flour into the bowl, and sprinkle the baking powder evenly over the top of the oats and oat flour (to prevent clumping!). Stir all three ingredients in together until just incorporated. Chill the cookie dough for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- Using a spoon and spatula, drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops onto the prepared sheet. Flatten to ⅜”-thick using a spatula. Bake at 325°F for 8-10 minutes. Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
Notes
IMPORTANT MEASURING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: It’s extremely important to measure both the oats and flour correctly using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own!) Too much of either will dry out the cookies and make them cakey, bready, or dry, instead of soft and chewy.
IMPORTANT FLAVOR NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: These breakfast cookies aren’t overly sweet — and that’s intentional! They have a sweetness level similar to muffins or breakfast scones. For sweeter cookies, substitute pure maple syrup, honey, or agave for an equal amount of milk. (For example, add an additional 2 tablespoons of pure maple syrup, and reduce the milk by 2 tablespoons to compensate.) Alternatively, use my true “dessert” almond butter oatmeal cookie recipe instead.
IMPORTANT BAKING NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: These cookies don’t spread. They’ll look exactly the same before and after baking (just no longer raw!), so it’s important to flatten the cookie dough before baking.
Do not over-bake these cookies! They’re ready to come out of the oven when the centers still feel slightly soft and underdone. The heat from the warm baking sheet will continue to cook the centers all the way through while you let the cookies rest for 10 minutes after pulling the pan from the oven.
ALMOND BUTTER NOTES: This is my homemade creamy almond butter recipe. You just need 10 minutes to make it! If using store-bought creamy almond butter, make sure it only contains almond and salt. (A little oil is fine.) It should be liquidy at room temperature. Do not substitute crunchy almond butter.
APPLESAUCE NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: I love using these single-serving unsweetened applesauce cups for baking. They’re so handy!
Sweetened applesauce may be substituted in place of the unsweetened applesauce. If you can’t find any type of applesauce, you can substitute mashed banana, but your cookies will have a prominent fruity taste since bananas have a much stronger flavor compared to applesauce.
SWEETENER ALTERNATIVES: Honey or agave may be substituted for the pure maple syrup. Alternatively, substitute ¼ cup (48g) coconut sugar or light brown sugar AND 2 ½ tablespoons (38mL) milk for the pure maple syrup.
MILK ALTERNATIVES: Any milk may be substituted for the unsweetened vanilla almond milk.
OATS NOTES: Instant oats are also known as “quick cooking” or “one-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 rolled oats to a food processor, and pulse 10-12 times or until the oats are about ¼ to ⅛ of their original size.
OAT FLOUR NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: This is my favorite store-bought oat flour (this is the gluten-free version!), and I also show you how to make your own at home here.
Regular whole wheat flour, white whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the oat flour.
GLUTEN-FREE VERSION: Use certified gluten-free instant oats and certified gluten-free oat flour. Alternatively, for a non-oat-flour version, use the following: ½ cup (60g) millet flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) tapioca flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) brown rice flour, and ½ teaspoon xanthan gum. Many store-bought gluten free flour blends (I like this one from Bob's Red Mill) will also work, if measured like this.
DAIRY-FREE, EGG-FREE + VEGAN VERSION: No modifications necessary!
HOW TO STORE: Store leftover cookies in an airtight container. If left at room temperature, they’ll keep for a couple of days. If refrigerated, they’ll last at least five days (if not longer!). Once baked and fully cooled, these breakfast oatmeal cookies also freeze really well!
For answers to all other questions regarding substitutions and tips, see my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ page.
{gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free, vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.