Breakfast: eating cookies to start day

One of the perks of being an adult is you can have cookies whenever you want. But what if you make cookies nutritious enough you can justify eating them for breakfast? Guess what? It turns out you actually CAN have cookies for breakfast. Your childhood dreams have come true!

All the benefits of a nourishing bowl of oatmeal in a convenient handheld cookie form. With the weather getting warmer, a cookie dipped in cold milk sounds much better than a bowl of hot oatmeal.

These cookies have enough protein and fiber to keep you feeling full until lunch and you can customize them to your heart’s delight. There’s a base cookie with nut butter, oats and protein powder. Then you get to choose your favorite nuts, dried fruits, seeds or other goodies. For instance, chocolate, because chocolate makes mornings much happier. And if you’re having cookies for breakfast you should be really happy about it.

DARK CHOCOLATE CHERRY AND

ALMOND BREAKFAST COOKIES

Yield: 12 to 14 cookies Time: 45 minutes

What You’ll Need:

1 cup almond or peanut butter – or other nut butter

¾ cup milk (any kind—almond, dairy milk or soy milk. I used unsweetened almond)

½ tsp salt

1 tablespoon coconut oil – or butter

1/3 cup maple syrup – or honey or agave or pancake syrup

½ teaspoon vanilla

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

½ cup vanilla flavored soy protein powder

2 cups of quick oats (or old fashioned oats)

1½ cups of mix-ins (dried fruit, nuts, seeds, coconut, chocolate chips, etc.)

(I used - ½ cup dark chocolate chips, ½ cup dried cherries, ½ cup sliced almonds)

Optional - Chocolate drizzle - 2 tablespoons dark chocolate chips, ½ teaspoon coconut oil

Here’s How:

Preheat oven to 325º and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a saucepan, over low heat, melt peanut butter. Add milk, salt, coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla and combine.

Move the mixture to the bowl of your stand mixer or a large mixing bowl. Add the cocoa powder and protein powder and mix until smooth. Add the oats and combine, then add your mix-ins.

If you’re mixing this by hand you’ll probably have to literally get your hands involved to thoroughly combine. Mix until it sticks together and is easy to shape.

Use a ¼ cup to measure out the cookie dough. Press each cookie together with your hands to be sure they stick together and arrange onto prepared baking sheets. They don’t spread during baking. Bake 12-15 minutes. Cool before eating. Store cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 10 days or wrap tightly and freeze for up to three months.

If you want to drizzle with chocolate, melt chips in the microwave and place in a zip-top baggie. Use scissors to cut a tiny bit off one corner and drizzle the cooled cookies.

Fabulous Food by Patti Diamond from Divas On A Dime – Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous! Blog - www.divasonadime.com. Join us on Facebook at DivasOnADimeDotCom