Strawberry Coconut Breakfast Cookies - Gluten-free + Vegan

Strawberry Coconut Breakfast Cookies - Gluten-free + Vegan

Since I made my chocolate peanut butter energy bars last month for our road trip to Austin, I have made them a couple more times, sometimes the same exact way, other times tweaking the ingredients a bit to what I had on hand. But, I have been thinking of lots of different things I could do with the recipe since it is so versatile. I had planning to make strawberry almond bars this week until I came across this recipe for breakfast cookies made with dried blueberries. It gave me the idea to instead take the bar recipe I had thought up, and turning it into cookies, to end up with more and smaller servings. Plus, I loved the idea of having cookies for breakfast, even if it is the exact same recipe. Who doesn’t love a cookie for breakfast?

These cookies were so simple to make and they are bursting with flavor! They are subtly sweet from both the bananas and maple syrup and the strawberries bring a bright, fresh and tangy bite. You could definitely substitute your favorite fresh berry in this recipe, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, etc. You could also use dried fruit, just skip the oat flour and maybe use a little less oats (obviously the fresh berries contain more liquid that dried would, so that is why the difference). Also, you can add your favorite nut, walnuts, pecans, pistachios, etc. Originally I had planned to use almond butter instead of the coconut oil, but I really loved the combination of the strawberry and coconut, two of my absolute favorites, together!

I made these delicious breakfast cookies late last night after we got home from grocery shopping. I, of course, had to have one when they were still a little bit warm, and it was delicious. Then I grabbed one on the way out of the house first thing this morning on my way to yoga. It was the perfect quick little treat. The nice thing about these cookies are they aren’t too sweet, so you don’t have to feel any guilt eating them for breakfast. It’s just like having a granola bar, but better! But they are sweet enough that they are great as a healthy dessert, too!

Do you ever have cookies for breakfast?

Strawberry Coconut Breakfast Cookies - Gluten-free + Vegan

Strawberry Coconut Breakfast Cookies - Gluten-free + Vegan

[print_this]Strawberry Coconut Breakfast Cookies – Gluten-free + Vegan
makes 18-24 cookies

  • 2 cups of certified gluten-free rolled oats (I use Bob’s Red Mill)
  • 1/4 cup certified gluten-free oat flour (or just process some gluten-free rolled oats into a fine powder)
  • 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
  • 2 tablespoons ground chia seeds or ground flaxseeds
  • 1/2 cup almonds, roughly chopped
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 organic bananas, mashed
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or honey)
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
  • 1 cup fresh organic strawberries, roughly chopped
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350º F. Line a baking sheet or two with unbleached parchment paper. In a large bowl combine oats, oat flour, coconut, chia seeds, almonds and salt. Stir in bananas, strawberries, coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla. I use my clean bare hands to mix it all up so I can really get in there and get everything well mixed. You can of course just use a large spoon or spatula.

Form the dough into 2 1/2 inch balls/discs with your hands and place into even rows with just a little room in between them. Press them down very gently to flatten them a bit.

Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until fragrant and golden. Cool on pan for a few minutes than transfer to a cooking rack. Enjoy for breakfast, dessert or an anytime snack.

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