Name: Coconut chocolate breakfast cookies
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 30
Ingredients: 150g (1 cup) pitted dates; 120ml (1/2 cup) boiling water; 100g (1 cup) almond meal (ground almonds); 90g (1 cup) large flake rolled oats; 90g (1 cup) desiccated coconut; 40g (1/4 cup) flax seeds; 40g (1/4 cup) sunflower seeds; 45g (1/4 cup) pumpkin seeds; 2 tablespoons cocoa powder; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 100g (1/2 cup) chocolate chips; 1 egg; 2 tablespoons maple syrup; 60g (1/4 cup) coconut oil; 2 teaspoons pure vanilla essence

Cookies for breakfast? Why not when you can include all the best parts of a granola bowl, only make it portable! I’ve been trying to recreate a favourite granola cookie from a local coffee store for a while now and I *think* I’ve just about got it with this iteration.

The cookies in question are gluten-free but I had been trying to make them with a little bit of flour – not unlike a version of Dorie’s breakfast cookies we made a couple of weeks ago. In fact, all the iterations of the cookies I made with various flours were delicious but not quite what I was looking for! Too cakey, too cookie-ish, they just weren’t the texture I was seeking – like granola, barely held together with nuts and dried fruits and seeds. And chocolate chips.

I did a little research on breakfast granola cookies and kept coming back to one ingredient – dates. Jennifer Tyler Lee uses them in baked goods with a lot of success (bonus? naturally occurring sugars as opposed to adding sugar) so I wondered if that was the magic ingredient. A couple of tries later and I think I have it!

These cookies are packed with all sorts of good stuff – nuts (almond flour), coconut, seeds, oats and chocolate chips. They are sweetened with dates that are made into a paste with boiling water, then mixed with an egg, some maple syrup, vanilla and coconut oil (this was also a discovery – because coconut oil hardens once it’s cool, it helps the cookies stay together – versions with regular vegetable oil didn’t do so well), these cookies are soft without falling apart, sweet without being cloying and satisfying without weighing you down. BINGO!

Yield: 30

Coconut chocolate breakfast cookies

Breakfast on the go is easy with these breakfast cookies. Everything you love in a bowl of granola in cookie form!

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

150g (1 cup) pitted dates
120ml (1/2 cup) boiling water
100g (1 cup) almond meal (ground almonds)
90g (1 cup) large flake rolled oats
90g (1 cup) desiccated coconut
40g (1/4 cup) flax seeds
40g (1/4 cup) sunflower seeds
45g (1/4 cup) pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
100g (1/2 cup) chocolate chips
1 egg
2 tablespoons maple syrup
60g (1/4 cup) coconut oil
2 teaspoons pure vanilla essence

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
Roughly chop the dates and soak them in the boiling water while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. The dates need to soak for approximately 15 minutes or until most of the water has been absorbed.
Mix together almond meal, coconut, oats, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and chocolate chips. Set aside.
In a mini food processor or in a large bowl with a wooden spoon, mix the dates, egg, maple syrup, coconut oil and vanilla until it forms a liquidy paste.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just combined.
Using a 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop, form the cookies and place them on the baking trays. They will not spread much so you don't need to leave too much room in between them. Slightly flatten the cookies with wet fingertips. At this point, you can also freeze the cookie dough (see note)
Bake for 15 minutes. The cookies will still feel soft at this point. Leave them on the baking tray for approximately 10 minutes before you remove them to a wire cooling rack with an offset spatula. Be gently, they are soft cookies!
Once cool, store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days (bet they don't last that long!)

Notes

Note: You can scoop the cookies and freeze them immediately (place the dough balls close together on a baking tray or plate and once they are frozen, you can place them in an airtight container in the freezer with parchment paper in between each layer) and just bake off what you need. Baking from frozen, they might need a couple of extra minutes but the best advice is to just keep an eye on them as they bake.

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Closeup of Chocolate coconut breakfast cookies

What about you – do you like to eat you granola in a bowl or a cookie?

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