With whole wheat, peanut butter and oatmeal, these healthy Breakfast Cookies are packed with shredded apples and mashed bananas. A breakfast treat you can be proud to serve your little ones!
Cool Moms Make Cookies for Breakfast
I love my Mom! My Mom is cool! But now it’s time for having fun in school! Baker-man and I have been singing this little rap (from Sid the Science Kid, his favorite kids’ show) for several weeks now in prep for the big day! Baker started preschool this morning and he’ll be going 5 mornings a week! Yikes! What’s a mama to do?
He’s going to love it and learn a lot, but the babies and I are sure going to miss him here at home! I like to think Baker thinks I’m cool and I’m pretty sure he thought I was super cool when I served him cookies for breakfast this morning! You should have seen the excitement on his face when he saw that cookie sitting on his breakfast plate!
Deliciously Healthy Cookies
Kids don’t know these cookies are actually pretty healthy. They don’t know they’re full of whole grains, protein and fruit. They only knows they taste amazing and make a great breakfast or snack! They’re dairy free and full of whole grain.
This breakfast cookies recipe has some of our favorite breakfast flavors baked right into them! We quite often eat peanut butter banana apple sandwiches on whole wheat bread for breakfast or a snack so I just baked these goodies into a chewy oatmeal cookie and added some chocolate chips to make them extra special for his first day of school!
Breakfast Cookies Ingredients and Supplies
(see recipe card at the bottom of this post for measurements and details)
Ingredients:
- Whole wheat flour – feel free to substitute with all-purpose flour, almond flour, or a gluten free all-purpose baking flour
- Old-fashioned rolled oats – I like the texture the old-fashioned oats add to these cookies, but you could use quick cooking oats if you’d prefer.
- Baking soda
- Kosher salt
- Cinnamon – this can be omitted if you don’t want the cinnamon flavor
- Creamy peanut butter – you can use crunchy peanut butter or an alternate butter like almond butter, sunflower butter or granola butter, if desired.
- Dark brown sugar – the dark brown sugar adds the perfect amount of rich sweetness, but you could use light brown sugar or omit the sugar all together if you’d prefer a less sweet cookie.
- Egg – you can replace the egg with 1/4 cup applesauce, mashed banana or yogurt, if necessary.
- Vanilla extract
- Mashed banana – the riper the banana, the more natural sweetness and moisture it brings to the cookies. The mashed banana can be substituted with pure pumpkin puree or applesauce, if needed.
- Shredded peeled apple – the apple adds a nice sweetness and texture to the cookies. The shredded apple can be substituted with firm pear or zucchini.
- Chocolate chips – the chocolate is optional, but such a fun and sweet addition. You could add chopped nuts, seeds or dried fruits as well, if desired.
Supplies:
Substitutions and Additions
Substitutions:
- All-purpose flour, almond flour, or a gluten free all-purpose baking flour can be substituted for the whole wheat flour
- Almond butter or sunflower seed butter can be substituted for the peanut butter
- Pure pumpkin purée or applesauce can be substituted fro the mashed banana
- Shredded zucchini or shredded pear can be substituted for the shredded apple
Optional Additions:
- Chopped walnuts, pecan pieces, pumpkin seeds
- Raisins, dried cranberries or other dried fruit
He was all smiles, energized, and ready to go! We had a big time baking these easy breakfast cookies over the weekend so let us show you how simple they are to make! You and your kiddos could easily bake up a batch this afternoon. They’re perfect to grab as an after-school snack!
How to Make Breakfast Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Then, in the bowl of an electric mixer, blend the peanut butter and brown sugar until creamy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
- Mix in the mashed banana. Slowly add the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the shredded apple and chocolate chips.
- Form 3-4 tablespoons of dough into large balls and place a few inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten each ball of dough with a measuring cup that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until slightly browned. Let cool on cookie sheets for 10 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
Make Ahead Directions
To store the prepared cookie dough, make the cookie dough and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. When ready to bake, proceed with scooping the chilled cookie dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets and baking the dough straight from the refrigerator.
To freeze the cookie dough, scoop the dough into balls and placing them in a single layer on a sheet pan in the freezer for one hour to flash freeze them before transferring them to a freezer-safe container or plastic bag, with parchment paper between each layer of cookie dough balls, to store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Frozen cookie dough balls can be defrosted in the refrigerator overnight, defrosted at room temperature for a few hours, or baked straight from frozen. Baking the cookie dough straight from frozen is what I would recommend for the best texture. When baking cookies from frozen, just add 3-5 minutes to the instructed baking time.
How to Store Breakfast Cookies
Store breakfast cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
To freeze, wrap with plastic wrap and freeze them for up to three months.
Let cookies come to room temperature or heat in the microwave for 10-15 seconds if you don’t like cold cookies.
More Breakfasts Treats They’ll Love
- Start the day off right with hearty, delicious Breakfast Brownies! Made with bananas, oats, and peanut butter, these breakfast treats are as healthy as they are tasty!
- A cake mix, bananas, applesauce and sprinkles are all it takes to make these fun and yummy Birthday Breakfast Muffins for a special birthday breakfast! It’s nacho average breakfast, y’all!
- These Breakfast Nachos take ordinary tortilla chips and pile them with savory breakfast sausage, scrambled eggs, bacon, and fresh avocado for a deliciously unique breakfast!
If you make these Breakfast Cookies, be sure to snap a picture and share it with me or tag me on Instagram @thebakermama so I can see. 
I love seeing how inspired and creative y’all get with the recipes I share. Enjoy!
xoxo,
Breakfast Cookie Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 25 mins
- Yield: 20
- Category: Breakfast
Description
Healthy whole wheat peanut butter oatmeal cookies packed with shredded apples and mashed bananas. Breakfast Cookies, friends!
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 and 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup mashed banana (about 2 medium)
- 1 cup shredded peeled apple (about 2 medium)
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend the peanut butter and brown sugar until creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until well combined. Mix in the mashed banana. Slowly add the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the shredded apple and chocolate chips.
- Form 3-4 tablespoons of dough into large balls and place a few inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten each ball of dough with a cup measurer that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until slightly browned. Let cool on cookie sheets for 10 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
Notes
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Let cookies come to room temperature or heat in the microwave for 10-15 seconds if you don’t like cold cookies.
Where do I find the nutrition info?
Hi, Maegan! I don’t provide nutritional information at this time. To find out, I would recommend plugging the ingredients you use into a free online recipe nutrition calculator like: https://whisk.com/recipe-nutrition-calculator/ Hope this helps. Enjoy! ❤️
I’ve made these cookies for many years and we LOVE them! They’re quick to whip up and tasty.
Hi, Brandi Jo! I’m so happy to hear that you love them. We made them so often when my kids were little. I might have to make a batch just for nostalgia. Enjoy! ❤️
THANK YOU for this recipe! My very picky 3 year old loves these and eats them for breakfast nearly every morning, and it feels like such a relief to know he’s got something nutritious (we call them little nutrition bombs!) going into him every morning to start the day. I make a triple batch every month! I reduce the sugar and add a handful each of chia seeds, flax seeds, and hemp hearts. So tasty!
Hi Marie! That is so great to hear! Thank you for sharing. I created this recipe when my oldest was 3 years old and he would eat them for breakfast every morning too. I hope your little one continues to enjoy them! I love your additions of chia seeds, flax seeds and hemp hearts. So yummy!
These are great plus they are nice and healthy. I have a son who won’t eat anything and he chows these down. We prefer to use mini chocolate chips. It tends to stay in the dough better and you don’t have chocolate chips falling out as you eat them. Thanks for the recipe!
We make these on a regular basis as they are delicious and easy to whip up. They remind me of a belvita breakfast cookie!! Love following your recipes!! Keep em coming. 🙂
Made the recipe as written and baked 12 mins. They came out amazing! Will make again soon.
Delicious! I used 1 cup of slow cooker no-sugar apple butter in lieu of the banana and apple. And I added 2 Tb flaxseed, but everything else was the same and I loved these cookies! Perfect for a healthy breakfast, snack or in the kids’ lunch boxes. Thanks so much!
These are NOT gluten free. They have wheat flour in them. I DO have a recipe that is gluten free that is similiar. It has peanutbutter, oatmeal, eggs, and chocolate chips in it and it’s chewy and good.
Hi Jo Ann! I never once said these cookies were gluten free. The recipe was created in partnership with Gold Medal Flour so of course they’re not gluten free. I do have a recipe on my blog for Flourless Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies which could be made gluten free with gluten free oats.
Does it matter what type of apple you use?
Hi Mary! No, it doesn’t matter what type of apple you use as long as the apple is crisp enough to shred, it should work and taste great. Enjoy!