Dried Cherry Quinoa Breakfast Cookies

I wasn’t always on board with the idea of serving cookies for breakfast, but the more I thought about it, the more it made perfect sense to me. When loaded with whole grains, oatmeal, and quinoa, not to mention heart-healthy nuts and dried fruit, these lightly sweetened portable bundles just might be the perfect way to pack some protein and extra nutrition into my kids’ morning meals.

Another added bonus is that they can be made in advance and stored in the freezer until needed (my favourite kind of cooking), and can quickly transform into a complete meal when paired with fresh fruit and yogurt, smoothies, or hard-boiled eggs.

For those of us already thinking about summer, these travel well and can be taken on the road, or packed up for picnics, providing an extra dose of energy for playing outside in the sun. And while these will definitely appeal to kids, mom and dad are also certain to enjoy them, especially when paired with cup of coffee and the morning paper on slow weekends when they just can’t be bothered to prepare a full breakfast for the family.

Dried Cherry Quinoa Breakfast Cookies

Whole-wheat pastry flour is available in most bulk, healthy and specialty grocery stores.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups whole-wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup butter

½ cup brown sugar

1 egg

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

1 cup oats

1 cup cooked quinoa

½ cup dried cherries

½ cup sliced almonds

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl. Stir well and set aside.

Using a hand-held or stand mixer beat the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, vanilla and almond extracts, and mix until combined.

Add the flour mixture to the butter and sugar and mix. Add the oats, quinoa, dried cherries and almonds and stir just until combined.

Drop tablespoon-size dollops of dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Press down lightly with your fingers to flatten and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges of the cookie are golden brown and the centre is set. Allow the cookies to cool completely before removing them from the baking sheet.

Tip: Store in an airtight container for up to five days or in the freezer for two months.

About Jan:

Jan Scott is a well-known Canadian food writer and the creator of Family Bites, a blog devoted to family-focused recipes and easy-to-execute entertaining ideas. She has had many articles and essays published in a variety of print and online publications and her first book, Gatherings: Bringing People Together with Food will publish in October 2014. She lives in Toronto, ON, Canada with her husband, Rob, and their two sons.

Connect with Jan on twitter @Jannicescott facebook http://on.fb.me/1m7Xd6s and instagram @jannisescott1