"Mom, can I have cookies for breakfast?"

I know we've all heard it at some point in time getting the kids ready for school, or (insert early morning sport) practice, or even just on a lazy Sunday morning when they think they can catch you off guard. Well, how'd you like to be able to say  “Yes?”  Wouldn't that just beat all, and leave your offspring thinking you've finally gone over the edge? Not really...

But it sure would be funny to see their expressions! These days many of us are up and on the go early, and full breakfasts just aren't always part of the plan.

We know the deep-down truth about fast food even if it tastes good, and even many “healthy” granola bars on the market are loaded with artificial colors and unpronounceable ingredients. Not all, mind you. There are some great ones out there to serve to your family without a hint of guilt, but wouldn't it be nice to whip up something delicious and be able to add just what YOU want for ingredients?

I've been making these Breakfast Cookies for nearly 20 years now. I've tweaked the original recipe many times over, quite a few since coming to work here at King Arthur. The greatest thing I've found about this recipe (besides sharing it with many, many parents of my students over the years) is that it's very adaptable, and each person can really tailor it to their tastes. Don't like coconut? Leave it out. Love walnuts? Throw 'em in! To quote the famous jingle, “Have it your way!”

Just a quick note before you break out the rope to string me up. These are still cookies, and I'm certainly not advocating them for breakfast every day of the year. BUT, these cookies can be loaded with fiber and protein and can be part of a balanced breakfast in moderation. Fair ’nuff?

I'm pretty darn happy with this latest variation, so let's get started on our Breakfast Cookies.

Place the butter, sugar, and peanut butter in the bowl of your stand mixer.

Blend on medium speed until lightened and fluffy.

Add the eggs and mix until well incorporated.

In a separate bowl mix together the flours, dried milk and your assorted add-ins and the cinnamon. I chose rolled oats, barley flakes, coconut, and chocolate chips. It looks like a lot of chocolate here, but there IS healthy stuff under it.

After I took the picture I found my cup full of coconut on the counter. I really did use it, you just can't see it in the photo.

Combine the dry ingredients with the peanut butter mixture. 

The dough will get much thicker, but shouldn't dry out and get clumpy.

Use a generous 1/4 cup measure to scoop out the dough onto parchment- lined cookie sheets. These cookies don't spread much, so you can place them fairly close together.

Somehow I missed the photo of the unbaked cookies on the sheet, but this should give you a good idea of spacing. If you like mounded cookies, don't press the dough down. If you like flatter cookies like these, press the dough down gently with your fingers.

Bake at 350°F for 18 to 22 minutes, until lightly browned. Over-baking these cookies will dry them out, so try a test cookie or two to get the feel for them in your oven.

Ah, breakfast is ready! Give me two of these cookies, a piece of fruit and a glass of juice and I'm set for hours.

So whether you're headed back to school or back to work or even out to play for the weekend, why not start the day with these hearty Breakfast Cookies? Your taste buds, tummy, and (of course) your kids will thank you.

Please bake, rate, and review our recipe for Breakfast Cookies.

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Mary Jane Robbins
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About MaryJane Robbins

MaryJane, affectionately known as MJ here at King Arthur Baking Company, grew up in Massachusetts before moving to Vermont in 1990. Prior to this she taught pre-school and kindergarten in the Upper Valley area for 15 years. Drawing on those skills, MJ joined our Baker’s Hotline and teaching staff at...
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Comments

Lurl

August 18, 2014 at 3:01am

What can be substituted for the chocolate chips. I can't stand the taste of them nor chocolate in any cookie. How about something like dates or dried papaya or both? Chocolate chips give me the creeps and none of my children like them or anything with it in it. Thanks
rochelle_keefer

September 15, 2012 at 6:58pm

Just smelling them in the oven I knew like most everyone else that has commented: I will be making more of these. I cut the brown sugar in half and used half the butter with a 1/4 cup of applesauce. Also used KA White Whole Wheat flour- my favorite! I couldn't wait for jammy bits to come in the mail so I picked up some dried sweetened strawberries at Trader Joes and those worked. Also added chia seeds for omega 3s and wheat germ for folic acid and oat bran for fiber. These made the perfect pregnancy cookie. And you get to be so creative! Great recipe- thanks! Go glad you are happy with them. I need to whip up a batch myself. Hard to believe my own kiddo has been eating this before school for 12 years! ~ MaryJane
Kathleen

May 4, 2011 at 1:47pm

These are the best. My husband loves them and they're easy for him to grab on his way out the door. For add-ins, I use oats, coconut (unsweetened), all-bran cereal, dried cherries, peanuts, choc chips, and sunflower seeds. Once, I ran out of peanut butter and subbed 1/2 peanut butter and 1/2 nutella. I think that batch was even better than all peanut butter.
Jess

February 26, 2011 at 12:04am

I know this is an old post, but I wanted to ask a question about making the recipe non-dairy. I saw the idea of subbing canola oil for the butter (since there's peanut butter, it might work in this recipe) and I can use soymilk for the cow milk. But what about the nonfat dried milk. Are there any good non-dairy subs for that? What role does it play in the texture/look of the cookie? Thanks so much. HI Jess, The dried milk is in the recipe for tenderizing and added calcium. You can definitely leave it out and still get great cookies. Happy baking! ~ MaryJane
"Marque "

January 22, 2011 at 3:03am

I just found this post and while I have not yet read the recipe I make a breakfast cookie based on the traditional tollhouse recipe. I add more oats then flour,a lot of ground nuts,chips and raisins or other dried fruit. They come out very cake-y and high in about twelve minutes (almost faster then you can fill the next pan) and go very quickly. And for a man who refuses to eat breakfast but will eat these by the handful, they are a very good nutritious meal!! I hope you will try our recipe and let us know what you think. You can improvise with whatever ingredients you have around the pantry and they might even please your husband. ~Amy
beachdee

January 22, 2011 at 1:54am

Nice idea, sounds yummy. I am with those who think that's a LOT of sugar (esp. for a non-dessert cookie); when I try these I'll be cutting back at least to 3/4 cup, because dried fruits add plenty more and we are going for at least somewhat healthy here. Also agree w/ biobaker, I'll sub in at least half whole-grain flour (spelt/wheat/barley). I'm curious to try the quinoa flakes I saw at my co-op, along with the oatmeal, for added nutrition. For the person who asked about sub for peanut butter--are you able to use almond butter? Love the stuff. And the subbing for butter -- try coconut oil, which altho called "oil" is solid at room temp... I use it all the time in place of butter (altho I don't shy away from butter, either, just margarines and most veg/seed oils). Very healthful, too (here's a link to a quick-and-dirty discussion: http://www.livestrong.com/article/28296-health-properties-coconut-oil/). If you like the coconut flavor, use the virgin coconut oil, and if you want flavorless, get the slightly more refined but still healthful kind. I think I know what my next batch of cookies is going to be! Thank you for sharing your information with us. It is great to learn how different people interpret and experiment with this recipe. ~Amy @ KAF
margieseetfry

January 21, 2011 at 6:34am

I like collecting various kinds of recipes. Your recipes seems delicious.emm......have a chance to test it.
dmeaux1000

January 13, 2011 at 10:14pm

I swore I was not going to bake anything for a month or 2 but I was thinking about these cookies all day today and could not resist. Just made a double batch and they are really really great. I used wheat germ, ground flax seed, unsweetened coconut, mini chocolate morsels, toasted pecans, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, homemade granola, craisins and KA's dried fruit blend. They ended up tasting like a granola cookie and were well worth the time it took to make them. I did cut back on the sugar to 1 cup per batch and I ground up some oatmeal for the hi maize. Give them a try. These cookies are of big interest and everyone is finding so many fun ways to modify them to their tastes and dietary needs. Thank you for sharing your ideas with us and happy baking! ~ART
fran16250

January 13, 2011 at 10:15am

I made these last night, or I should say I made the dough. I used the new Jammy Bits and oatmeal and cinnmon chips for the 4-1/2 cups of mix-ins, about a cup and a half of each. I baked them up this morning and they came out so tasty. I've dubbed them PB & J oatmeal cookies. I really love those Jammy Bits, I'm just dissapointed that I used them all up in these cookies. I was hoping to get to use them in scones too. I guess I'll just have to buy some more.

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