Breakfast of Champions

I struggle with what I should eat for breakfast. Well, no. I don't struggle with what I should eat - I know what would be a good choice. Most times, I just have no desire to cook it or create it or even, really, eat it. Breakfast is just not my strong suit.

I've also, weirdly, just about stopped drinking coffee in the morning. It's odd, but it no longer appeals to me. I make a cup of iced coffee - a 16 ounce cup - and most days I have 8 ounces left for the next day.

When I went to the fancier grocery this week - I love to buy my fruits and vegetables there, as they are much more fresh and tend to last a bit longer - I had a couple of kids with me. They LOVE to go to that store, as it's full of samples. This day was no different. Strawberries, canteloupe, taco dip with tortilla chips, lunch meat, bread, cheese, rotisserie chicken and cheese danish - they literally made lunch of it.

And I'm a-ok with that. 

While they were noshing away, I took some time to look through the bakery section. I was really looking for something that would appeal to me for breakfast and would be healthy. I passed by the cakes and breads, because I knew that they a) weren't healthy and b) were something I could make for myself. I briefly debated the high protein granola clusters but, again, I like my own recipe best.

Then I saw breakfast cookies. And I've gotta admit - the concept drew me.

But the bag, labeled Carrot Breakfast Cookies, contained 10 cookies and was $6. I literally could not pay that much money for cookies. I scrutinized the ingredients and decided to come home and look for my own recipe.

Mah belly is delighted that I did so. I found a recipe that seemed similar, made a few changes, and came up with a recipe that was so, so good that I've eaten half of the recipe in just about 24 hours. I would completely recommend making these and you can bet I will not forget to do so again and again. 

Ugly but yummy. And Healthy.

Carrot Oatmeal Fruit Breakfast Cookies

with my modifications in italics

In a large bowl, mix 2 large carrots, shredded, 1/2 -1 cup sliced almonds, 2 apples (diced). I added a bunch of chopped dates, craisins and golden raisins. All together about 2 cups total. It was a LARGE amount of fruit.

Cream 1 stick of butter and 3/4 cup brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add in 2 eggs, scrape bowl well and mix until thoroughly incorporated. Add in 1 t vanilla and 1/4 cup applesauce (I used Pomegranate Plus, the no sugar stuff). Add in1 tsp baking powder, 1/4 t baking soda, 1 cup flour and 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour. (I used 2 cups regular flour, and it seemed too dry at the end so I added in almost another cup. I think next time I'll do half and half whole wheat - I've never seen whole wheat pastry flour anywhere.) Turn off mixer and by hand, stir in fruit and veggie mixture and 1 cup oats. If it's still wet - and mine was - add more oats.

Chill for one hour.

Using wet hands, form into balls of dough and flatten. Bake at 350 15-20 minutes until brown and not doughy. I have no idea how long I baked each pan, but it was a bit longer - I didn't want them doughy at all. Maybe 22 minutes.

Cool on a cooling rack and try not to eat the entire pan in one day.

Comments

[Jodie]

They look delicious and two of my three kids are opposed to breakfast. Maybe these might help. But, because I am really, really lazy today and don't want to figure it out... Do you happen to know about how many calories are in a cookie?

[amie]

I am going to try this recipe- looks yummy. I hate making breakfast, usually I have a luna bar & an iced tea. I have to make sure I make the pitcher of tea before I go to bed or I will do without in am. Just not a morning girl.

[Carmen Staicer]

I have no idea. The ones from the store said 200 per cookie, and the recipe I used said the same, but I added extra fruit and more oats, so I dont know.

Im sorry!

Carmen

[mm]

They look yummy. But I don't like nuts. Do you think the recipe would go amuck if I omitted them? I wonder about the calories in these too, but I am definitely sure they would be a better choice than the muffin I usually pick up with my tea in the mornings!

[KG]

Oh I love your recipe ideas... something different which we desperately need around here!

[Jennifer W.]

oh, I like the look of these! I'm not a morning person at all and need something I can grab for my commute. I'm going to try them!

[coach suitcase]

These are the days in which it takes two salaries for each home,but divorces increase; these are times of finer houses,but more broken homes; why?

[Pat]

Re whole wheat pastry flour:

I used to do a lot of baking with whole wheat flour; these are some facts that I have amassed over the years.

1. You can make your own from scratch
http://www.ehow.com/how_5554504_make-whole-wheat-pastry-flour.html

2. If you see "soft" whole wheat flour, that is the same thing as whole wheat pastry flour. If you see "graham" flour, that is also the same as whole wheat pastry flour.

3. Combine 1/2 whole wheat flour and 1/2 cake flour (instead of all-purpose flour)

4. Our local Whole Foods store sells a house brand of whole wheat pastry flour. Bob's Red Mill and King Arthur also make some.

[amanda]

Hi Carmen, these look yummy. I usually make homemade granola or power bars for breakfast, but this looks like a nice addition to my rotation. One question, do you think that I could sub something (coconut oil? smart balance?) for the butter? I try to avoid butter and ususally substitute extra light olive oil since my husband's cholesterol was borderline at his last visit, but I don't think that olive oil would work here.

[Brenda]

Your cookies sound yummy, but I wonder how this recipe compares. Instead of 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, it uses 1/4 C canola oil.

http://carrotsncake.com/2010/07/boating.html

(Scroll down to the cookie recipe.)

[Brandy]

If there is a choice between cereal or a cookie for breakfast I will take the bad choice. BUT, you've made it a good choice. Normally I'm good and have a bowl of cereal, wish I'd seen this first because I made blonde brownies for the kids yesterday and ended up grabbing one for breakfast this morning because we were in a rush.

[elz]

Looks like a good recipe. I am a HUGE breakfast eater, as are my kids. If I told them they could have cookies for breakfast, they'd be delighted!

[Patti]

Sounds yummy, I will definitely try it. My kids love breakfast bars. If you take out the nuts you could add raw sunflower seeds and pepitas (pumpkin seeds). It would keep the crunchiness but take away nut issues.

[Paige]

That sounds really good. I've got houseguests right now, and the hardest thing for me is making breakfast every day. I would so much rather just let everyone get their own cereal, but I'm trying to be a good "host mom". So, I'm going to try these.

Thanks for continually sharing.

[UKCraftySal]

These sound great! A quick question from England to check I have your abbreviations right: I get that "tsp" is teaspoon, but is "t" tablespoon?

[LizP]

Those look delicious! What size dough ball do you make for each cookie?

[MamaCas]

Breakfast is just about the ONLY meal I get right every day. 1 egg and 1 slice of cheese on a piece of toast. This has been my breakfast for many years. Yes, I am a creature of habit.