These breakfast cookies are for all the times you wish you could eat cookies for breakfast and not feel bad about it (which, for me, is most of the time).
These cookies are made with wholesome ingredients like oats, almond butter, and seeds, and they’re not only vegan but also free of, gluten, soy, added oil, and refined sugars! Each cookie packs 5 grams of protein and 3g of fiber, so they also keep you full and energized.
Even better, they’re infinitely customizable so you can modify them to your heart’s content!
Watch: How to make amazing breakfast cookies
And for more delightful vegan breakfast ideas, check out my vegan breakfast recipe round-up! It’s chock-full of fun plant-based breakfast recipes from me and other vegan recipe developers.
Why you’ll love these breakfast cookies
Wholesome. These are cookies you can feel good about! They’re made with ingredients that are perfectly acceptable for breakfast, which means you can happily eat cookies for breakfast.
Deceptively delicious. Wholesome breakfast cookies might sound like they taste meh, but these are cookies you’ll actually want to eat.
Delightfully chewy. If you’re like most people, you like chewy cookies. These cookies are incredibly chewy with crunchy bites of seeds and even more chewy bites from the dried fruit.
Pantry-friendly and easy to customize. You likely already have all the ingredients in your pantry. You can also get creative and mix and match your favorite ingredients. Read more in the “how to customize” section!
For a sweet snack that’s a bit more indulgent, try these seriously good Vegan Banana Muffins!
Versatile. Not only can you eat them for breakfast, but they’re also a great post- or pre-workout snack. My athletic friend Joanne of The Korean Vegan (she runs marathons) said these cookies fueled her for a long run around Central Park. Oh, and of course, you can also eat them for dessert.
How to make vegan breakfast cookies
Gather your ingredients!
Prepare your flax egg. Whisk together the ground flaxseed meal and water and set aside for 15 minutes to gel up.
In a large bowl, together the dry ingredients: oats, coconut, salt, baking powder, baking soda.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the liquid ingredients until smooth and thick: almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla, and prepared flax eggs.
Pour the wet ingredients over the dry.
Use a silicone spatula to combine the ingredients until it resembles cookie dough.
Add desired mix-ins (chopped nuts or seeds and dried fruit or chocolate chips).
Add hemp seeds.
Stir to evenly incorporate the mix-ins.
Scoop about 3 tablespoons of dough onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets and lightly flatten. Bake at 350ºF for 18-20 minutes, until lightly golden on the bottom. Cool the pans on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies directly to the wire rack.
How to customize these cookies
Not a fan of coconut or allergic? Omit the shredded coconut and just add more oats. Personally, I think the coconut adds a lovely texture.
Likewise, if you don’t have hemp seeds, you can omit or add more shredded coconut. But you should really get some hemp seeds!
Allergic to almonds or don’t have almond butter? Use any nut butter you like, such as cashew butter or peanut butter (they will taste like peanut butter cookies). Just be sure to use a smooth, not crunchy, variety, as the nut butter is the replacement for oil in this recipe.
For the dried fruit mix-in, you could really use any variety you like. I have used raisins, currants, finely chopped apricots, finely chopped dates, and dried cranberries (use juice-sweetened cranberries to avoid refined sugar).
And if you’re not a fan of dried fruit at all, feel free to substitute with dairy-free chocolate chips. I love the chewiness that dried fruit brings, but the chocolate chip version makes these taste more like a classic cookie (SO good). The chocolate chip version is a favorite in our house.
For the seed and nut mix-in, pepitas, sunflower seeds, or any kind of nut works well. Just chop them up pretty good so you don’t get large pieces.
Some flavor variations that we tried are below. My favorites are anything that contains chocolate chips (no surprise!), dried blueberries, and dried cranberries.
- Mango Cashew: finely chop dried mango + raw unsalted cashews, chopped
- Chocolate Chip Almond: mini vegan chocolate chips + roasted almonds, chopped
- Cranberry Pecan: dried cranberries + pecans, chopped
- Blueberry Walnut: dried blueberries + walnuts, chopped
- Golden Macadamia: dried golden berries + macadamia nuts, chopped
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, use seeds instead of nuts for your mix-ins and sub the almond butter with tahini.
You’ll need to use a smooth, non-bitter variety and stir well. I love Seed + Mill and Soom Tahini (affiliate link) and the Whole Foods 365 brand is pretty decent.
Or you could try Sunbutter sunflower seed butter. It will likely tinge your cookies green (that’s what happens when you bake with sunflower seeds) but the taste will be great.
Yes, they freeze perfectly! And they take just 15ish minutes to defrost, so you can enjoy them really any time. After baking, allow the cookies to cool completely. Store them in a freezer-safe zip-top bag and label with the name and date. They should be good for about 3 months.
That’s fine! If salted, you can use a scant 1/2 teaspoon salt in the recipe.
If you love these breakfast cookies, be sure to tag me on Instagram with your recreations and please rate and review with your feedback below!
Breakfast Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed meal
- 2 cups (190g) rolled oats (certified gluten-free, as needed)
- Heaping 1/2 cup (50g) unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3/4 cup (190g) smooth, creamy variety of almond butter (can sub cashew butter) (see Note 1)
- 1/2 cup (160g) pure maple syrup
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Mix-Ins
- 1/2 cup (~75g) dried fruit (or mini vegan chocolate chips) such as cranberries, currants, blueberries (see Note 2)
- 1/2 cup (70g) pepitas, sunflower seeds, or nuts of choice chopped (see Note 3)
- 1/3 cup (48g) hemp seeds (also called hemp hearts)
Instructions
- Prepare the flax eggs. Combine the ground flaxseed meal with 5 tablespoons water. Stir and let sit for 10-15 minutes to gel together.
- Arrange two racks in the top third and bottom third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350ºF/175ºC. Line two large sheet pans with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: oats, coconut, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the wet ingredients: almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla, and prepared flax eggs. Whisk until smooth and thick.
- Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients, using a silicone spatula to mix everything until the mixture resembles a cookie dough. Fold in your desired mix-ins (dried fruit, chopped nuts/seeds, and hemp seeds) using the spatula.If the dough is too sticky to handle, refrigerate it for 10-15 minutes to firm up slightly.
- Use an ice cream scoop or large spoon to scoop a heaping 2 tablespoons or scant 3 tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 1/2 inch apart, 12 cookies per sheet pan (they don't really spread).I have a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop and do a big heaping scoop of that. It's 35g to 40g of dough per cookie. Alternatively, measure the dough out with a spoon and shape into a round using your hands. Lightly flatten the top of each cookie with your hands.
- Bake the cookies for 18-20 minutes. After 5 minutes, use a spatula to carefully transfer them to a cooling rack. Store leftover cookies in an airtight container on the counter for 5 to 7 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Notes
Can I sub egg for the flax? I realize it then makes the recipe non vegan but I don’t have flax on hand at the moment and would love to try these! Thank you 🙏
Hi Jessica, we’re vegan and don’t cook with eggs, so I’m afraid we cannot advise you about whether it will work in this recipe. Sorry!
I have made these with two eggs instead of the flax and they come out great!
These are delicious! i used dried blueberries, pepitas and hemp seed.
Thanks for sharing, Nourr! So happy to hear you enjoyed them.
Delicious and easily adaptable recipe! I used sunflower butter and love the combination of walnuts and dried blueberries. Another Nisha recipe for the win!!
Lovely to hear you enjoyed the cookies, Natasha!
I love these cookies not only on breakfast but as dessert and snack as well. Made mine with raisins and pumpkin seeds, without coconut & hemp. Very filling, crunchy and not too sweet.
Thanks for the lovely feedback, Meiji!
These are great! I’ve made something similar in the past using peanut butter. I have to say they are way better with almond butter. I most certainly will make these again and again.
Lovely, Kameco! Thanks for the awesome review!
Ooh girl these are GOOD! I subbed natural, unsalted peanut butter for the almond butter and they turned out great! These are a great way to start your day, or a perfect little bump for a midday slump.
We’re so glad you think so, Abby! Thanks for sharing your experience :)
I made several substitutions. I didn’t have shredded coconut so I sub for oat flour. Didn’t have hemp hearts used chia seeds. My mix ins were chia seeds, sunflower seed and vegan chocolate chips. These came out so chewy but tasty. I love cookies!! Thank you for the recipe Nisha
Thanks for sharing, Nessa! We’re happy you enjoyed the cookies :)
What can I add if I omit coconut? More oats?
Hi Christina, yes more oats work!
I made Chocolate chip and cranberry and chocolate chip and walnuts,both delicious. They will not last long in our house.
Thanks for sharing John, so lovely to hear you enjoyed the cookies!
Who doesn’t love cookies for breakfast! They are delicious. Looking forward to trying our other combinations
Agreed, Jean! We hope you love the other combos :)
The best part about vegan baking is eating the dough and licking the spoon guilt free! These cookies are delicious baked or unbaked.
Yes, Emily! We love doing that too! Thanks for the comment :)
Yum!
The unsweetened coconut gave the cookies added texture without alerting my husband’s “no-coconut shards” alarm!
Add-ons: walnuts, hemp seeds and vegan 70% dark chocolate chips
Woohoo! Thank you for sharing your experience with us, Beth!
Love these!
We made ours with sultanas.
Easy and quick to make, very tasty and pack full of protein 🙌
Thanks for the lovely feedback, Sacha!
this is my kind of breakfast! thanks for posting the recipe
Yay, we’re happy to hear it Jacquie! You’re welcome and enjoy!
These cookies may not last until breakfast. Chewy and delicious!
I used peanut butter because that’s what I had on hand. I reduced the maple syrup as I do not like foods that are too sweet. These were perfect for my tastes. Next time I will portion the dough for separate add-ins although my walnuts, dried cranraisins and hemp hearts were great together. Must say, it was my first time making a flax egg.
We’re so glad you loved the cookies, Joan! Thanks for sharing your experience!
These cookies are great! I’m having trouble keeping my 13 year old grandson out of them.
Woohoo, thanks for sharing Marjorie!
Hi Nisha,
Cookies are in the oven – the batter is Delicious. I used a 3 TBSP scoop but I only came up with 15 cookies. It seems I should have had 24. Any suggestions as to what I may have done incorrectly? Did I simply use too large a scoop?
Thank you so much for all your delicious recipes. They never disappoint!
Great, Cyd! And yes the large scoop seems like the most likely scenario! You’re welcome for the recipes, thanks for trying them :)
Really good! I added chocolate chips and it turned out great! Definitely recommend! Thanks Nisha!
Thanks for the lovely feedback, Simran!
If one were to substitute aquafaba for the flax eggs, what would be the appropriate amount?
Hi Penny, 6 tablespoons seems like the correct amount according to our research. If you try it, please let us know how that goes!
Really good, sweet but not too sweet, love the combination of oats and coconut. Will try substitutions for the nut butter, like apple sauce and pumpkin puree.
We’re happy you loved the breakfast cookies, Barbara!