Kids and adults alike will devour these healthy, protein-packed pumpkin oatmeal breakfast cookies – ideal for busy mornings on-the-go!
When I first started dating my husband, he had recently graduated from college and was just starting his IT career in the Boston suburbs. He was still living in his parents basement and his repertoire of cooking was limited to microwaving instant oatmeal packets and reheating cans of soup. Since his job involved a lot of travel, he basically lived out of his tan Toyota Corolla.
At the time, I was car-less and living in downtown Boston finishing up my hospitality degree at BU. Here we are in February 2002 in Cancun with a group of 14 friends. We were fat, happy and in love.
The fact that I had a boyfriend with an automobile who could drive me to magical places like the grocery store, Costco and Target in the dead of winter was about the sexiest thing alive. Not so sexy? The hundreds of chewy oatmeal raisin breakfast cookie wrappers I had to dig through to get to my seat.
Fast forward 13 years and he still reminisces of his days fueled by breakfast cookies but if you’ve ever looked at the wrapped of one of these babies, there is not much more than sugar, white flour and salt in the ingredients list. Delicious? Yes. A good source of lasting energy? Negative.
Liz to the rescue. In honor of fall and my mission to eat allofthepumpkin, I decided to create a pumpkin-packed version of my husband’s favorite oatmeal breakfast cookie.
Packed with walnuts, chia, flax seeds and sweetened with pure maple syrup, these babies are fall perfection in every bite. Make up a big batch on a Sunday and grab them throughout the week for a quick breakfast on-the-go or a post-gym snack attack.
No forks required.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Can I substitute the flaxseed meal? I don’t have any in my pantry.
Yes! Substitute with flour
How long do these cookies keep for?
Keep them in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Pumpkin Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups oats gluten free or old fashioned
- 1/2 cup flax seed meal
- 1/4 cup chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup pure pumpkin
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or spray with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (oats through salt) and set aside.
- In another medium bowl, whisk together wet ingredients (eggs through vanilla) and slowly stir into the dry ingredients.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to make sure everything is evenly incorporated then stir in the chopped walnuts.
- Drop by tablespoons or a large cookie scoop two inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes then let cook completely on a cooling rack before serving.
Recipe Notes:
Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
These look yummy – is there anything I can sub for the flaxseed?
Flour works!
These look amazing! Can’t wait to try them. Although in the UK, unless it’s a raw pumpkin, the only other pumpkin I can find is canned pumpkin from an American store, I know it says pure pumpkin in the recipe but British people don’t seem to eat a lot of pumpkin so want to make sure I use the right thing! Thanks!
Yes canned pumpkin = pure pumpkin so just use any sort of cooked pumpkin. :)
Made them.. And they are impossible to cook through. Wet and squishy, bland, and an expensive recipe at that. I made a double batch and can’t figure out how to make it better.. Absolutely would not make again.
Hi Jessica, I am so sorry these didn’t turn out for you! We have made them several times in recent weeks and they are always a huge hit with my boys so I’d love to help brainstorm where things went wrong for you!! Did you make any substitutions or swaps from the original recipe at all? That is often the culprit so I have to ask before we continue brainstorming! Again Im so sorry!
Are these supposed to be a bit squishy in the middle?
Yes a little bit!
Was looking for a healthy pumpkin/oat combo for my son’s breakfasts and came across this beauty on pinterest. Thank you!!!
I REALLY wanted to love these… enough so that I ate several to be sure, but they are just not very good. :-( We certainly don’t like our food to be overly sweet, & like the natural sweeteners best, but despite having used the recommended amount of maple syrup (Organic from Trader Joes), they are so *not* sweet they just don’t taste appealing at all. I assumed I forgot some key ingredient, but on double checking the recipe, I don’t see the solution. Now to be fair, I DID add 2 TB Brewer’s yeast to make these a lactation cookie, but for all other recipes I’ve done so with, this worked as a fine addition to the intended recipe. Perhaps the addition of chocolate chips as a pp wrote would do the trick, but I was trying to be “good” & make a breakfast version I could eat guilt free. Also, I was trying to give these a 2 star, but can’t uncheck the 5 star for some reason?!??
Hi There! First of all, I’m so sorry these cookies didn’t live up to your expectations! Of course, everyone has a different “sweetness” threshold so I completely understand they were not sweet enough for your taste. We make these cookies all the time and all of my friends and family love them. I also have readers writing to me about these all the time so I’m bummed they weren’t a hit for you! That said, any time you make a modification to a recipe (such as adding two tablespoons of Brewer’s Yeast), you have to expect that the cookie result will not be the same as the original recipe. Brewer’s yeast is a strong flavor with no added sweetness so it doesn’t surprise me that it threw off the end taste. Regardless, I am sorry that you didn’t enjoy these and certainly understand if you prefer a sweeter cookie!
As for the rating, I’m not sure why it won’t let you change it from 5 star? It’s a plugin that I use and not one that I can control but I will try and see if there’s a glitch with it. I promise it’s not something I’ve done – hahaha!! :)
I have made this recipe once before and enjoyed it. I made it a second time today and decided to add two overripe bananas I had on hand. Good addition!
What a great idea!!
Just made these today and am wondering if they need to be refrigerated – there’s just me to eat them so they will probably last a week or more.
Thanks, Cindy
I would, yes :) Enjoy!
It was good. My son liked them. I’d use less clove next time. Also, I only had one egg. And I subbed corn syrup over the maple because mine had mold on it. Oh, and I used soy milk and I was out of chia so put in hemp powder. Nice texture. We will try this again.
I’m so glad you were able to make it work!
this is definitely the way to start a fall day! you can’t go wrong eating “cookies” for breakfast.
Have I told you how awesome you are? ;) I love these pumpkin oatmeal cookies. Looks like a healthy treat to me… except for knowing me, I’d probably sneak in a few chocolate chips. xo
I miss your face!!! xoxo
Healthy cookies? Sounds good to me! Now’s the perfect time to try the recipe, pumpkin flavored anything is just that much better in the fall.
Let me know if you try these Ellen!
You had me at cookies for breakfast! This is definitely an upgrade from the packaged ones – lucky man!
So excited to meet you this week Sarah!!
These look so delicious. I love anything with pumpkin. I bet my kids would eat these right up! Thanks for sharing!!
You must make these Sommer!! So good and easy!
Hi Liz!! It’s your fan from Ohio!! Made these last night because 1. #pumpkineverything, 2. I was looking for something similar to a Lara bar (LOVE Lara bars, don’t love the price!!). I was too tired to scoop cookies, so I made them in a 9×9 bar pan and they turned out wonderfully!!! Thank you for another good recipe for my snack arsenal!!
Oh what a great idea to put them in a pan!!! Thanks so much for letting me know!
I don’t think I’ve ever seen the.boy eat a breakfast cookie, but I don’t doubt that he’d down a batch of these in no time. I’m sure I would also! Pumpkin FTW!
What a great breakfast option!
I love a good breakfast cookie! Healthy and delicious!
Me too friend!! Thank you!
These look so delicious!!! Officially added to my to-make list! Have a great weekend, Liz!
Thank you so much Chelsey!
Cookies for breakfast are the best!
I want these right now! So yummy!
I am vegan and gluten free and cannot eat oats (even Gluten free oats)
Do you have a suggestion as to how to substitute oats in this recipe and your granola bar recipes, please?
Hi Bell, I’m not sure what else to recommend – oats are my go-to gluten free option. So sorry I’m not of much help but I just can’t recommend anything I haven’t tested in my own kitchen. So sorry!
Hi Liz, you know that oats aren’t gluten free right? You have to buy special (and expensive!) de-glutenised oats. Not an issue if your not allergic to gluten but for celiacs this is misleading. They look very tastey though!
Hi Char – Yes that’s correct. I will make a note in case others don’t realize that though!! Great point.
I’m so excited about these cookies – they look scrumptious and healthy! P.S. I adore going to Costco and Target. :)
You and me both!! Why is it so magical?
Love the idea of pumpkin cookies for breakfast – so healthy and full of goodness!
Thanks Jeanette!
I love this recipe! So fun!
These look crazy healthy and delicious! I love that they are gluten free
These look divine! I can’t wait to whip up a batch this weekend!
I hope you love them!
I love a good throwback picture!!! :) These breakfast cookies sound wonderful, love how you packed them with so many healthy ingredients. Gotta make these!
hahaha it’s a throw back alright!! :)
Looks delish, Liz. I could eat several of these cookies right now! :)
I love seeing this old picture! You are clearly a superhero, and breakfast cookies are your secret weapon.
I don’t think Rich had seen the photo yet…can’t tell if he will laugh or kill me. ;) So great seeing you this week!!
Aw you two have come a long way! And that picture from your trip is adorable:-)
I should really make a batch of these and freeze them, they would be the perfect post-baby breakfast or snack!
Adorable or ridiculous? I’m not sure ;)