Pumpkin Banana Breakfast Cookies

Breakfast in the Messy House often consists of my teenager grabbing something to eat on the run before heading off to school. I'm a chronic breakfast skipper myself, I settle down in front of the computer with a cup of coffee when I get back from school drop-off and work straight on through to lunch. I needed something that I could bake that would satisfy our needs, so we could all have healthier breakfast habits.

These Pumpkin Banana Breakfast cookies fit the bill! They are tasty, portable, and filled with whole grains and nutritious ingredients. These breakfast cookies are an excellent choice for a homemade treat anytime of the day.  These cookies are not too sweet, and their texture is chewy and almost muffin-like, gives them enough substance to feel filled up after one or two.

These cookies are filled with whole food ingredients like rolled oats and whole wheat flour. Pumpkin puree and ripe bananas give these cookies their distinctive banana bread flavor while keeping them extremely moist. These cookies only weigh in at 106 calories a piece (4g fat, 3g protein, and 7g sugar)*, which is about half of the calories of slice of my pumpkin banana bread (243 calories, 9g fat, 4g protein, 19g sugar) so you can choose to have more than one if you are feeling rebellious!

*calculated using MyFitnessPal Recipe Nutrition Calculator.

These cookies are winners for everyone in my house! I make sure to put the cookie tin on the kitchen table before bed so we can all remember to grab one or two before running out the door in the morning. Even my pickiest who usually prefers frozen waffles to anything else loves these cookies (...maybe it's the fact that he gets to eat cookies for BREAKFAST!).

 

Pumpkin Banana Breakfast Cookies

Makes 20 cookies (get printable recipe)
 

Ingredients

• ¼ c brown sugar
• ¼ c molasses
• 4 Tbsp (½ stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• ⅓ c pumpkin puree
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• 1 ½ c old-fashioned oats
• 1 c whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt

 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375° F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Cream butter, sugar, and molasses together until fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time until combined.
3. Stir in mashed bananas and pumpkin puree.
4. Combine flour, spices, salt, and leavenings. Add to wet ingredients.
5. Fold in oats. Stir until just combined.
6. Using a medium-sized cookie disher (or 2 spoons), drop dough onto baking sheets leaving 2 inches between cookie.
7. Bake for 15-17 minutes, rotating halfway through.
8. Let cool for 10 minutes on cookie sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.

What are some of your favorite grab-n-go breakfast options?