These delicious gingerbread quinoa breakfast cookies might taste like a dessert, but they're packed with healthy ingredients. Vegan & gluten-free too!

These AMAZING Gingerbread Quinoa Breakfast cookies have almond butter, molasses and warm spices and they're actually HEALTHY | gluten-free + vegan

As the year is winding down, I was planning to take part of this post to reflect on the year and share where we're headed, but a) I think these quinoa breakfast cookies deserve the spotlight and b) I think the reflections post also should be a standalone piece. Soo….stay tuned for that, but for now, let's dive into the final recipe in our quinoa breakfast cookie series.

Let's talk cookies. These gingerbread quinoa breakfast cookies are the 12th flavor in 2016 and the 15th flavor overall. Am I insane to have created 15 different quinoa breakfast cookies? I don't think so! It seems that you all have loved getting a new flavor each month, just as much as I have had

These gingerbread quinoa breakfast cookies are the 12th flavor in 2016 and the 15th flavor overall. Am I insane to have created 15 different quinoa breakfast cookies? I don't think so! It seems that you all have loved getting a new flavor each month, just as much as I have had creating them for you.

Honestly, I've been thinking about which cookies have been my favorite so far and it's pretty hard to choose. I think my number one is certainly still the Chunky Monkey Quinoa Breakfast Cookies (which were the first flavor of 2016), and then for second place, it's got to be a tie between the Lemon Poppy Seed Quinoa Breakfast Cookies and the Chocolate Peanut Butter Quinoa Breakfast Cookies.

After all, you know how much of a sucker I am for putting chocolate in my breakfast!

But today it's also about celebrating one of the holiday season's BEST flavors: gingerbread.

I always used to think that what made gingerbread gingerbready was molasses, but after testing these a few times, I realized it was more about the spice ratio than anything else. We're using the same combination you would find in a pumpkin spice blend, but swapping the amounts, going heavy with ginger and light with the cinnamon.

Which, I mean, totally makes sense. More ginger = gingerbread. (duh, Alyssa)

You guys know the drill here…we're using our standard quinoa breakfast cookie base and then tweaking to make it a new flavor. So let's go over what we've got, but I'll also going to give you some ideas for swapping if the ingredients inside don't work for you:

Vegan Egg: I made my standard flax egg, but you could also use a chia egg or a regular egg
Fruit Puree: I went with banana, but you could easily use pumpkin or applesauce in its place
Nut Butter: I chose almond butter, but I would also suggest cashew butter or sun butter
Sweetener: I did half maple syrup and half molasses, but you could certainly do a different ratio (like 3 tablespoons syrup to 1 tablespoon molasses)
Rolled Oats: I really don't think there's a replacement here, sorry! 🙂
Quinoa Flakes: I know quinoa flakes can be tricky to find, so if you don't have those on hand, you can use quick cooking oats instead (make sure they're quick cooking/instant though!)

And finally, the spices: ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice!

But get this you guys: these cookies totally double as an awesome dessert!

I know you're always looking for healthy dessert ideas, and since we're smack dab in the middle of holiday cookie season, these gingerbread cookies are the perfect balance between sweet and decadent and nutritious. Plus, we put a little coconut butter frosting on top to make them extra festive!

They taste like a cross between molasses and oatmeal cookies, but it's honestly the frosting that takes them over the edge.

I've made this frosting before when I drizzled it on top of my pumpkin spice truffles, but this time I used a teeny bit less milk so it was thicker and creamier.

This frosting dairy-free and vegan, but it also only uses a few simple ingredients AND is lightly sweetened with maple syrup. It's pretty much the best frosting ever and I plan to use it on all my holiday cookies.

Also, I just thought of this: it would be SO good drizzled on top of the vegan gingerbread loaf I made last week. Yes, that's 100% happening.

So that does it, friends. 12 months of quinoa breakfast cookies! Can you believe it? I can't!

I'm planning to put all the recipes into an ebook for you, which I'll send out to my email newsletter subscribers in a few weeks. If you aren't on the email list yet, click here to sign up so you can get a copy for free.

Excited to share what's coming in 2017!

xo Alyssa

More Breakfast Cookie Recipes to try:

Prep: 5

Cook: 15

Total: 20

Ingredients

1 flax egg 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal + 3 tablespoons water
½ cup cashew butter or sunflower seed butter*
2 tablespoon pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons molasses
1 medium banana mashed
½ cup rolled oats
½ cup quinoa flakes
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon salt
for the frosting:
¼ cup coconut butter
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon coconut oil
3 - 4 tablespoons almond milk

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Whisk together the flaxseed meal and water, and set aside.
Beat together cashew butter, syrup, molasses and banana in a large bowl. Add flax egg and mix to combine.
Pour in oats, quinoa flakes, baking powder, spices and salt and stir together.
Drop 2 tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheet and repeat until no dough remains.
Bake cookies on center rack for 16 - 18 minutes until edges are golden brown. Remove and let cool on the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
While the cookies are baking, prepare the frosting by melting together the coconut butter and coconut oil. Once smooth, whisk in maple syrup, followed by almond milk one tablespoon at a time. Whisk completely between each addition of milk to ensure the mixture doesn't get too runny.
Once the cookies are completely cool, spread with frosting. Sprinkle with shredded coconut if desired!
Enjoy immediately or store in the fridge and remove 5 - 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition

cuisine: American

course: Breakfast, Snack

Gingerbread Quinoa Breakfast Cookies

More Breakfast Cookie Recipes to try: