Cherry Pecan Breakfast Cookies

We eat oatmeal with fresh fruit for breakfast almost every day during the week because Charlie loves it (and we do too), but I wanted to try something a little different. These cookies worked out perfectly because not only do they have the oatmeal that Charlie loves, but they are also packed with nutrients, are dairy free and are an easy item to throw in a container for Ted to grab on his way out the door. They would also make a good substitute for a granola bar or other pre-packaged snack. The apple sauce in this recipe is a replacement for oil or butter that is used in traditional cookie recipes, so they are low in fat, and only contain the natural sugars from the dried cherries, apple sauce and honey. The batter for these cookies took me 5 minutes to stir together, and then a half hour later, they were ready to eat!

Cherry Pecan Breakfast Cookies

Makes ~2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

2 bananas

1 cup all natural applesauce

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

1 tsp kosher salt

2 Tbsp honey

2 tsp natural vanilla extract

1 cup dried cherries

1/2 cup pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Place bananas in large mixing bowl and mash with a fork. Stir in remaining ingredients

3. Drop about 2 Tbsp of batter onto prepared baking sheets for each cookie, spacing them about 1 inch apart. Flatten cookies and bake 35 minutes, or until golden brown.

4. Let cookies cool on pans for 10 minutes and enjoy!

(Recipe adapted from August 2013 issue of Taste for Life magazine)

What are the nutritional benefits of these cookies? Bananas are an excellent source of potassium and vitamin C, and contain a prebiotic substance called fructooligosaccharide which ferments in the digestive tract, encouraging the growth of probiotics, and enhancing the absorption of calcium in the body. Applesauce provides vitamin C. Oats are an excellent source of fiber and iron. Cherries are packed with antioxidants and fiber. Pecans are an excellent source of monounsaturated fatty acids and phenolic antioxidants, vitamin E, B vitamins and minerals manganese, potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc and selenium.