Food

Nut Butter Quinoa Cookies

When the kids are out of school, I loosen up the reins a bit on most everything. Their schedule isn’t as strict, with later-than-normal nights and, yes, I allow them a little more sweet treats. Now that school is back in full swing, we are back to a tighter schedule, which in fact is just good for everyone–it’s very predictable and healthier for us all!

But seeing that the kids got so used to having a scoop of ice cream, ice pops , and sorbets at their leisure they keep asking for it. Wonder why? I believe that everything should be done in moderation. I’m not opposed to my kids eating sweets, but seeing that we are home and back into our routine, I wanted to find a happy medium where they can still enjoy their sweet treat but ones that I can feel better about in terms of the ingredients.

This cookie is a nut butter base so it’s packed with protein and the next star ingredient is quinoa. So what is quinoa, some of you may wonder? It’s a plant-based non-gluten protein. Although we eat it like a grain, in fact it’s not—it’s a seed. It’s a complete protein, which means it contains all nine of the essential amino acids. In a nutshell, it’s good for you. The other ingredient is flax seed meal, which is low in carbs but high in nutrients and fiber.

They can still enjoy their sweet treat but ones that I can feel better about in terms of the ingredients...

I try to avoid refined cane sugar whenever I can. What’s the alternative? Coconut palm sugar. I love coconut sugar because it has a lower glycemic index than regular sugar. It might not make your cookies as sweet (which I don’t mind) but it won’t spike your blood sugar level and with kids around, that’s a plus, right?

Here’s what you’ll need to bake these tasty treats:

Nut Butter Quinoa Cookies
1 cup

nut butter of your choice. Almond, cashew, peanut. I went with peanut because it was right in front of me.

1 Tbsp

flaxseed meal & 3 tbsp of water

3/4 cup

coconut palm sugar

1/4 cup

cooked quinoa 

1/2 tsp

vanilla extract

1/2 tsp

baking soda

1/2 tsp

sea salt (I used Himalayan salt)

1/4 cup

semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line your baking sheet with parchment paper and set to the side.

In large mixing bowl, whisk together flaxseed meal and water. Set aside to gel for 5 minutes.

To the same large mixing bowl, add the remaining ingredients, except the chocolate chips. With a rubber spatula mix together until it forms a dough. Fold in your chocolate chips.

Scoop about 1 – 2 tablespoons of dough onto the cookie sheet. Using wet hands, gently flatten the cookies.

Bake for 12 – 15 minutes until the cookies are golden brown. Remove and let cool on the pan for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

What I love about these cookies is that they are soft. I’m all about a soft cookie . The kids also love getting involved with mixing and making the dough balls. Evelyn wasn’t “feeling” getting her hands “dirty and sticky” as you can tell by the picture of her above. Lol

Enjoy!!!

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