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You know what one of my greatest pleasures in life is? It’s waking up on a holiday morning and eating something dessert-y, something sort of “naughty” for breakfast with a warm mug of tea while snuggling with my family. There is almost nothing else in this world that brings me as much happiness and simple joy.
Having dessert for breakfast isn’t all that easy on AIP though. I want that same enjoyment and fun of eating a treat first thing to get into the holiday mood, to mark the day as special and separate from other days, but I’m also just not going to start my holiday with cheesecake or a pastry guaranteed to make me feel like dirt an hour later. My priorities are different now!
That’s how I came up with this Holiday Breakfast Cookie. It has all the traditional holiday flavors, it’s crumbly outside and chewy inside, and it gives just the right amount of pleasure without overdoing it and turning my special moment into a holiday ruined. Bake some for Santa this year and steal one with your mug of tea before the kids wake up!
- 1½ cups cassava flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon gelatin
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- ¼ cup coconut palm sugar
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¾ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup dried cranberries or raisins
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and gelatin in medium bowl.
- Beat oil, sugar and maple syrup in large bowl with electric mixer on until well blended. Add pumpkin and vanilla extract. Mix on low until combined.
- Stir in flour mixture. Fold in cranberries (or raisins).
- Use approximately 1-2 tablespoon-sized scoops to place dough onto baking sheet, gently pressing down on each.
- Bake for 9 minutes, then begin checking every 2 minutes until they reach desired firmness (they will get firmer as they cool, so do not over bake).
37 comments
Hi Angie!!
Quick question: I tried this recipe yesterday with my kiddos. However, the “batter” was more like a “crumble.” I ended up adding in additional pumpkin, maple and melted coconut oil to get closer to a cookie batter. They still tasted great!! But I was wondering if there was a typo in the recipe? Should I have used melted coconut oil instead of solidified?? I want to try again!! Thanks! Jen
Hi Jen! Glad they worked out. There isn’t a typo, but I have found that these cookies can be really sensitive to humidity (they turn out a lot different for me when it’s dry in my house from running the heat, for instance). Thanks for telling us how you were able to troubleshoot!
Instead of using parchment paper, could silicone liners be used safely?
Katie-
I think some folks do use them and from my perspective they are fine.
I am out of cassava flour (I used it all up on this recipe over the holidays) 🙂 What could I substitute with and would these turn out?
Marie, you can experiment w/ other flours, but honestly I don’t know. I have only used this recipe w/ cassava flour, because I know it works consistently.
This recipe turned out well for me. I encountered the same issue with the dough resulting in crumbles. I added about 1 additional tablespoon of coconut oil and added about 1/2 cup of water to turn it into a dough. I’m in Florida in the summer so humidity can’t be the problem!
The flavor is good. Next time I might add more cranberries because I didn’t find these cookies to be very sweet but they are perfect when you get a cranberry in the bite.
I haven’t yet ordered the Great Plains gelatin. Woukd Knox gelatin work for the time being? I plan to order it but want to make these now. Thanks!
Carrie, you could use Knox. I use the other because I think it is a higher quality product, but I understand that it can be expensive to purchase.
I noticed you have gelatin in both your cookie recipes–is it really necessary or just a healthy additive? It’s so expensive, what else can you use the gelatin for? And I’m curious about your answer to the question above about using plain knox gelatin too. Thanks so much!
Laura-
It is acting an egg replacement. The gelatin, along w/ the other sources of moisture in these recipes, helps the cookie set as it cools. There are other common foods that are used as egg replacers, but they change the consistency & overall recipe dramatically (like applesauce or mashed banana).
Hi, Angie. Can I double the maple syrup and leave out the coconut palm sugar?
Carolyn-
You can try, but I think your cookies will lose consistency, because of the liquid. You might have to increase the dry ingredients to compensate. Let me know if you have success!
I tried the recipe and the taste was delicious, just the right amount of sweetens to satisfy my snack craving. However, the dough was very crumbly and the cookies fell apart. After baking they looked more like granola bits than cookies. I followed the recipe as written, any suggestions?
I just made these and I used tapioca starch instead of cassava flour, as it’s much cheaper. They taste great, but they have a gummy texture. Are they supposed to be this way?
Tom-
Tapioca & cassava are from the same plant, but do not act the same way. Tapioca helps things “thicken” which is why you got the gummy texture. I hope you’ll give it another try w/ cassava.
IS TIGERNUT FLOUR PART OF AIP DIET?
Hi Lidia,
Yes, tigernut flour is allowed in the elimination phase as it is not actually from a nut, it is from a tuber. Hope it helps!
could i use macadamia nut oil instead of coconut?
These are great cookies but very sweet to me. Would they be ok to eat for breakfast on their own? I think that they for more into the desert category and should be eaten sparsley.
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I’ll have to give this recipe a try – it looks similar to a recipe that I loved, but that is no longer on the internet (how is this even possible?). The writer of “Maveric Kitchen” posted a recipe for lemon cranberry cassava breakfast cookies, but her website is gone now, and I never printed a copy of it. I’m sad because they were delicious.
Does anyone out there either have a copy or know the author of the Maveric Kitchen so I could request it?
What can I use instead of gelatin? And would monkfruit work rather than coconut palm sugar?
Julieann-
I’ve only worked on these cookies w/ gelatin, so you’ll have to experiment w/ other types of egg substitutes to find one you can use instead. Let me know how that goes! As to monkfruit, that might work, but it is not a recommended sugar substitute during the AIP elimination phase.
I have used cassava flour several times, and it always tastes like Play-doh to me. What would be a suitable subsitute?
Heather-
I haven’t found a sub that works as well, but you could always experiment w/ other AIP-friendly flours.
What can I use as an alternative to maple syrup?
Hi Isabel-
I’d try a little experimenting, you might be able to use honey.
Thank you for the sugestion.
I have a question: What’s the average time interval between two holidays? I’m asking it because I’m catholic and there are many solenitys through out the year (about 17) when I used to bake/eat a dessert and finish it in the folowing days. May I continue to do it in AIP?
Isabel, this is up to you. If the cookies work for you and don’t crowd out healthy main meal options, go for it.
Made these yesterday and they were tasty. I didn’t have any problems with the consistency of the dough. Thank you for this recipe.
How should these be stored and for how long? Made them just for me so I won’t be eating them all in just a day or two. 🙂
Heidi, I usually store them in an airtight container on the countertop for 3-4 days.
I just made these and didn’t have any problem with them. I chose to omit the coconut palm sugar, a healthier option for me . I did add raisins – there is plenty of sweetness. Thanks for the recipe😊
Hi!
I have made these cookies for 4/5 years, I think! Love them and they turn out great every time!
I was wondering if you have any nutritional information for the cookies? Thank you so much!
Susan
Hi Susan, I don’t have nutritional info, but you might be able to plug in the ingredients to a site like Cron-o-meter & get some basic details. Glad you love them!
These are a favorite in our household! I have made them many times and they always disappear within a day or two. I recently made them for my kid’s daycare Teacher Appreciation Week and they were a huge hit there as well! Thanks for a great recipe. 🙂