My wee girl starts full day kindergarten this year. It’s her first time in full-day school. And my first time with ALL my girls in full-day school! For the last 13+ years I’ve been with kiddos. So, it’s a big change for her, an even bigger change for me.
Maybe I’m feeling the stress of the change, because I’ve been baking a lot. Ok, I bake a lot most days! But, it seems I’m baking more than usual – Berry Scuffins, Raisinet Cookies (from LTEV, I’ll try and post soon), and these new delicious Power Cookies.
These power cookies satisfy a sweet tooth but also offers some nutritional punch. For a cookie, it’s pretty darn healthy, made with whole-grain oat flour, coconut, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, and tahini. I use tahini so the cookies can be nut-free for school lunches. Most schools are nut-free zones, and that can be tricky planning school snacks. Many commercially-prepared snacks that happen to be nut-free tend to have dairy, eggs, or made with overly processed ingredients. So, it’s always useful to have a few nut-free goodies in your repertoire!
If you don’t have to make them nut-free, you can substitute another nut butter. I don’t always enjoy tahini in plant-based cookies, but here it works! I do prefer a very mellow, good-quality tahini (suggestions in recipe). If you can find a good brand, it’s worth it. But, you will forever be tahini-spoiled! Once you taste the good stuff, you don’t want to go back. (Just a heads up!) 😉
If you follow my Instagram posts, you may have seen this pic of Go Raw watermelon seeds. When I did my final test of these cookies, I was out of sunflower seeds. I thought “why not try the watermelon seeds“? They worked fabulously! They certainly aren’t essential, however. If you don’t have them, sunflower and pumpkin seeds work just fine. (As a side note, the watermelon seeds taste lovely on their own. They have a mellow seeds flavor, somewhat like sunflower but milder-tasting – and the sea salt used is minimal.)
Think you need a power cookies close up. Zoom in on the chips!
Got it?
Nope, that’s a raisin on the left, There… to the right!
Yeahhhhh, that’s it.
Now bake… 🙂 Enjoy, enjoy my friends!
x Dreena
Power Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups oat flour use certified gf for gluten-free; see note
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut
- 1/4 - 1/3 cup non-dairy chocolate chips I like mini-chips; can substitute raisins or currants
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds or sprouted watermelon seeds
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt lightly rounded
- 2 1/2 tbsp tahini or raw almond butter if not needing nut-free, see note
- 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp pure maple syrup see note
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine flour, coconut, chocolate chips, seeds, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk the tahini (or almond butter) with the maple syrup, and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and stir through until well combined. Place scoops (about 1 - 1 1/2 tbsp in size) on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 10-11 minutes, until just set to the touch, then remove from oven and let cool for a minute on sheet, and then transfer to a cooling rack. Makes about 15-18 cookies.
Notes
- Oat Flour note: Don't substitute an equal amount of another flour (like spelt)_ here - it has a different volume and requires more liquid to come together. If you want to sub another flour, use less to start, about 1 2/3 cups, and add in any extra as needed after bringing together the wet and dry ingredients. If it's too wet/sticky, add a touch more flour.
- Tahini note: Tahini brands vary in taste and textures. If possible, use a mellow-flavored tahini (ex: Baron's, Achva, Alwadi)
- Maple syrup note: The mixture should come together nicely, but if it’s quite thick and not combining, add another 1/2 - 1 tbsp of maple syrup mixed with another 1 tsp of nut butter or tahini.
Melanie Feuerman says
Hello, I was wondering what the serving size is and what I the Fat content?
Kim says
Holy Moly, Dreena!!!! These babies are good! I have no idea how many they were to make cus I kept ‘tasting’ the dough
kim says
FYI < I missed the tahini inclusion and I am still happy LOL . I had already 'remade' them cus I forgot the flax. Tired, Im tired. lol