These flavorful lemon poppy seed quinoa breakfast cookies are the perfect way to start the day. Light, nutritious and packed with protein and healthy fats!
I'm so glad I asked you last month what flavor of quinoa breakfast cookie you wanted to see in April because these are sensational!
This month we're on the fruity side, with these lemon poppy seed quinoa breakfast cookies. I'm digging these fun flavors a lot, last month we had Peanut Butter + Jelly Quinoa Breakfast Cookies and the month before that it was Blueberry Muffin Quinoa Breakfast Cookies. So fun!
Honestly, this flavor won by a landslide and I can totally see why. These bright, flavorful little cookies are the perfect welcome to the spring season. Bursting with sweetness and sunny lemony goodness, if you sunshine actually had a taste…this would be it. They're fun, happy and will certainly bring a smile to your face!
Lemon + poppy seeds are a natural combination that have been made into virtually all baked goods; from muffins, quick breads, cookies and pancakes (next on my list), but for me that's really the only time I will ever reach for poppy seeds.
Which really is a shame, because they are loaded with some pretty amazing vitamins and minerals.
Poppy seeds kind of remind me of chia seeds, but they don't have that gelatinous quality that chia does when it's mixed with liquid. They're small, with a dark blueish/grey hue and they add just a little crunch whenever they're used. But like I said, poppy seeds are actually really nutritious.
They are packed with calcium, copper and manganese, as well as dietary fiber and protein. 2 tablespoons of these little beauties contain 25% of your suggested calcium intake and 4 grams of both protein and fiber. So combine all those properties with the other goodies inside these cookies and we really do have one healthy breakfast treat on our hands!
![Lemon Poppy Seed Breakfast Cookies...with quinoa, oats, flaxseed and cashew butter! [vegan + gluten-free]](https://www.simplyquinoa.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/lemon-poppy-seed-quinoa-breakfast-cookies-3.jpg)
For these breakfast cookies, I really wanted to the lemon flavor to shine through, so I used cashew butter instead of almond or peanut butter because it has a much softer flavor. If you can't find cashew butter, I also think sunflower seed butter would be lovely. (…and I'm also wondering about tahini but haven't gone down that road yet!)
As you know, 2016 is going to the THE YEAR of the quinoa breakfast cookie and I'm committing to sharing a brand new flavor with you every single month. (fingers crossed we don't run out of ideas!)
Here's what we've got so far:
- January: Chunky Monkey
- February: Blueberry Muffin
- March: Peanut Butter + Jelly
- April: Lemon Poppy Seed
And now the next flavor is up to you!
I always like to run my brainstorming by you to see what you think. So…just like we did last month, I'd love for you to vote below what YOU think the May flavor should be.
Here are the contenders:
- Matcha Latte
- Salted Caramel
- Snickerdoodle
Can't wait to see which one wins this month! I have a favorite but I won't share until we get a winner 😉
xo Alyssa
More Flavorful Breakfast Cookies to try:
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
- Cranberry Orange Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
- Chunky Monkey Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
- Gingerbread Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
- Matcha Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
- Pumpkin Pie Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
Lemon Poppy Seed Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 flax egg 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal + 3 tablespoons water
- ½ cup cashew butter or sunflower seed butter*
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 medium banana mashed (+ slices for topping, optional)
- ½ cup rolled oats
- ½ cup quinoa flakes
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Zest of 2 lemons
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds optional
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, lemon juice and banana in a large bowl. Add flax egg and mix to combine.
- Pour in oats, quinoa flakes, baking powder and salt and stir together. Fold in the lemon zest, poppy seeds and chia seeds (if using).
- 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.
- Enjoy at room temp or slightly reheated in a microwave.
Notes
Nutrition
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Matcha Latte! Although Snickerdoodle would be awesome too.
That’s what everyone said on Instagram too 🙂
Salted Carmel gets my vote. I’m going to make the lemon cookies, but I can’t eat seeds (that includes regular quinoa because it resembles a seed too much). I’m hoping it’s ok to leave them out
The poppy seeds, that is lol. Thanks for the recipes!
So can you not eat quinoa flakes either? Would love to know how you adapt the recipe!
Thanks for the lemon. I vote for Matcha Latte too for the next. But anything will be good I’m sure.
Another one for matcha!
Snickerdoodle sounds yummy!
Mmm I think so too 😉
I think snickerdoodles would be great
Thanks for the vote!! xo
Matcha latte
Thanks, Barb!
I love snickerdoodles!! I think chocolate raspberry would be a great one too.
Love that idea! Adding it to my list 🙂
snickerdoodle for sure!
Mmm yum!
I’m for the salted caramel but matcha latte would be my second choice.
Thanks for the vote!
Salted caramel!
I’m hoping this one wins at some point because I’m dying to make it!
I’m allergic to bananas, anything I can substitute for them? These sound great!
Hmm you could try applesauce, but you’ll definitely want to increase the chia seeds and maybe add another tablespoon or two of flaxseed meal.
My husband has a banana allergy, so I think I will try this with the applesauce and additional flax. Salted caramel gets my vote.
Please let me know how it works! There are lots of people who ask about banana replacements, I just haven’t tested it on my own yet 🙂
Matcha latte but they all sound good!
Snickerdoodle! And FYI, Trader Joe’s sells cashew butter. I use it a lot in my baked goods over almond and other nut butters because I find it has a much more neutral taste for this purpose.
snickerdOOOOOODDDLLLLEEE! 😀
Woo thanks!
Hi Alyssa,
I’m from Australia and was wondering what is a Snickerdoodle! Never heard of them, sorry guys
So I googled it and they sound delicious and have my vote as I would love to know what your version to making them would be.
The Salted Caramel sounds yum but I’ll go with the Snickerdoodle
Love getting your emails, keep up the good work
Oh they’re SOOO good! Cinnamony, sugary, and I’m thinking there would be some sort of “frosting” on top too 😉
Salted caramel!
Thanks, Jann!
Snickerdoodle would be my first choice, but really…ANY of them sound good!
Matcha Latte is my vote. But I won’t be upset with Snickerdoodle either. I love these recipes. Also I’d love to see something with dates (date, nut), raspberry, or lemon raspberry .. thanks for all your effort.
Thanks for the suggestions! Adding some of those to my list 🙂
Salted caramel
Thanks!
These look wonderful! Can’t wait to try them! My son might be sensitive to oats. Any suggestions to substitute for the rolled oats? I have rye flakes which are a bit tougher than rolled oats. Or a flour like spelt? Thank you!
I think rye flakes would work! Could you pulverize them slightly in a blender to break them down? Keep me posted!
Salted Caramel all the way!
Snickerdoodle! Would also love anything that resembled rocky road. Also lemon and raspberry together. I don’t ask for much do I? Thank you for all the great recipes!
Love those ideas!
How about Cherry and Coconut (with or without chocolate)
Love!
Another quinoa addict here and can’t wait to try out these recipesI I live in Korea, though, and can’t get quinoa flakes – what can I do to quinoa to make it into flakes? Or can I use regular quinoa in this recipe?
You can use quick cooking oats and maybe stir in a bit of cooked quinoa 🙂 But can’t make quinoa flakes at home unfortunately!
Is zest an important ingredient? I don’t really have the right tool for it.
It’s not essential, but it helps the cookies get a ton more lemon flavor. Do you have lemon extract? You could try doing 1/8 or 1/4 teaspoon of that instead 🙂
Hello! Unfortunately, I’ve been unable to find any quinoa flakes anywhere in my town… where did you buy yours? Thanks in advance! 🙂
I get them on amazon! Or on nuts.com 🙂 Just search quinoa flakes and there are tons of options!
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Do you know the approximate calorie count per cookie? I’d be curious about the Protein and Fat count too! They are currently in the oven ????
I don’t have that calculated, but you can use this tool to find it 🙂 https://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
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My vote is Snickerdoodle since I think I’m the ONLY person that loves caramel but dislikes Salted Caramel. In the future could you consider a pumpkin flavor or cranberry orange or cranberry pistachio.
All of those are already on the site!! Just search breakfast cookies and all the flavors should come up for you 🙂