Gluten, egg, and dairy-free Lemon Blackberry Breakfast Cookies are perfect for busy mornings!
This post has been about a month in the making, and when I have news to share I don’t beat around the bush. Like the time I had this whole story ready for my former boss (whom I love and adore) when I was leaving my desk job to blog full time. I marched into her office ready to wax poetic about following my dreams and such, then immediately broke down crying and blabbed, I’m quitting! Nice.
Ok, ok – bush lightly beaten around. Here I go. As the title of this post implies, I am going gluten-free. (See 50+ Gluten-Free Recipes here! >>)
Specifically, I was recently diagnosed with Celiac Disease which means I cannot eat gluten found in wheat, barley, nor rye as it damages the lining of the small intestine, preventing it from absorbing vital nutrients. Simply put, celiac disease can cause malnutrition if left untreated. The disease was likely triggered by the birth of my son who was delivered via emergency c-section after a very long and very painful labor.
Many people have asked if I’m “going gluten free” over the past month after noticing me sharing gluten free recipes and products on Instagram and Facebook. I’ve prolonged posting about it here on IGE because it’s out of the norm for me to share health news on this site and also, I don’t want to turn people off from this food blog. So, hear me out (and sorry if this is kind of all over the place!)
I’m still learning about celiac disease but from what I’ve researched and my doctor has agreed to is that the disease can lay dormant in some people only to be triggered or “awakened” by traumatic events to your body – think a car crash or unplanned emergency c-section. After Lincoln’s birth I felt very sick for 6 months. I weighed less than I did pre-pregnancy (which was cool for like, a second,) felt like a zombie even after Lincoln started sleeping through the night, and basically just felt like hell. I had an inkling that gluten might be the culprit and after undergoing a few procedures to get the final diagnosis, and cutting gluten from my diet, I feel like a new woman.
Clear head, a healthy weight, and energy through the roof.
At first all I could do was laugh at the irony of a food blogger being diagnosed with celiac disease. I seriously wondered how I’d go on posting knowing I’d be limited to cooking foods that do not contain wheat (I don’t cook much with either barley or rye.) Then I started analyzing my diet and realized that 90% of the foods I already ate were naturally gluten free. As I scrolled through past posts here on IGE, I was tickled to find that many of them were centered around meat, beans, cheeses, rice, potatoes, fruits, nuts, seeds, and vegetables – all of which do not contain gluten. In short, eating gluten free at home has not been difficult.
I could go on and on – talking about what I’ve missed so far (pizza! BEER! Not loving GF beer so far…) my feelings about eating out at restaurants (apprehensive – contamination is a huge issue,) and how gluten is hiding in a bajillion products at the grocery store (bitter, though I’ve been finding some great GF products,) but I’ll wrap it up and talk to you real quick about what this means for IGE.
I will not be posting recipes with gluten. Ben and I eat the food I cook for the blog and it would be wasteful to cook foods that I cannot consume. Furthermore, how can I write about something I can’t taste? I will also not be posting notes alongside ingredients like worcestershire sauce or soy sauce, which sometimes contain gluten, that say make sure you check for gluten! because that would get redundant, and if you have celiac disease or a gluten intolerance then you know to check for things like that.
What I can promise you is that the recipes posted here will remain easy, seasonal, family-friendly, and most importantly, delicious. If you’ve enjoyed the past month’s recipes (all of which are gluten free!) then you will continue to enjoy my recipes moving forward.
I’ve quickly learned that gluten free does NOT mean taste free, nor full of weird, hard to find ingredients. On the contrary, it means fresh and flavorful food! Like I said, my diet was already largely based around gluten free foods anyway, and I bet yours might be too.
So if you’ve made it this far, thank you! And I’ve also got a humdinger of a recipe for you today. I’m going absolutely bananas for Lemon Blackberry Breakfast Cookies which are egg free, dairy free and, yes, gluten free. With all those restrictions you might think these babies taste like cardboard, but I literally can. not. stop. eating them.
I mean, healthy, great-tasting cookies for breakfast! Who can’t get down with that?
Old fashioned oats are mixed with honey instead of refined sugar, applesauce instead of oil, banana instead of egg (though they do not taste banana-y) fresh blackberries, lemon zest, and lemon juice then baked. These breakfast cookies are chewy, perfectly sweet, dense and absolutely delicious. Good for the heart, taste buds and soul!
Bake these cookies then pair with a piece of fruit or yogurt for breakfast, or serve to the kids as an after-school snack. They’ll love ’em (and you’ll love serving them!) I can’t even confess to you how many I’ve eaten over the past week. I had to freeze the leftovers to stop myself! Which, by the way, is another awesome perk of this recipe. Freeze the extra cookies then microwave for just 20 seconds for an insta-delish breakfast.
Ooo, oo, it’s also made in just one bowl so clean up is nearly nil!
Start with 3-3/4 cups old fashioned oats. I know I said I wouldn’t do this, but it’s important to note that if you have celiac disease or a gluten intolerance you’ll want to buy certified gluten free oats. Oats are naturally gluten free but are usually processed in facilities that also process wheat which means they can be contaminated with gluten. Even GF oats might trigger a reaction in severe cases of celiac disease, but so far I’ve been fine with them.
Anyway, I’ve found these GF Bob’s Red Mill Old Fashioned Oats at every single grocery store in town!
Add 1-3/4 cups of the oats to a food processor then process until the oats have turned into flour, about 3-4 minutes.
Dump the flour into a large bowl then add the remaining 2 cups oats, 1 Tablespoons lemon zest (about 1 lemon worth,) 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, and 1/4 cup ground flaxseed and mix everything all up. That’s a wrap for the dry ingredients.
Time for the wet ingredients. That includes 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons honey, 1/2 cup mashed VERY RIPE banana (about 1 medium-sized banana,) 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon,) and 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (2 of those single serving cups.)
Finally, add 1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon coconut oil that’s been zapped in the microwave for about 20 seconds to melt.
Mix the wet and dry ingredients together then fold in blackberries. Blackberries are selling for next to nothing right now at the grocery store so stock up for the freezer, and for these cookies of course! I’ve also used blueberries in here and they are awesome.
Let the batter sit and thicken for 10 minutes then scoop 1/4 cup of the batter (I used an ice cream scoop) onto a baking sheet lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Wet your fingers with water then press down slightly on the tops of the cookies, as they won’t spread much if at all in the oven.
Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees or until the edges are golden brown and the top is set, then cool completely. S
tore the cookies in an airtight container on the counter for 2 days, in the fridge for up to 4 days, or pop into a freezer bag and freeze. Like I said, just 20 seconds or so to reheat in the microwave – whee!
I tell you what – the taste of fresh lemon with sweet blackberries is simply scrumptious. The flavors taste like a fancy dessert – you’ll just love them. Enjoy!
Oh, gluten-y recipes are still fair game for Friday Favorites. A girl can still dream!
Ingredients
- 3-3/4 cups certified gluten free old fashioned oats, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/2 cup mashed very ripe banana, ~1 medium banana
- 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons honey
- 1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
- 1/4 cup lemon juice, about 1 lemon
- 1 pint blackberries or blueberries, rinsed then patted dry
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees then line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper and set aside. Add 1-3/4 cups oats to a food processor then process for 3-4 minutes or until very fine to make oat flour.
- Add oat flour, remaining 2 cups oats, baking soda, salt, and ground flaxseed to a large bowl then mix to combine. Add applesauce, banana, honey, coconut oil, lemon zest, and lemon juice then mix until just combined. Carefully fold in blackberries then let batter sit for 10 minutes to thicken.
- Scoop 1/4 cup batter (I used an ice cream scoop) onto prepared baking sheet then wet hand with water and press down to flatten slightly (cookies will not spread.) Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown around the edges and set on top. Cool completely then store in an airtight container for up to 2 days, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or wrap individually in plastic wrap then freeze in a freezer bag. Wrap in a paper towel then microwave for 20 seconds to thaw.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
A friend just forwarded the link to your blog. She follows and loves your recipes, and I have a feeling I soon will too. I was diagnosed about 6 yrs ago, only after undergoing a barrage of tests and misdiagnoses. It is so much easier to safely dine out now, which I am so grateful for… but I’ve also learned a lot about new (to me) naturally safe and healthy ingredients for cooking and baking at home.
My go-to flour for baking is one I discovered at the Gluten Free Expo here in Chicago several yrs ago. It’s Meister’s:
Agree about New Grist beer. I’ve tried several, and it’s still my favorite… and Angry Orchard hard cider.
And if you ever get to Chicago, you have to try Sweet Ali’s bakery. I haven’t had anything there that isn’t delicious.
Can’t wait to try this recipe…two of my favorites, b blackberries and lemon. Yum!
And you have just been put on the TOP of my blog list. There is such a thing as GF beer?!?! come to mama!
I found this post through another blog and am now obsessed with trying to make these! they sound amazing! I was wondering if there is a substitute for the flaxseed and coconut oil? Those are not things I have easy access to, living in a small town…
Good luck with the GF… my nephew has it and while its tricky at first, with practice it gets really easy to navigate!
Clearly you’ve received plenty of comments on this post and nothing I say will be too earthshattering but I am happy for you that you got a diagnosis! And that you can make the changes that you know will help you! Bravo to you! And I’d take a dozen of these cookies ANY day :) pinned
Must be difficult all of a sudden having to switch to a gluten free diet but I feel like in the US this isn’t too difficult with all the various gluten-free alternatives to regular food (pasta, bread, flours, etc). My mother recently became gluten free and dairy free (to help when she had cancer) and it has really made me shift the focus on my blog to more gluten free dairy free recipes so I could help her make the transition easier, and I’ve really found that there is still so much you can do with a gluten free diet! This personally makes me even MORE interested in your blog : )
I can’t wait to try these. Thank you for sharing your story, and I am looking forward to future posts!
These cookies are great! Mine were a little mushy also, and I let them sit for at least ten minutes before baking. I used the Bob’s Whole Grain Oat Flour(plus the rolled oats), since I don’t have a food processor. Could that have made a difference in the texture? They still tasted amazing, but fell apart a little when I took them off of the cookie sheet.
I don’t think that would have made a difference…maybe the berries were juicer? I know that sounds crazy but that’s the only thing I can think of!
These cookies look excellent! I was thinking of subbing ground chia seeds for the flax seeds…would you recommend a 1:1 substitution or should I use a little less of the chia seeds?
Also, thank you so much for sharing; I am gluten sensitive and luckily was not diagnosed with Celiac’s disease, but I remember the terror I felt when I was waiting for the results of my blood test. I really appreciate you sharing and I know there are many people out there who can identify with what you’re going through.
I think chia would work as a replacement for the flaxseed but I’m just not sure about the ratios. Let me know if you give it a try, and how they turn out!
I made these with chia seeds last night and they are so yummy. I did a 1:1 to ratio and even ground the chia seeds in my coffee grinder (I’m not sure if this step is necessary but I didn’t want to risk them not holding together). These will be a great afternoon snack, thanks for another fabulous recipe!
These are really tasty but mine came out a little mushy too, and that was after 7 extra minutes in the oven. I have never used coconut oil before…could that be it?? I only had half fresh berries and half frozen, so maybe that added a little extra liquid (although I did defrost them a bit and drain the water). The taste is great though, and since there aren’t any eggs, who cares if they are little mushy right??
This recipe sounds great, but I am allergic to bananas. What could I replace them with? I’d really like to try these without the bananas.
I don’t go completely gluten free, but I have cut out white flour and go with whole grains and oats. It makes a huge difference in the way I feel!
Best of luck to you with your new diet.
You could use 2 eggs instead, or even 2 flax eggs. I’ve made them with flax eggs and they were wonderful. Not quite as sweet though, because you’re losing the banana, but still delicious!
I’m sorry about your diagnosis. Just wanted to let you know you’ve still got a reader in me!
Hi Kristin! I’ve been a faithful reader of IGE for a few years now, and always love the recipes you post. My Pinterest account should really have it’s own IGE Board! ;) I’m looking forward to your new recipes, and am really excited because many GF recipes are also dairy-free, which is important to me because my daughter is allergic to dairy. Between your blog, and your SIL’s blog, we are in good hands with dairy-free options! Thank you for always keeping us well fed!
I don’t know if you know this blog yet but it has great gluten free reciepes and the writer has a lovely style.
http://glutenfreegirl.com/