I get asked on the daily for recipes that fall into one of these three categories: vegan, nut free or gluten free. So I figured, why not make something like these Lunchbox Cookies that ticks all the boxes?
The reality is that I’m like every other mom, always trying to find new healthy homemade things to pack for school lunches and snacks! And it’s no small feat my friends (check out this post on 50 different ideas for making healthy school lunches).
How to Incorporate Veggies into Baking
I had a pile of leftover vegetables from my last trip to the Kelowna Farmer’s Market and decided to take a stab at some healthy cookies as a switch up from the usual muffins I make. I was probably pushing the limits of what should go in a cookie to be honest. I mean, 3 different veggies? I have some nerve. And never mind all of the healthy grains and olive oil.
I add veggies into baking all of the time. I’ve learned that the finer you grate them the less visible they are in case you are trying to hide them. Use the finer grater on your boxed grater if being sneaky is your mom game. Not a single bit of judgement here.
Note that a food processor will be your best friend for recipes like this!. It’s days like this that I sit staring at the oven while my creations bake, crossing my fingers that they turn out. Because it really sucks when you destroy your kitchen and spend 3 hours of your time making something that turns out to be a massive flop. I’m happy to report that these were a HIT!
I’ve stopped judging my own cooking and baking, and simply rely on Max and Charlie to give me the honest goods. Because a 4 year old and an 8 year old don’t really ‘get’ the whole notion of sugar coating something to spare my feelings. Max will immediately spit something out when he’s not a fan (regardless of where he is, lots of fun) and Charlie’s face wrinkles up in an animated display that tells me he will be as bad of a liar as I am.
Ok, so back to these cookies. I gave the boys a cookie each after school and held my breath. They loved them! Charlie, with a concerned look on his face, confirmed that I wrote down the recipe and made me promise that there were some for his lunch the next day. MOM WIN!
These cookies are moist, lightly sweetened and freeze well. You can skip the brown sugar if you like a less sweet cookie but my boys didn’t love them when I left it out. They are filled to the brim with fruit, veggies and healthy seeds and olive oil for a seriously nutritious snack that is totally school-approved!
Make these Cookies Gluten Free
You can use gluten free 1:1 flour in place of the regular flour OR use oat flour with 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum for texture (if you don’t have xanthan gum you can still use oat flour, the cookies are still great without it)!
xo
Tori
Lunchbox Cookies
Nut free, gluten free and vegan cookies that are packed with veggies and taste amazing! Perfect for school lunches! You can add 1 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans if you aren't making them nut free!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ground chia seeds or ground flax seeds
- 5 tablespoons water
- ½ cup grated peeled carrots
- ½ cup grated peeled raw beets
- ½ cup grated zucchini, skin left on
- ½ cup grated apple, skin left on
- ½ cup grated ripe pear, skin left on
- ½ cup honey or maple syrup (use maple syrup to make it vegan)
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 cups flour (all purpose or whole wheat) (use GF 1:1 flour to make them gluten free)
- 1 cup raisins
- ½ cup pumpkin seeds
- ½ cup hemp seeds
- ¼ cup brown sugar** (optional, see note)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper (you may not need the parchment paper if you have a good quality non-stick pan).
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In a small bowl, combine the ground chia or flax seeds with the water, stir to combine, and let it sit for 3-5 minutes.
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In a medium bowl, combine the carrots, beets, zucchini, apple, pear, honey or maple syrup, olive oil, vanilla and chia or flax mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon to combine.
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In a large bowl, stir together the flour, raisins, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, brown sugar (if using), cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
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Stir the veggie mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon, stirring and folding until well combined.
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Drop heaping tablespoons of cookie dough on to the baking sheet, spacing them about 1-inch apart (the cookies don't spread much). You may need to repeat this step depending on the size of your baking sheet.
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Bake the cookies for 15-20 minutes, until they are cooked throughout and the bottoms are golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack before storing in an air-tight container for up to 5 days. These freeze beautifully!
Recipe Notes
*optional to use oat flour and add 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum for texture
**leave out the brown sugar if you want a less sweet cookie, it is a matter of taste preference!
IF you aren't making these nut-free you can add in 1 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts along with the raisins.
What is a suitable substitute for xanthan gum?
Hi Nicole you can leave it out – it has a small impact on the texture but they will be fine without it!
These look awesome! Question for you, if gluten free isn’t a priority what would be a good substitute for Xanthan gum??
Hi Sara you can just leave it out if you don’t have it!
These lunchbox cookies look delish! Are their alternatives to using the beets like grated apple or pear? 🙂
Excited to see a peanut free recipe to send my son to school with.
Whats xanthan gum do??is it really necessary??
Hi Sarah! I added a note that you can skip it if you don’t have it. It’s used in a lot of gluten free baking to make baking stick together better. Would love to hear if you try these out!
Thank you!! Was anxiously waiting for you to post!! Can’t wait to try these.
I made these, with a few subs only because I didn’t have everything listed so the ones I made were not nut free as I used almond flour. However, they are amazing! Thank you!
Thanks for letting me know Tara I really appreciate the feedback! Great to know they work with almond flour too!!!
Tori,
Do you think spelt flour would work instead of oat flour?
Hi Angelika yes I do!
I can’t wait to make these this weekend. Did you try adding chocolate chips?
Thanks!
Thank you! No I didn’t but I’m sure a sprinkle would taste amazing!
If I wanted to make these with regular flour would the amounts stay the same as the oat flour? Thanks:)
May I ask what type of flooring you used for your outside deck?
Hi Sandra! We used Trex decking.
Good morning from Australia 🙂
I went s little rouge on these but the success was my EXTREMELY picky toddler ate the “cookie” with out even knowing that there was veg in there! I didn’t have all the nuts so substituted for other nuts etc but with the flour I issued what I had rice flour and coconut flour. The cookies are very crumbly and fall apart but I think that’s the coconut flour. Either way def try again as it’s some veg and other healthy things entering my kid! Thank you!!
Hi Sarah! Thanks so much for the feedback – yes it would be the flour that made them crumbly:). Have a beautiful day and thank you for the follow all the way from Australia!!
Love these! My mum wants to make them but doesn’t have chia or flax on hand. Can they be made with an egg instead? If yes how many would you substitute?
What brand or fine-ness of Oat Flour do you recommend? I ground GF oats in the food processor for about 1-1/2 minutes – not sure if that is fine enough?
Also, if using a convection oven, what temp/time do you suggest?
Would love to see pics of the recipe in progress if possible to see if mine is similar. My batter turned out very pink and wet but the cookies baked up brown. They fall apart very easily when picked up but the flavour is delicious.
Thanks!
Hi Cindy. I use a commercial oat flour called Only Oats – that may make a difference. You can adjust the temperature down 5-10 degrees F if you have a convection – I didn’t test them on convection so I would have to re-make them to tell you definitively. Did you make the vegan cookies? I will try them out again to see if mine hold together, they did for me but worth another shot! Thanks for the feedback.
Thanks so much for your response! I’m totally making these again -the house smelled SO good that my 12 year old had to try them. He asked me not to tell him what was in them until he was done. Lol! He was impressed that he liked them (even with the veggies) 😋
I will try a store bought GF oat flour next time. Yes, I made the vegan version with the flax egg. I will also let the batter rest longer next time to see if the flour absorbs more of the liquid. Thanks again.
My batter was very wet and they turned out more like a muffin texture. Where did I go wrong? Too much liquid maybe? They are really delicious but the texture is throwing me off. Thanks!
Hi Shannon, they should be like a soft cookie – a little bit cake like? Sometimes with different elevations the baking powder can leaven things more or less which may account for the difference?
Hello I am a personal Chef and my client begs me for these…I am going away and she has asked for a double batch..Do these cookies freeze well and if so what would be the best way to freeze them?
Thanks so much from “Let’s Eat” in Vancouver Canada
Hi Kerin, I haven’t tried freezing them before but I think they should freeze ok! I would put them in a sealed ziplock or airtight container.
Perfect recipe for this time of year (fall) when there are abundance of fruit and veg around! Skipped the apple and beet, and used up a pile of carrot and zucchini I had lying around – great flavour. And toddler approved! 🙂
So happy you enjoyed them Sarah! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review!
These look delicious. Would quinoa, coconut or cassava flour work? My son has a sensitivity to wheat, oats and rice and I’m looking for yummy options so he doesn’t feel left out.
Hi Diana, I’m not sure to be honest as I haven’t tried but I suspect that any of those would work. Would love to know if you try!