When deciding on a name for these cookies, I was all excited thinking I had come up with something totally original—muffin top cookies! And then I did a search for the term and, sure enough, lots of people make muffin top cookies. But! I'm the only one that's made a recipe for Apple, Cinnamon, and Quinoa Muffin Top Cookies! So that's something, right?
The Process
This recipe is really a happy accident. I wanted to make a breakfast cookie that was low in calories and fairly substantive and healthy. I decided to put quinoa in the cookies, but I wasn't sure how to go about doing it, so I adapted a recipe from Bon Appetit. One of the changes I made was to sub out white whole wheat flour for whole wheat pastry flour. In my mind, I couldn't see much of a difference between the two—since I like whole wheat, I've never been one to buy the white wheat stuff.
Well! It turns out that using pastry flour in cookies makes them cakey. I was expecting to open the oven and find chewy cookies waiting for me and instead, I had something that looked more like muffin tops. I resigned myself to buying the ingredients again and trying another day, but once they cooled down enough for me to try one, I was surprised to find that they were really good. I gave one to my husband and he helped himself to several more. So it all turned out okay!
Although it's kind of hard to tell from the pictures, these cookies puff up like the tops of muffins when they're baking in the oven. So you get all the fresh-baked goodness of muffin tops, without that pesky stump. With the whole wheat flour, oats, and quinoa, these make a great cookie to have with breakfast or as an afternoon snack.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup cooked quinoa cooled
- 1 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1 cup apple diced (about 1 medium apple)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter, sugars, and honey with a hand mixer until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Beat in eggs and extract; continue beating for 2 minutes. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Fold in quinoa, oats, and apple.
- Spoon two tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto baking sheets, spaced one inch apart. Bake until golden brown, 12–15 minutes. Cool on wire racks.
The Mrs @ Success Along the Weigh says
Um, yes please. I seem to have all of the ingredients on hand. How 'bout that! 🙂
The Type A Housewife says
Oh yes, that's the other thing I love about this recipe! I didn't have to buy anything for it. 🙂
Liz @ A Nut in a Nutshell says
Those look really good, and I like how they're kinda puffy - my favorite!
The Type A Housewife says
Yes, I like soft puffy cookies much more than crispy ones!
Candace says
Oh, these look soooo good! I love that you have quinoa in these and that they are so low in points. What a great addition to my life these will be!
The Type A Housewife says
I was sure these would be 3 or 4 points--I was thrilled when I plugged everything into the recipe builder and they turned out to be 2 points! 🙂
Genevieve says
I love finding other uses for quinoa, like in baked goods. And the combination of apples and cinnamon in a soft and puffy cookie sounds like the perfect on-the-go breakfast to me!
The Type A Housewife says
This is my first time baking with quinoa and now I want to put it in everything! 🙂 I've been having these with fruit for breakfast for the past few days--so good!
Candy says
You had me at Apple! I have got to give these a try. I've never used quinoa, going to have to pick some up.
The Type A Housewife says
The important thing about quinoa is to rinse it before you use it, otherwise it's bitter! I like it because it's a good source of protein and since it's a grain, you can use it in place of rice, couscous, etc.
Val says
Oh, happy "mistakes"! These look so tasty and not terribly unhealthy! I love quinoa, so these are going to be added to my "make this "list. Hey, it's a long list, but I'll get to everything on there! 🙂
I miss chatting with you more! Hope all is well.
The Type A Housewife says
They're definitely healthier than typical cookies or muffins--that's good enough for me!
Stephanie @ henry happened says
Don't you hate when you google something and you realize you're not as original as you thought you were? Grrr.
The Type A Housewife says
YES! Although on the other hand, since muffin top cookies are already a thing, at least that means people will probably be searching for them. Sometimes when an idea is too original, you get no traffic on it!
Cassie says
These are beautiful and I can't wait to try them. They just sound so healthy and I love the flavors! So glad I found your blog!
The Type A Housewife says
Thanks for stopping by! 🙂 And yes, these are definitely healthier than most cookies!
Jennifer says
I have all of this in my pantry. Maybe I need to make these tomorrow!
The Type A Housewife says
Don't you love it when that happens? 🙂 I hope you like them if you make them!
CulinarilyCourtney says
Cookies for breakfast? OK! These certainly are a lot healthier than the Cookie Crunch cereal I used to guilt my mom into buying for me when I was a kid haha.
The Type A Housewife says
Oh, Cookie Crunch was my favorite! My husband still buys all those kids cereals, but he hasn't gotten that one in a while. 🙂
Katie says
what a great mistake recipe!
The Type A Housewife says
Sometimes mistake recipes are the best ones!
Audrey says
I own pastry flour, but I seldom use it. Mostly I just use my whole wheat flour. These look delicious.
The Type A Housewife says
Do you combine your whole wheat flour with white flour? That's what I usually do because I've read that works best, but I'd really like to sub out the whole amount of white flour with whole wheat.
Karen says
Is that one cup of quinoa that is then cooked or one cup after cooking?
The recipe looks so yummy that I'm dying to try it!
The Type A Housewife says
It's one cup after cooking--I cooked 1/2 cup of dried quinoa and it ended up being a little bit more than 1 cup. I hope you like the recipe if you make it! 🙂
Karen says
Thanks!
Ashley says
THESE. ARE. AMAZING!
I substituted the eggs with unsweetened applesauce and they taste so yummy!
Thanks!
Kiersten says
I'm so glad to hear it--thank you for letting me know! I'm definitely going to try use applesauce in these next time too. 😀
GinaMarie says
What other type of flour could you sub for whole wheat (wheat allergy) oatflour? I would also love to attempt substituting sugar with truvia. Thoughts?
Kiersten says
I'm not sure; I don't bake gluten- or sugar-free, so I'm not familiar with the different substitutes that are used. I'm sorry I can't help--I don't want to guess and tell you the wrong thing and have it turn out terrible!
Kimberly says
I know this recipe was posted a few years ago, but I happened upon it when I wanted to use up an apple I had and make healthier treat for my coworkers. I must say, this was a hit! I hadn't anticipated how much they would expand in the oven, so they were a bit overwhelming in size, but I heard no complaints : ) Thank you for posting this!
Kiersten Frase says
I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe--thanks for your comment!