Healthy Breakfast Cookies

Healthy breakfast cookies combine whole grains and nuts with fruit chunks or fruit puree for sweetness. Canola or other unhydrogenated vegetable oils typically replace saturated and trans fats such as margarine, butter and hydrogenated oil. Like a breakfast bar, a breakfast cookie is easy to eat on the go. Unlike a breakfast bar, a breakfast cookie features the distinctive round shape of a cookie.

Serving Size

A 4-inch breakfast cookie offers 136 calories, comparable to a fruit and cereal bar, milk and cereal bar or granola bar. For some breakfast cookies, the serving size is two or three smaller cookies. Always read the package label for information that is specific to the brand you have selected. If you make your own breakfast cookies, visit one of the recipe websites that provides complementary nutritional analysis.

Carbohydrate

A typical breakfast cookie contains 60 percent of its calories in the form of carbohydrate, following the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans for calorie composition. Wheat flour, oats or other grains supply complex carbohydrate and dietary fiber. Fruit puree, minced fruit, fruit juice, brown rice syrup, malt syrup or sometimes sugar supply the sugars listed on the product label. Of the 20 g of carbohydrate in a typical breakfast cookie, approximately half are in the form of sugar and 2 to 4 g are in the form of dietary fiber.

Fat

Like a regular cookie, a breakfast cookie contains a substantial portion -- at least 30 percent -- of its calories in the form of fat. Fruit purees may be used to replace some of the fat, but some fat is still required to produce the classic, tender-crisp cookie texture. Breakfast cookies generally use healthier fats than other types of cookies. For example, some breakfast cookies boast that they are prepared with canola oil, olive oil or coconut oil. Look for breakfast cookies with 1 g or less of saturated or trans fats.

Protein

Breakfast cookies contain a variable amount of protein. Almost all breakfast cookies start with at least 2 to 3 g of protein per serving. Common protein sources in breakfast cookies include eggs, egg whites, egg substitute, nuts or grains. High protein or protein-supplemented breakfast cookies also add soy or milk protein isolates. Many of these proteins are also allergens.Always read food labels if you have allergies.

Considerations

Breakfast cookies contain more fat and sugar and are often less filling than other popular breakfast options, such as fruit, cereal, yogurt or whole wheat toast. If you often eat on the go, consider keeping cereal and milk or yogurt at the office so you can eat at your desk. Alternatively, spread whole wheat toast with low-sugar jam or natural peanut butter and carry it in a sandwich bag or tuck a piece of whole fruit into your purse or briefcase. If you do choose to eat breakfast cookies, look for brands that contain whole grains or bear the Whole Grain Council seal of approval.