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Loving the breakfast cookie trend – take a bite of this, this, and this– kids think they’re getting something decadent for breakfast and you exert nothing more than a freezer-to-microwave maneuver. Carnival Cookies, they’re called and are the brilliant creation from natural food cookbookauthor, Heidi Swanson. The thing about Heidi, if you don’t know, is her commitment to ingredients that are as clean as possible. And many of her recipes are gluten-free. You might have to pick up a few ingredients that most definitely are not in the average pantry, but well worth the effort as we lean into unprocessed diets. I offer replacements, but dare you to try coconut oil or almond meal.

Lately, I’ve been obsessed with everything Heidi doles out, hanging on her every word like a lemming waiting for orders from my lord and master. Every other day at Whole Foods with my list in hand I’m asking clerks, “where is the amaranth flour or the rose water?” “Do you have coconut oil that’s not solid?” Part challenge, part devotion – I’m slowly becoming a natural food eater relying less on animal proteins and more on good grains and plant proteins. It’s just happening.

Carnival Cookies are loaded with basic healthy snack food and good grains: bananas, peanuts, popcorn, chocolate chips and rolled oats. If you bristle at the idea of serving chocolate for breakfast, aside from their antioxidant qualities, there is a recent report that eating chocolate in the morning can help you lose weight; check out what Registered Dietician, Sarah-Jane Bedwell has to say about it on the Today Show.

I make these cookies ahead of time and freeze them in half-dozen batches. Thaw them the night before or zap them in the microwave the next morning (lower power please or you’ll Raiders of the Lost Ark the chips).

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