Growing up buckwheat made a lot of appearances on our dinner table. It’s a staple in a lot of Polish kitchens (kasha) because it’s filling and healthy which is probably why most kids grew up hating it so much. Not me, I loved the smell of buckwheat as it bubbled away on the stovetop. I must admit I was a weird kid, I always loved vegetables and my idea of fun was hanging out in my grandma’s vegetable garden or strolling through a farmer market. I loved eating and I had a strong interest in food, where it came from, why it looked the way it did, you know the questions that normal kids never had on their minds. Looking back, I have a lot of fond memories of family dinners and that earthy buckwheat smell.

What’s surprising is that buckwheat is not actually a grain so it’s been widely used in gluten-free and grain-free baking. It has gotten quite popular in bread making mainly because of how healthy it is but also because it has that nutty flavor that is delicious in bread.

I’ve seen tons of bread recipes pop up now that a lot of people are stuck at home so it got me thinking about what else I could do with buckwheat. I was craving sweets (see what I did there?) and cookies seemed like a good idea. Now the challenge with buckwheat flour is that it does have a strong flavor and like any gluten-free flour it can be hard to work with. I honestly like the buckwheat flavor but I didn’t want the cookies to have that strong flavor so I knew that breakfast cookies would be a perfect idea. The combination of flavors really makes this a delicious breakfast option, quick to pack and satisfies that sweet craving. I encourage you to experiment with different dried fruit and nut combinations. The beauty of this recipe is that it’s quick and easy to make but also fun to play around with to make it your own.

Buckwheat Breakfast Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup buckwheat flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup swirve or your favorite sweetener

1/4 cup coconut brown sugar

1/3 cup melted coconut oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Pinch of sea salt

1 large egg, room temperature

2 tbsp. unsweetened shredded coconut

1/4 cup slivered almonds (toasted)

1/4 cup unsweetened dried bluberries

1/4 cup dark chocolate (at least 70%)

Directions:

In a small bowl, whisk the buckwheat flour and baking soda together and set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk the sugars, coconut oil, vanilla extract and sea salt. Add the egg and whisk until well combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour until the dough comes together. Add the shredded coconut, slivered almonds, blueberries and chocolate and mix until combined (try not to over-mix the dough). Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Scoop out 1/4 cup of dough and shape into a ball (this will depend on how big you want your cookies to be). Place on a baking sheet and gently flatten, you should have 8 cookies. Bake for 7-8 minutes until no longer shiny but still soft to the touch. You want to underbake them so they are still soft (I found that the longer they bake, the more buckwheat-y they taste). Allow to cool and enjoy!