With so much delicious fresh produce in abundance right now, I’ve been busy cooking savory recipes lately like this Summer Kale Slaw, or this Cucumber-Tomato Carpaccio, and—most recently—this tasty Balsamic Blueberry Sauce.

Baking has been the last thing on my mind. That is, until earlier this week when the craving struck for a light, refreshing, but still hearty cookie.

I set to work with a pile of seeds, some lemon zest, and a few other of my pantry staples like quinoa flakes and honey. What resulted was a delicious coin-like cookie with plenty of earthiness from the seeds along with an unexpected bite from the lemon zest. Once cooled, they have the texture of something more like a thick cracker than a chewy cookie.

Old-fashioned “ice-box cookies” are known for their ease of preparation. Once you have the log of dough made and firmed up in the freezer (or the “ice-box”), you can simply slice off rounds and bake them whenever needed. A perfect cookie for last minute guests, or in my case, cravings that pop up out of the blue.

Seeded Lemon Ice-Box Cookies – makes 15-20 small cookies

1/2 cup quinoa flakes

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds

2 tbs. sesame seeds

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. grated lemon zest

1/4 tsp. sea salt

2 tbs. honey

2 tbs. unsweetened almond, rice, or hemp milk

1 tbs. coconut oil

2 tbs. almond butter

In a food processor, combine quinoa flakes, the seeds, cinnamon, lemon zest, and salt. Pulse for 5-10 one-second pulses until mixture is very coarsely ground. Transfer mixture to medium mixing bowl.

In a small pot or skillet, whisk together honey, almond milk, and coconut oil over medium heat. Bring to a low boil for about 20-30 seconds and whisk; then remove from heat.

Stir warm liquids and almond butter into seed mixture until a cohesive dough forms. Form the dough into a 7-inch long, 2-2 1/2 inch diameter log. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. If dough is too warm and soft to form a log well with your hands, use the plastic wrap to help shape it once wrapped up. Freeze dough log for 30-40 minutes until firm but still malleable. Remove from freezer and roll log lightly on countertop to remove any flat edges. Return dough to freezer until completely firm, about 2 hours. (Dough can be kept frozen up to 1 month.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove dough from freezer and unwrap. Slice log into 1/4-inch thick coins with a sharp knife. Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing about 1 1/2 – 2 inches apart. Bake for 12-15 minutes until edges are golden brown and cookies are just firm to the touch.

Cool completely before serving. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

All of my taste testers agreed that these cookies were the perfect treat to enjoy as a sweet after dinner, or a great accompaniment to a cup of tea mid-afternoon. I hope you enjoy them as much as we all did!

(This post is linked to Food Renegade’s Fight Back Friday.)