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These healthy oatmeal cookies are made without butter, added sugar, flour, or eggs. And they are so yummy! I love that they are naturally gluten-free and that my kids are crazy about them.
Get ready to have an amazingly delicious-tasting oatmeal cookie, and the best part is that it is healthy! This healthy oatmeal cookie is full of all things delicious and nutritious. All-natural sugar ingredients blend together perfectly to make these cookies delicious!
Bake these healthy oatmeal cookies in a matter of minutes. No need to refrigerate the dough or shape them before baking. They are mixed, rolled into balls, and placed on a baking sheet ready to bake. Skip the frosting and eat them right away while they are warm from the oven!
Easy Healthy Oatmeal Cookies Ingredients
These healthy oatmeal cookies are soft and chewy in every bite because of the natural and healthy ingredients that are right in your pantry! Your list of ingredients is quick and easy, right in your home. No need to run to the grocery store. Grab your ingredients and let’s start mixing!
- Bananas – Once those old bananas become ripe and brown, peel them and start mashing them until they are smooth.
- Applesauce – This gives the cookies that soft and chewy texture.
- Rolled oats – The main ingredient! Use old-fashioned quick oats for this recipe. The old-fashioned oats will cook up in the oven!
- Milk – Helps encourage the browning coloration on the cookies. It also gives the cookies the soft crust.
- Vanilla – Just a tablespoon of vanilla extract for flavor!
- Cinnamon – A sweet and savory seasoning that adds a delicious flavor to these healthy cookies.
- Raisins – Raisins give a soft and fruity taste!
How to Make Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
This a simple recipe with loads of flavor! A great cookie to make for a sweet treat when needed. These healthy oatmeal cookies are easy to mix together and then bake in the oven. All together, these take a total of 30 minutes from start to finish!
- Mix together – Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl with a rubber spatula and stir, or use an electric mixer until well combined and the consistency of cookie dough. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to be well mixed together.
- Cookie dough – Place spoonfuls of mixture onto a greased cookie sheet and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
Tips and Substitutions to Try
Follow these ideas and modifications for the best oatmeal cookie recipe! Make these as healthy, chewy, and soft as you want, and add in ingredients you love to make these cookies your own. There are lots of options and ways to make these healthy oatmeal cookies!
- Cooling racks – Once the cookies are baked, place them on a wire rack to finish cooling. This helps the bottoms to stay soft and chewy.
- Cookie scoop – I like to use a medium cookie scoop to make sure that all my cookies are evenly baking together in the oven.
- Prepared baking sheets – Place parchment paper or silicon mats on your baking sheets when placing your cookie dough on them. This will help them bake evenly as well as slide off easily.
- Chocolate chips – Not quite as healthy, but substituting chocolate chips for raisins does make these even better. Use milk, and dark, or semi-sweet chocolate chips to make oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
- Nuts – If you love nuts and the extra texture in your cookies, add chopped walnuts to the cookies.
“These are my favorite more healthy treat. I’ve made them several times and never had an issue with the recipe… thank you for this!! Everyone in my family loves them as well. Just made a batch tonight and already ate two 🙂”
-Tailor
Frequently Asked Questions
A quick look at the ingredient list, it appears that the things that make this recipe a healthy cookie are the ingredients that are omitted. For example, you’ll notice there is no butter, no sugar, no cream, or other kinds of ingredients. Instead, these cookies use mashed bananas and applesauce. There is no flour or eggs in the mix either. So you can see why I was a little skeptical about giving them a try. But trust me. They are really good!
Yes! Both of these oats can be used interchangeably. If you have quick oats and the recipe is asking for rolled oats you can pulse the rolled oats in a blender if needed.
The best way to soften cookies is to add a slice of bread at the bottom of the airtight container or ziplock bag. The cookies will then soak up the moisture from the bread, and within hours soften the cookies.
READ NEXT: How to Make Granola Bars
Storing Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
These healthy oatmeal cookies are perfect to store and even freeze. They are quick and easy to whip up and they stay good in an airtight container in the refrigerator for days! To freeze, place the cookies on a baking sheet in the freezer until they are frozen. Remove from the baking sheet and place in a freezer bag and store in the freezer for three months.
More Healthy Recipes
This recipe for healthy oatmeal cookies is one of many of our light recipes. We have several breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, and even dessert ideas! You will find everything that you need to keep your resolutions to eat better on track! But if you have a sweet tooth that needs to be indulged for just a moment, check out these delicious No Bake Cookies.
How to Make Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- 3 bananas
- 1/3 cup applesauce
- 2 cup oats
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 cup raisins or chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel and mash bananas in a large mixing bowl.
- Add remaining ingredients and stir until well combined and the consistency of cookie dough.
- Use a cookie scoop or drop by rounded tablespoon onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake 15-20 minutes.
- Cool for 2-3 minutes, then remove cookies to wire racks to cool completely.
Notes
How to Store and Freeze Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
- These cookies will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to a week.
- To freeze, place the cookies on a baking sheet in the freezer until they are frozen. Remove from the baking sheet and place in a freezer bag and store in the freezer for three months.
I doubled the recipe. I adding 1 and 1/3 cups of cinnamon flavored apple sauce, to make up for only having 2 bananas. I replaced the milk with Greek yogurt. I added 1 cup of pecans and 1/4 cup of cinnamon chips. Also added 1 tsp. Salt and 1 tsp. Baking soda.
They are very yummy!! Thanks for the great ideas!
So glad you liked it! Thanks for sharing how you doubled the recipe with success. Great add in ideas too!
To get the batter the consistency of cookie dough I had to add one additional cup of oats and extra chocolate chips. I cooked for 16 minutes but disappointed with the taste – very chewy and airy – my son will not eat them at all. I froze the cookies to remove the “airyness” this helped a bit. In hind sight I think I should have cooked for 20 minutes and take the tip about adding honey.
My kids are 16 and 8 and both are huge fans!! Amazing recipe for all ages. Totally delicious. I used dark chocolate chips which added really nice flavor and keeps the sugar a bit lower. 100% would recommend.
I made this with steel cut oats, I used dark chocolate chips and added flax seeds (about 2 tsp) and a little salt. I made 20 cookies in the batch and they turned out hearty and delicious. Had to bake a bit longer, like 30 minutes.
Kept in the fridge and this morning had 4 with a nice cup of coffee for breakfast 🙂 Next go around, I think I will add raisins as well to make just a tad sweeter and maybe some chopped toasted almonds.
Could you use quick cooking steel cut oats to make them even healthier? Or is the texture or cooking time too much different?
I think you should be ok with the cooking times. Much more time will make them too dry. If you try it, let us know how they turn out!
These are my favorite more healthy treat. I’ve made them several times and never had an issue with the recipe… thank you for this!! Everyone in my family loves them as well. Just made a batch tonight and already ate two 🙂
I’ve read the comments & I’m going to give them a try. I decided on chocolate covered raisins, a little “sinful” never hurt anyone!
I love the idea of chocolate covered raisins! YUM! Definitely doing that next time.
I made these for dessert last night since we had guests. Everyone seemed to like them. Once I got past the non-traditional cookie texture, I loved them. My 9 month old ate one (without chocolate chips) and yelled until I gave him another. However, I used rolled oats. It seemed like more of a granola bar. I’m going to try pulsing the oats in my blender once or twice when I make them again. Very good!
Great idea to process the oats! I am definitely going to try that next time. So glad you liked them!
These are yummy! I made them for the first time tonight. I used raisins and chocolate chips. My otherwise picky, about healthy things, brother actually loved them. I couldn’t be happier.