Make your morning a whole lot better with cookies for breakfast! These banana oatmeal breakfast cookies are gluten free, sweetened with just a touch of maple syrup and can easily be made vegan.
Chocolate chip cookies are one of my favorite things ever, so any excuse to eat them for breakfast and I’m all over it!
These banana oatmeal breakfast cookies are many with incredibly simple ingredients, most of which you probably have on hand already. They’re naturally sweetened from the bananas and a touch of maple syrup to seal the deal.
You can make them with chopped nuts or chocolate chips like I did, or even just plain! They’re kind of like banana oatmeal in breakfast cookie form.
Simple, delicious and perfect for an on the go breakfast or snack. All you need is about 20 minutes and a handful of pantry staple ingredients.
Key ingredients
Oats. You will need a mix of oat flour and quick cooking oats for these breakfast cookies. You can sub for rolled oats if that’s what you have on hand, but the texture will be a bit different.
Banana. I recommend using banana puree instead of mashed banana because the texture is generally much better.
Egg. Just one egg will add a bit of extra protein and help bind all of the ingredients together.
Maple syrup. These breakfast cookies are refined sugar free and sweetened just with maple syrup! You can sub with honey if you prefer.
Nut butter. I used almond butter, but peanut butter or sunflower seed butter work well too!
How to make breakfast cookies
First, whisk together the wet ingredients in a mixing bowl until well combined. If you’re making these vegan, just make the flax egg first, then add into the bowl.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix together with a wooden spoon.
Fold in the chocolate chips or nuts if using. You can use a mix of both, just one, or none! Use a cookie scoop to form the cookies and add to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
They won’t spread much while baking, so press down slightly with your fingers to form the shape you want.
Bake for 8-12 minutes. The edges should be golden brown and the center should still feel soft. The will continue to firm as they cool.
Substitutions & Mix-Ins
While these oatmeal breakfast cookies are delicious as is, there are plenty of ways to mix it up or add some more of your favorite ingredients.
You can add in any chopped nuts or seeds like pumpkin seeds, walnuts, almonds or a handful of raisins.
Make them a peanut butter cookie by subbing the almond butter for peanut butter or adding in some crushed peanuts. The options are virtually endless!
Ingredient Tips
Be sure to use quick cooking oats and not rolled oats for this recipe. If you only have rolled oats, just pulse them a few times in a blender or food processor to break them up slightly.
If you don’t have oat flour, you can just grind up some quick or rolled oats until a flour forms!
This recipe makes about 12 cookies, depending on how big you make them. They don’t spread a lot while baking, so you can get away with putting up to 12 on a baking sheet at a time.
If you need to do 2 batches, keep in mind the dough will thicken as it sits so the second batch won’t spread as much as the first.
You can use any nut butter in place of the almond butter, just make sure it is on the runny side. If your nut butter is thick, I suggest using closer to 1//2 cup or adding a splash of milk to the dough.
Can I make these vegan?
Yes! These banana oatmeal cookies can be made with either one regular egg or one flax egg.
To make a flax egg, simply whisk together one tablespoon of ground flax seeds with 2 1/2 tablespoons of water. Let thicken, then proceed with the recipe as usual.
Are these chewy or crispy?
Definitely chewy! The banana will keep these cookies very chewy, there is no crunch or crisp to them at all. The texture is fairly similar to banana bread, just in the shape of a cookie!
Do they keep?
Once prepared, these cookies will keep for about 3 days. They can get very soft if kept completely covered, so keep them just covered with foil for best results.
You can also freeze them! Just let them cool completely, then transfer to a freezer safe bag for up to 2 months.
Reheat in the oven at 300 for about 5 minutes or until warm through the center.
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Banana Bread Breakfast Cookies
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Wet
- ½ cup banana puree from about 2 large ripe bananas
- ⅓ cup + 1 tbsp runny almond butter
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 egg or flax egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
Dry
- 1 cup oat flour
- 1 ½ cups quick oats
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup chocolate chip or chopped nuts optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Whisk together all wet ingredients in a mixing bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix together with a wooden spoon.
- Fold in the chocolate chips or nuts if using.
- Use a medium cookie scoop to form the cookies and add to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- They won't spread much while baking, so press down slightly with your fingers to form the shape you want. The dough will be sticky, so it helps if your fingertips are slightly wet.
- Bake for 8-12 minutes. The edges should be golden brown and the center should still feel soft. The will continue to firm as they cool.
Christine says
Made them with peanut butter and no egg but more banana puree. They are satisfying and remind me of a less sweet version of a peanut butter cliff bar.
Claire Cary says
Perfect! So glad those subs worked.
Paula says
I found this recipe looking for a banana cookie with maple syrup. I purchased 25# of whole wheat pastry flour for Christmas cookies and needed to use it up, so I was looking for a versatile recipe. It worked! Subbing the whole wheat pastry flour for the oat flour 1:1 resulted in dough a bit wet, so I added 1/3 cup unsweetened coconut in addition to the cinnamon chips. I also used butter vs nut butter this time. I am devouring them warm.
Taylor says
These are SO yummy!!! I love having a grab and go ready for the mornings and these are perfect!!! Big fan 🙂 I used almond flour because I didn’t have oat flour and they turned out just as yummy!
Claire Cary says
Perfect, so glad to know they worked with almond flour!
Sandy says
Theses are just delicious. Couldn’t stop eating them and so easy!
Mehryn says
LOVE these! Perfect for a morning snack, no sugar spike, and you can control the portion sizes.
Virginia says
I am dying to try this but Is there an alternative to using a nut butter in this recipe, like regular butter or oil?
Claire Cary says
No, nut butter behaves very differently than other fat sources, so it’s key here!
Kelly McCormack says
LOVED this recipe! The texture is absolutely perfect! Tastes amazing! Will be a weekly go to!
Claire Cary says
Thank you Kelly!
Sage says
These cookies are sooooo good!!! My partner and I loved them. Smells like fresh banana bread out of the oven. Making my second batch today!
Claire Cary says
Yay! So happy to hear you’re enjoying them!
Gwen says
Amazing! Best breakfast cookie recipe I’ve made so far!
Claire Cary says
Love to hear that! Thanks Gwen!
Murphy says
I love a good make-ahead breakfast, and these were so yummy.
Claire Cary says
Make ahead breakfasts are the best! So happy you enjoyed them
Anna says
Delicious! Made these for the first time today. 😊
Claire Cary says
Thank you Anna! So happy you enjoyed them.
Henna says
These were delicious! I love how hearty these are, and I will make these over and over again!
Sandra says
Very yummy!!!
Will definitely be making again
Made them late afternoon
They didn’t even last until breakfast
Claire Cary says
Not a bad problem to have! So happy you enjoyed them!