Banana Oatmeal Cookies
Updated Oct 01, 2026
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These banana oatmeal cookies are easy to make in 20 minutes with a few simple ingredients like oats, honey, ripe bananas and no flour! Banana oat cookies are a delicious breakfast, snack or healthy dessert – add chocolate chip or your favorite mix-ins to make them extra-special!
These banana oatmeal cookies are healthy enough to eat for breakfast! Made with a handful of nutritious ingredients in a mere 20 minutes – enjoy these banana oat cookies as a delicious breakfast, snack or healthy dessert (also, try these breakfast cookies and homemade granola bars)! Add chocolate chip or your favorite mix-ins to make them extra-special!
My kids love it when I make these banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies – because they think they’re eating dessert when really they’re enjoying a healthy and nutritious treat! I like making a batch and tossing them in the freezer to always have on hand for busy mornings or as a quick snack. They’re gluten-free, dairy-free and easy to make vegan too.
Why You’ll Love These Banana Oatmeal Cookies
- SO Easy. One bowl & 20 minutes.
- No flour. Only oats – so they’re gluten-free!
- Naturally sweetened. Bananas & honey or maple syrup make them sweet but not too sweet.
- Healthy enough for breakfast. They’re made with wholesome ingredients like bananas and oats, but my kids still feel like they’re eating cookies for breakfast!
- Allergy-friendly. They’re naturally dairy-free and gluten-free when made with certified gluten-free oats, and they’re easy to make vegan.
- Freezer-friendly. Make a batch and freeze them for quick breakfasts, lunchboxes and snacks.
I had all ingredients on hand so I gave it a try, very easy, I added dark chocolate chips. I will be making these again and again. Thank you. Is it still healthy if you eat a dozen at a time? 😆🤣
– Louis
Banana Oatmeal Cookies Ingredients & Substitutions
Let’s chat about the ingredients in these banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, as well as possible substitutions!
- Overripe bananas. Make sure your bananas are ripe and sweet. If using bananas that have been previously frozen, thaw them in the microwave or at room temperature before using in this recipe.
- Honey/Maple Syrup. Both liquid sweeteners work well in these banana oatmeal cookies. Agave or brown rice syrup can also be used.
- Egg. you can use a flax egg or egg replacer to make these vegan/egg-free.
- Cinnamon. Don’t leave it out! The cinnamon makes these the absolute best banana oatmeal cookies ever.
- Sea salt. If using iodized salt, reduce the amount by half.
- Chocolate chips. Regular-sized or mini chips work great in this recipe. We’ll chat later about a variety of possible mix-ins other than chocolate chips.
Can I Use Old-Fashioned Oats?
Yes! I prefer quick-cooking oats for banana oatmeal cookies because they give the cookies a softer texture.
Old-fashioned rolled oats also work, but they create a heartier, chewier cookie with more noticeable pieces of oatmeal. If you want to use them, I suggest pulsing them in a food processor or blender 1 or 2 times to achieve the texture of quick-cooking oats.
I would not recommend steel-cut oats in this recipe.
How to Make Banana Oatmeal Cookies
These banana oatmeal cookies are incredibly easy to make in one bowl – no mixer or chilling required. Follow the step-by-step photos to learn how to make these healthy banana oat cookies, and don’t forget to watch the video!
To begin, mash the bananas together in a large mixing bowl. Then, add honey, egg and vanilla and stir to combine. Next, add oats, cinnamon and sea salt and stir until combined.
Add Chocolate Chip Or Mix-ins
Once the batter is homogenous (uniform throughout), gently stir in mix-ins, if desired. I prefer to make these banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and add some semi-sweet chocolate chips (regular or mini). However, there are some other add-in ideas:
- Cinnamon Chips (yum)!
- White chocolate chips
- Coconut
- Dried fruit (raisins, cherries, cranberries, blueberries, etc).
- Peanut butter chips
- Chopped nuts
Bake & Cool
Use a 1 tablespoon measuring spoon or a 1 ½ tablespoon cookie scoop to measure portions of the banana oatmeal cookie dough, and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper spaced about 2” apart.
Bake the banana oat cookies in a preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until the tops are just set and the bottoms are very lightly browned. Then, let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
How to Serve Banana Oatmeal Cookies
Serve these healthy banana oatmeal cookies slightly warm or at room temperature.
How to Store Banana Oat cookies
Once completely cooled, store these banana and oat cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Freeze
These banana oatmeal cookies freeze beautifully. Let them cool completely, then transfer them to an airtight container or freezer-friendly bag and freeze for up to 2 months.
Reaheat
Reheat in the microwave or oven set to warm.
Banana Oatmeal Cookies FAQs
This recipe lasts for up to 1 week in the refrigerator, and 2 months in the freezer.
Yes, you can use an egg replacer, chia egg or flax egg (1 TBS chia/flax mixed with 2.5 TBS warm water).
Yes! This recipe is made with fruit, oats, and naturally sweetened. They’re a great, healthy, low-calorie snack or treat.
Yes. I prefer quick-cooking oats because they result in the best texture. Old-fashioned rolled oats work too, but the cookies will have a heartier, chewier texture. Do not use steel-cut oats.
This recipe is naturally flourless. Oats themselves don’t contain gluten, but cross-contact can occur during processing, so use certified gluten-free oats if you need the cookies to be gluten-free.
Yes. Use maple syrup instead of honey, replace the egg with a flax egg, chia egg or your favorite egg replacer, and use dairy-free chocolate chips.
Very ripe bananas are best. Choose bananas with lots of brown spots because they’re softer and sweeter.
Absolutely. You can omit the chocolate chips entirely or replace them with raisins, dried cranberries, shredded coconut, chopped nuts or another favorite mix-in.
These cookies are supposed to be soft. They won’t have the same crisp edges as a traditional oatmeal cookie. They’re more like little banana bread cookies! 🙂
If you make and love my recipes, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a comment and rating! And don’t forget to follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube – be sure to tag @joyfoodsunshine and use the hashtag #joyfoodsunshine so I can see your creations!
Banana Oatmeal Cookies
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 bananas overripe (about 1 ¼ cups mashed banana)
- 2 Tablespoons honey (or maple syrup)
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cup quick cooking oats
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ½ cup chocolate chips or other add ins like shredded coconut, dried cranberries, raisins, etc.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, set aside
- In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas.
- Add honey, egg and vanilla and stir to combine.
- Add oats, cinnamon and sea salt and stir until combined.
- If desired, add mix-ins and stir until evenly distributed.
- Use a 1 tablespoon measuring spoon or a 1 ½ TBS cookie scoop to measure portions of the dough, and place them on the prepared baking sheet spaced about 2” apart.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until the tops are just set and the bottoms are very lightly browned.
- Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Notes
- Overripe bananas. Make sure your bananas are ripe and sweet. If using bananas that have been previously frozen, thaw them in the microwave or at room temperature before using in this recipe.
- Honey/Maple Syrup. Both liquid sweeteners work well. Agave or brown rice syrup can also be used.
- Egg. you can use a flax egg or egg replacer to make these vegan/egg-free.
- Quick-cooking oats. Rolled/old fashioned oats can be used, however the texture will be different.
- Cinnamon. Don’t leave it out! The cinnamon makes these the absolute best banana oatmeal cookies ever.
- Sea salt. If using iodized salt, reduce the amount by half.
- Chocolate chips. Regular-sized or mini chips work great in this recipe. Other possibilities include: cinnamon chips, white chocolate chips, coconut, dried fruit (raisins, cherries, cranberries, blueberries, etc), peanut butter chips, chopped nuts, etc.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
My kids love these and they’re super healthy. Great recipe!
Thanks Jessica!
Very tasty cookie and even with no honey they were sweet enough. I let them cook longer than 15 mins.But they stayed chewy. Great recipes
These cookies are excellent! I didn’t realize I was out of honey until I was already measuring ingredients but I added dates and they are the perfect sweetness.
Thank you Kathryn!
Could I add protein powder?
Yes for sure a scoop of protein powder would work well in this recipe!
I only had old fashioned rolled oats on hand so used those instead and also threw in about a 1/3 cup of whole wheat flour and half a teaspoon of baking powder (since the batter was very wet with the rolled oats). The result was incredible. Soft and chewy, chocolatey banana goodness! Both kids devoured them all. I think I’ll add a bit less honey next time though, as they were plenty sweet! So good.
Thank you Jo!
I made your banana oatmeal cookies. I didn’t add the honey or the maple syrup. I added Bailey’s salted caramel Lecure and some peanut butter chips. I was the head of the town let me say.
Why is my mixture runny? Is it from the frozen banana? It was liquidity after thawed.
No, you may just need to add more oats. If your frozen bananas were really large you just need more dry ingredients to compensate.
I baked these today and they are a soft “cookie” 😊 it’s like having a soft hand held chocolate chip banana oatmeal muffin top. Thank you for giving us a good recipe to help use up ripe bananas besides making more banana bread.
Thank you so much Susan! I just made these this week too for that very reason! Had 3 bananas that needed to be used in baking and didn’t have an hour for the bread to bake! 🙂
I appreciate that this is a healthy “cookie,” but it bears no resemblance to any cookie I have ever eaten. Readers should know that the product is more like a large congealed spoonful of banana-oatmeal enriched with dried fruit, chocolate chips, and some nuts. It really is not a cookie at all. Any standard oatmeal cookie has a far better texture. I am an experienced baker and followed the recipe to the letter, using a flax egg substitute and an addition of 1/3 C. flour per others’ suggestions.
Hello! You are correct, these cookies don’t have the texture of traditional oatmeal cookies (like my best oatmeal cookies recipe). I try to make that very obvious in the photos and videos! I’m so sorry you were disappointed!
If you use a substitute and an addition, you are not following a recipe “to the letter.”