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Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookies (gluten-free, dairy-free)

Jan 6, 2020 · 36 Comments

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Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookies on a cooling rack

These Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookies are thick, filled with oats and chocolate chips, and seriously taste like banana bread in cookie form! What more could you want?! 😉

I’ve got this thing with cookies.. some might call it an obsession.

Need a good breakfast? Breakfast cookies are one of my favorites.

Need a good dessert? What kind of cookie do you prefer? Chocolate Chip never fails, Snickerdoodle is a personal favorite, and you can’t go wrong with Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies.

Want a cookie that tastes like bread? (Okay, that sounds weird, but I think you catch my drift.) Welcome to the club, Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookies.

This recipe is new to me, and I’ve already made these cookies twice in 2020! Ever since I shared my Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies I’ve been wanting to make and share more soft oatmeal cookie recipes.

Ya’ll went crazy for the Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies this Fall! And I’m so glad you all loved them as much as I do! They’re my favorite Fall cookie of all time.

But now, it’s January. What flavors are good in January…? Banana never fails. So I started making these cookies and I’m in love. They’re so easy to make and completely delicious.

Filled with sweet banana flavor, a little hint of extra sweetness from brown sugar, oats and chocolate chips throughout, these soft cookies are like Banana Bread in cookie form.

These cookies are also only sweetened lightly with brown sugar (only 1/2 cup!) and filled with good-for-you oats. You could even use nuts in these instead of chocolate chips (or opt for dark chocolate chips!). I’m dubbing these “healthy cookies!”

And healthy Banana Bread for dessert?! I’m in.

A close up view of one Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookie on parchment paper, with chocolate chips and bananas around it

So, where to begin?

First, let’s talk about coconut oil. You can also use a dairy-free butter alternative stick here if you want that traditional butter flavor. And if you don’t need to be dairy-free? Go ahead and use butter if you’d like.

Either way, make sure it’s softened. Just enough so it will blend and cream well with the sugar. If it’s too soft your cookies will spread too thin. You can fix this by chilling your cookie dough, but starting with softened butter or oil is best.

Next, do I have to use brown sugar? I recommend it here. Because the sugar content is lower in this recipe, the brown sugar is really needed to give these cookies the right amount of sweetness. Without it the cookies will be more bland.

If you really prefer, you can substitute with coconut sugar instead. However, I wouldn’t recommend honey or maple syrup as a substitute. The texture of these cookies are tricky and trying to change the sugars may give you the wrong cookie texture.

What color of banana should I be using in this recipe? You want banana’s as ripe as you can get them here. Darker yellow with brown spots, super ripe, is the best. They’re the sweetest at this point and they’re also easiest to mash up too! 🙂

If your banana’s aren’t ripe enough yet your cookies won’t be as sweet. So please, I know it’s hard, but wait the extra couple days till your bananas are just right.

What type of oats should I use? Regular rolled oats in these cookies work best. Be sure they’re certified gluten-free if you need them to be!

And what about chocolate chips? You’ll need dairy-free chocolate chips for dairy-free cookies (or substitute chopped walnuts). If not, use whatever kind you would like. I would recommend milk, semi-sweet, or (my personal favorite in these) dark chocolate chips. Yum.

Last, and most importantly: If you want extra thick cookies, chill your cookie dough. About 15-30 minutes does the trick. This will help solidify the wet ingredients more so they wont spread as thin in the oven.

I like to do a “test cookie” and bake only one cookie the first time. Then I can see if my dough is to the right temperature or not by how it spreads. If I want thicker cookies, I just put my bowl of cookie dough in the fridge for a little bit. And then I scoop more and bake them.

A stack of 3 Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookies with a bite taken out of the top cookie

If you love Banana Bread, chocolate chips, and oats, then these are the cookies for you.

My kids also went NUTS for these cookies! And I’m happy with that since they’re on the healthy side, for cookies! 🙂

Need more banana recipes? Check out my gluten-free Chocolate Banana Breakfast Cookies, Banana Blondies, and vegan Banana Pancakes.

4.86 from 7 votes
Close up of a cookie with banana and chocolate
Print
Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookies (gluten-free, dairy-free)
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
14 mins
Total Time
29 mins
 
Servings: 24 cookies
Calories: 106 kcal
Ingredients
  • 1 cup gluten-free all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil, softened (or butter)
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar (or coconut sugar)
  • 3/4 cup ripe, mashed banana (about 2 medium bananas)
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • 1 1/2 cup rolled oats (certified gluten-free)
  • 3/4 cup dairy-free chocolate chips (or omit or replace with chopped walnuts)
Instructions
  1. To begin, preheat your oven to 350 and line two pans with parchment paper.

  2. In a small mixing bowl, add your dry ingredients and stir them together (flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt).

  3. In a large mixing bowl, add your coconut oil and brown sugar and cream them together with a hand mixer for a minute, or till well combined. Add your mashed banana and blend together again. Add your vanilla and egg and blend together one more time.

  4. Pour your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients and stir them together till you have a smooth cookie dough batter. Add your oats and chocolate chips and gently fold them into the batter.

  5. *For thicker cookies, chill your cookie dough batter in the fridge for 15-30 minutes.*

  6. Using a small cookie scoop, scoop your dough evenly spaced apart onto your pans, with twelve cookies on each pan. Bake in the oven for 11-14 minutes, or till the edges are set and just starting to gain some color.

  7. Let mostly cool on the pan, and then remove to a cooling rack till all cookies are entirely cool.

  8. Devour!

Recipe Notes

You can store these cookies in an airtight container on the counter for 2 days, or up to a week in the fridge.

A stack of Soft Banana Oatmeal Cookies and one cookie close up viewed from above

All Recipes, Cookies, Desserts, Gluten-free & Dairy-free, Spring Dessert, Summer Dessert

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Heather says

    January 20, 2023 at 1:26 am

    These cookies are incredible! Everyone that tries one loves them, and they are my go-to when bringing a dish to pass. They’re easy to make, good options for people watching their nutrition, and they’re delicious! If ya like banana bread, you will love these cookies.

    Reply
  2. Sarah Hassan says

    January 12, 2023 at 3:17 pm

    I tried them, but substitued butter with vegetable oil. They taste great but they’re very cakey not cookie like. Any idea what I might have done wrong.

    Thanks

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      January 13, 2023 at 7:56 pm

      Hi Sarah. They should be pretty soft – they won’t be a hard cookie. Did you use rolled oats or quick oats? That would have made them even softer. And also, did you measure your banana? That could make a difference as well.

      Reply
  3. kermit says

    December 16, 2021 at 6:28 am

    made these, they were great. we used butter and a mixture of maple syrup and brown sugar, and added extra chocolate chips. yum. thanks for the recipe.

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      December 16, 2021 at 6:11 pm

      Great to hear, thank you for the comment!

      Reply
  4. Amy says

    August 12, 2021 at 1:01 pm

    These were sooo good! I wanted to try them with maple syrup. How much would you recommend using instead of the brown sugar?

    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      August 14, 2021 at 3:09 pm

      Great to hear, Amy, thanks! I would say 1/3 cup of maple syrup should work. You may also have to chill the dough a little bit if it spreads too thin, from the maple syrup. I hope this helps!

      Reply
  5. Ken says

    July 31, 2021 at 1:28 pm

    This recipe looks awesome! Can I use regular all-purpose flour instead of the gluten-free flour?

    Thanks,
    Ken

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      August 1, 2021 at 2:15 am

      Yes you can! 🙂

      Reply
  6. Ada says

    June 9, 2021 at 1:51 am

    This sounds really yummy. I have coconut flour would that work?

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      June 9, 2021 at 3:43 pm

      I would not recommend coconut flour, sorry!

      Reply
  7. Rose says

    April 16, 2021 at 1:20 pm

    Can you substitute Almond flour for the all purpose flour?

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      April 19, 2021 at 7:26 pm

      Hi Rose. I’m sorry to say that I’m not sure, I’ve never tried it! Typically, almond flour needs more binders (like egg) and extra flour, to substitute for other flours. However, the banana in these cookies would help them stay together so almond flour just might work. You just may need extra flour. I’m not sure if you want to experiment or not, but I hope this info helps!

      Reply
  8. Nette pisha says

    October 21, 2020 at 2:24 pm

    Thank you for the recipe and want to make them today! Wish me luck! 🍀🤗

    Reply
  9. Lilia says

    October 18, 2020 at 9:49 pm

    Great recipe!! Used half maple syrup half sugar and they were delicious!

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      October 20, 2020 at 2:49 am

      Thanks Lilia!

      Reply
  10. Susan says

    September 16, 2020 at 10:48 pm

    I don’t use eggs, can I sub extra bananas?

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      September 17, 2020 at 1:55 am

      Hi Susan. I would recommend a chia/flax egg first (1 tbsp flax/chia and 2 1/2 tbsp water). I would assume banana would also work well (although I don’t know 100% since I’ve never done it, sorry). I hope this helps, and I hope they turn out great for you!

      Reply
  11. Savetah says

    July 15, 2020 at 5:12 pm

    I don’t have a hand mixer could I just mix it with a spoon or whisk?

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      July 18, 2020 at 3:16 pm

      Yes, it’ll just take some muscle to get it to cream together well!

      Reply
  12. Tina says

    July 12, 2020 at 11:43 pm

    Made the cookies today. My brown sugar was hard as a rock – so I used Sugar In The Raw Turbinado Cane Sugar (it has natural molasses so it tastes similar to brown sugar). I also used Bob Red Mill’s 1 to 1 Baking Flour. The cookies are amazing! Definitely will make again. Thanks for the gluten free recipe!

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      July 14, 2020 at 2:20 am

      Awesome! Great to hear that Tina. Thanks for the review!

      Reply
    • Ed says

      September 19, 2020 at 8:23 pm

      You can put the brown sugar in the microwave. It softens up good.

      Reply
      • Nette pisha says

        October 21, 2020 at 2:21 pm

        Or put a stale piece of bread in it and will soften it.

        Reply
  13. Stacy says

    June 14, 2020 at 4:49 pm

    Can i freeze the cookies?

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      June 15, 2020 at 2:15 am

      Hi Stacy. Yeah, these cookies will freeze well. Just let them thaw in the fridge first!

      Reply
  14. Vanessa says

    May 10, 2020 at 5:52 pm

    Loved the cookies, I made a double batch and ended up with 54 cookies, 1/2 an hour only 22 remained!
    They are so easy to make and to BBQ also!

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      May 12, 2020 at 1:58 am

      Great to hear that Vanessa, thanks!

      Reply
  15. Brianna Gosselin says

    May 9, 2020 at 12:23 am

    Delicious!
    Substituted maple syrup for brown sugar and turned out amazing.
    Will save and make again and again.

    Thank you so much 🙂

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      May 9, 2020 at 1:59 am

      So happy to hear that! 🙂

      Reply
    • Amy says

      August 12, 2021 at 1:00 pm

      How much maple syrup did you use??

      Reply
  16. Karen says

    April 8, 2020 at 9:29 pm

    Very good! I substituted wheat bran as I didn’t have rolled oats and they turned out good

    Reply
  17. Ruby says

    April 7, 2020 at 7:17 pm

    Hi, i noticed it says 106 kcals…is that per cookie or how many cookies is it for 106 calories?

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      April 8, 2020 at 2:36 am

      Hi Ruby. Correct, that is roughly 106 calories per each cookie, at about 24 cookies for the whole recipe. Hope that helps!

      Reply
  18. Kelli says

    April 5, 2020 at 7:20 pm

    These are delish! I added 1/4 peanut butter to the wet ingredients as well and they were fabulous!

    Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
    May I share your recipe and provide credit?

    Reply
    • Chelsea Green says

      April 6, 2020 at 9:49 pm

      Thank you Kelli! So happy to hear that. I would prefer that you would just link to my website for someone to find my recipe please. When my recipe is posted in other places it takes traffic away from me, therefore taking my income away. Thanks!

      Reply

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Hey, I’m Chelsea! I'm a Colorado Mom baking up simple, gluten-free recipes at over a mile high above sea level. Here you'll find healthy breakfasts and snacks, decadent desserts, and fun drinks. Join me, whether you bake in the mountains or not! Read More…

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