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Description
Healthy oatmeal protein cookies made with mashed banana, peanut butter, protein powder, and oats for a nutritious, chewy treat packed with fiber and protein.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup mashed ripe banana (approximately 2 large bananas)
- 1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut/seed butter)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (or honey/agave)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup vanilla protein powder (or oat flour)
- 1/4 cup ground flaxseed meal
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts (or pepitas/almonds)
- 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup reduced-sugar dried cranberries
Instructions
- In a spacious bowl, thoroughly whisk together the mashed banana, peanut butter, and eggs until the mixture is smooth and well combined. Then, stir in the maple syrup.
- Sprinkle the baking soda, ground cinnamon, vanilla protein powder, ground flaxseed meal, and chia seeds over the wet ingredients. Stir everything together until fully incorporated.
- Gently fold in the rolled oats, chopped toasted walnuts, dark chocolate chips, and dried cranberries until evenly distributed throughout the batter. Note that the batter will appear quite liquidy at this stage.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate the cookie dough for a minimum of 4 hours. For the thickest cookies, chilling overnight is recommended.
- When ready to bake, position an oven rack in the center and preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Using a large cookie scoop or spoon, portion out 1/4 cupfuls of the chilled batter onto the prepared baking sheet. Lightly shape them into rounds with slightly flattened tops if needed, as they won’t spread much during baking.
- Bake for 9 to 12 minutes, or until the cookie tops and edges appear mostly set, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. They may still look slightly underbaked but will firm up as they cool.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 15 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
- Store any leftover cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to one week, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
- The batter will be quite liquidy before chilling; this is normal.
- For the thickest cookies, chill the dough overnight.
- Cookies may look slightly underbaked when removed from the oven but will firm up as they cool.
- Substitutions: Use other nut/seed butters, honey or agave for maple syrup, and nuts like pepitas or almonds for walnuts.
- Storage: Airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months.