Healthy Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Cookies

 
Last weekend, my brother and his best friend briefly stopped by my house on their way up to the mountains. They planned on spending two nights at our family’s cabin, a small getaway home built from redwood and nestled amongst a vast forest of trees. With only a few very quiet and courteous neighbors in the surrounding cabins, trips up there are always relaxing and rejuvenating for the soul.  

Knowing the boys wanted to head back on the road as soon as possible, I planned ahead for their quick break at my house. I always try to surprise them with some baked treats, especially this summer since their apartment lacks air conditioning (and I’m positive they avoid using the oven and turning their kitchen into a sauna to bake anything themselves!).
 

 
Despite my pantry and fridge threatening to burst open at the seams with so many homemade treats inside, it’s still a little tricky to pass things off to my brother… He’s allergic to eggs and lactose-intolerant! While he can take a lactase pill before eating any dairy and prevent any reactions (this is the one he uses, and he says it works wonders for everything from pizza and ice cream to lasagna and fudge — and more!), he avoids anything with eggs because there aren’t any allergy pills or other medications that work for him.

Since almost all store-bought traditional baked treats include eggs (like cookies, cakes, brownies, muffins, cheesecakes, and more), I make him as many egg-free versions of those as I can. I usually turn to my favorite egg substitute because it works perfectly in almost all of my recipes, but sometimes, I can skip that altogether.
 

 
Like with these Healthy Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Cookies! They’re naturally egg-free (and contain no dairy either!), yet they still taste incredibly soft and chewy. My brother and his best friend finished off the entire batch in two days — they said these oatmeal cookies were just that good!

And I think that’s the best compliment a sister could ever ask for! 😉

These cookies are the next recipe in my clean eating oatmeal cookie series. ← Have you tried any of the other flavors yet? (I highly recommend the carrot cake, apple pie, and classic oatmeal raisin — they’re three of the most popular recipes on my blog!) All of these cookies contain no butter, refined flour or sugar, yet they’re just as chewy as traditional recipes. Pure cookie perfection, if you ask me!
 

HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY STRAWBERRY BANANA OATMEAL COOKIES

Let’s talk about how to make these healthy strawberry banana oatmeal cookies. This recipe is simple to make, and you probably have everything you need in your kitchen already!

To start, you’ll need whole wheat flour and instant oats. No, instant oats are not the same thing as what’s in those individual-serving flavored brown paper packets! Instant oats are also known as “quick-cooking” or “one-minute” oats, and they just contain one ingredient: oats! They’re smaller and thinner than traditional old-fashioned rolled oats, and they’re sold right next to those old-fashioned oats at the grocery store.

Tip: If you’d like to make your strawberry banana oatmeal cookies gluten-free, then check the Notes section of the recipe. I’ve shared how to do so there!

It’s extremely important to measure the flour and oats correctly, using either this method or a kitchen scale. This is especially true of the oats! They act like little sponges and soak up lots moisture from your cookie dough. If you add too many, your cookies will taste dry or cakey, rather than chewy.

I highly recommend a kitchen scale! This is the one that I own, and it has easily been the best $20 I’ve ever spent. I use it every day, and it ensures all of my recipes turn out with the perfect taste and texture every time I make them.
 

 
The mashed banana plays three main roles in these cookies. It provides that irresistible fruity flavor, natural sweetness, and replaces the eggs. (You’re really smart, so I bet you already guessed that last bit!) For the best results, use the darkest, spottiest banana you can find! The more speckly it is, the more flavor it’ll add to your cookies. Those extra ripe bananas make these oatmeal cookies softer and chewier too!

For the rest of the sweetness in the cookie dough, you’ll use honey. That’s right — no refined white sugar in these treats! Pure maple syrup would also work, if you prefer a vegan option, but I opted for honey since it pairs so perfectly with the banana. (And because my brother ate peanut butter, banana, and honey sandwiches all the time during our childhood!)

Finally, you’ll mix in diced strawberries. I prefer fresh when they’re in season, but frozen and thawed berries will also work. Cut the strawberries to be no larger than the size of chocolate chips. This ensures that the cookies bake evenly — and that every bite contains a bit of fruit!
 

 
Who’s ready for dessert?? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees that I’ll see the notification from you! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy strawberry banana oatmeal cookies!

Healthy Strawberry Banana Oatmeal Cookies

© Amy's Healthy Baking

Yields: 15 cookies

These chewy cookies taste just like banana bread, and those bright bursts of sweet juicy strawberries are absolutely irresistible! They’ll stay chewy for at least a week if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

4.91 from 10 votes

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Ingredients 

• 1 cup (100g) instant oats (gluten-free if necessary and measured like this)
• ¾ cup (90g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 tbsp (28g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• ¼ cup (63g) mashed banana (about 1 rather small banana – see Notes!)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ cup (120mL) honey
• ¾ cup (105g) fresh strawberries, diced

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
• Whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, mashed banana, and vanilla. Stir in the honey. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the strawberries. Let the cookie dough rest for 10 minutes.
• Drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops onto the prepared sheet, and flatten slightly using a spatula. Bake at 325°F for 12-14 minutes. Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.

Notes

IMPORTANT MEASURING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: It’s extremely important to measure both the oats and flour correctly using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own and love!) Too much of either will dry out the cookies and leave them cakey, bready, or dry, instead of soft and chewy.

 

IMPORTANT BANANA NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: For the best results, use very ripe bananas. Ones that are pure brown are ideal! (At the very least, they should be more brown than yellow.) Brown bananas have a sweeter flavor and stronger banana taste than pure yellow ones, and they also yield a more softer and chewy cookie texture.

 

Measure the banana by grams or tablespoons — not by “1 tiny banana.” Not all tiny bananas are the exact same size, which often affects both the taste and texture of your cookies.

 

IMPORTANT BAKING NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: These cookies don’t spread very much. They’ll look fairly similar before and after baking (just no longer raw!).

 

Do not over-bake these cookies! They’re ready to come out of the oven when the centers still feel slightly soft and underdone. The heat from the warm baking sheet will continue to cook the centers all the way through while you let the cookies rest for 10 minutes after pulling the pan from the oven.

 

OATS NOTES + ALTERNATIVE: Instant oats are also known as “quick cooking” or “one-minute” oats. They come in large canisters, just like old-fashioned oats. They are not the ones in the small flavored packets of oatmeal.

 

To make your own, add the same amount of old-fashioned rolled oats to a food processor, and pulse 10-12 times or until the oats are about ¼ to ⅛ of their original size.

 

FLOUR ALTERNATIVES: White whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the whole wheat flour. Oat flour (gluten free if needed) may also be substituted, but be very careful when measuring it because it tends to be more absorbent than wheat-based flours!

 

COCONUT OIL + BUTTER ALTERNATIVES: Stick-style vegan butter may be substituted for the coconut oil or unsalted butter. For stick-style vegan butter, I really like this one and this one. (← I was surprised by how well that one melted in the microwave. It didn’t splatter or pop at all like some other brands do!)

 

Do not substitute additional mashed banana (or applesauce) for the coconut oil or butter. That will give your cookies a more cakey, bready, or dry texture.

 

SWEETENER ALTERNATIVES: Pure maple syrup or agave may be substituted for the honey. Regardless of which you use, make sure it’s at room temperature. If chilled, it will re-solidify the melted butter or coconut oil.

 

I generally don't recommend substituting sugar free maple syrup. It's often water-based, which makes your oatmeal cookies turn out more cakey or bready.

 

STRAWBERRY NOTES + ALTERNATIVE: Measure the strawberries before cutting them! It’s important to finely dice the strawberries. They should be no larger than the size of chocolate chips (about half the size of your pinky’s fingernail) to ensure the cookies bake evenly.

 

Frozen and thawed strawberries may be substituted for the fresh strawberries. Pat them dry with paper towels before dicing to remove the excess moisture from thawing.

 

GLUTEN FREE VERSION: Use certified gluten free instant oats (like these) and certified gluten free oat flour (like this). Alternatively, for a non-oat-flour version, use the following: ½ cup (60g) millet flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) tapioca flour, 2 tablespoons (15g) brown rice flour, and ½ teaspoon xanthan gum. Most store-bought gluten free flour blends (I like this one from Bob's Red Mill) will also work, if measured like this.

 

NUT FREE VERSION: Use stick-style vegan butter (I like this one and this one) or unsalted butter in place of the coconut oil.

 

DAIRY FREE, EGG FREE + VEGAN VERSION: Use the coconut oil option, and use pure maple syrup or agave in place of the honey.

 

HOW TO STORE: Store leftover cookies in an airtight container. If left at room temperature, they’ll keep for a couple of days. If refrigerated, they’ll last closer to a week (if not longer!). Once baked and fully cooled, these oatmeal cookies also freeze really well!

 

For answers to all other questions regarding substitutions and tips, see my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page.

 

{gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, nut-free}

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.

View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
 
 
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡   Banana Oatmeal Cookies
♡   Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
♡   Blueberry Banana Oatmeal Cookies
♡   Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
♡   Dark Chocolate Strawberry Oatmeal Cookies
♡   Chocolate Chip Raspberry Oatmeal Cookies
♡   Strawberry Oatmeal Cookies
♡   Strawberry Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
♡   Strawberry Blueberry Banana Bread
♡   …and the rest of Amy’s healthy oatmeal cookie recipes and healthy banana-flavored recipes!