In February, my parents invited their close friends from college to come over for a small Super Bowl party. Although they attended a four-year university in southern California, everyone eventually migrated north to the suburbs outside of San Francisco, so they’re able to see each other multiple times throughout the year.
We started off with appetizers and snacks during the first half of the game, which Mom spread out across the dining room table. Chips and salsa, cheese and crackers, crudités and hummus, dried apple slices, M&Ms…
People tried to pace themselves and only take a little bit at a time to save room for the main course, but they never knew when to peel themselves away from the TV to grab a few more nibbles. During the exciting action of the game?… During the hilarious and super cute commercials?…
As a huge sports fan, I opted for the latter!
During the first few minutes of halftime, but before the performance, we headed back to the kitchen for the entrées. Dad had cooked steak, sausages, and pork tenderloin on the charcoal grill in the backyard, and he also prepared a quinoa salad and my special roasted Brussels sprouts inside.
Throughout the second half, people wandered over to the dessert table, which included a few store-bought cakes, these homemade truffles, these homemade chocolate graham crackers… And these healthy banana chocolate chip cookies! They’re perfectly soft and chewy (even with no butter, eggs, refined flour, or refined sugar!) and simple to make.
And the best part of our Super Bowl party? Everyone raved about all three of my recipes and asked to bring the leftovers home with them!
KEY INGREDIENTS TO MAKE HEALTHY BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Let’s cover the ingredients you’ll need to make these healthy banana chocolate chip cookies!
You’ll start with white whole wheat flour. It sounds like a paradox, doesn’t it? Normally white flour and whole wheat flour are two separate things! However, white whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of white wheat, whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. This gives white whole wheat flour a lighter taste and texture, similar to all-purpose flour, which really lets the banana flavor and chewy texture shine! (Bonus: It has the same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour!)
Tip: I included a few gluten-free options in the Notes section of the recipe, if you’d like to make these healthy banana chocolate chip cookies gluten-free!
The mashed banana plays three important roles in these cookies: fruit flavor (I’m sure you guessed that already!), natural sweetness, and an egg replacer. That’s right — these cookies contain no eggs! I included a dairy-free option too… So if you use that, your healthy banana chocolate chip cookies will be vegan, egg-free, and dairy-free!
Tip: To make the best banana cookies, pick an extra spotty banana. I always use ones that are almost pure brown or black. Very brown bananas contain a stronger banana flavor and more natural sweetness than pure yellow ones. They also make your cookies softer!
Because the banana alone doesn’t provide quite enough sweetness for these cookies, you’ll also mix in coconut sugar. That’s exactly what it sounds like: an unrefined sweetener that comes from coconuts! But it does NOT actually taste like coconuts. It has a rich, caramel-like flavor, similar to brown sugar, and it pours like granulated sugar. Most grocery stores stock it near the regular sugar on the baking aisle, and you can also find it online.
Then for my favorite part… The mini chocolate chips! (I’m a huge chocoholic. That’s why I published my Healthier Chocolate Treats cookbook!) I prefer these mini chips because they melt very well and taste really rich. Plus mini chocolate chips ensure that every bite of these cookies contains chocolate!
HOW TO MAKE BANANA CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Let’s go over how to make the best banana chocolate chip cookies! This recipe is easy and straightforward, so I just have a few quick tips.
Chill the cookie dough. This cookie dough is fairly sticky when you initially mix everything together. A brief trip to the refrigerator helps fix that! Chilling stiffens the cookie dough and makes it easier to work with. It’ll still be a bit sticky though, so use a spoon and spatula to shape it — not your hands!
Flatten the cookie dough. These cookies do not spread while baking, so flatten them before you put them in the oven! I like to use these mini spatulas to shape the cookie dough and smooth out the edges into nice round circles.
Do not overbake. The cookies are ready to come out of the oven when the centers still feel a bit soft and underdone. If you wait until the centers are firm, you’ll overbake the cookies — and they’ll turn out cakey, bready, or dry! But if you remove the baking sheet from the oven earlier, when the cookies still feel slightly underdone, they’ll turn out perfectly soft and chewy. (The heat from the warm baking sheet continues to cook the centers all the way through while you let the cookies rest before transferring them to a wire rack!)
Got milk? 😉 And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amys.healthy.baking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy banana chocolate chip cookies!
Healthy Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (120g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tbsp (21g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (67g) mashed banana (about 1 tiny banana – and see Notes!)
- 1 tbsp (15mL) unsweetened vanilla almond milk, room temperature
- ⅓ cup (64g) coconut sugar
- 3 tbsp (42g) miniature chocolate chips, divided
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate bowl, stir together the butter, vanilla, mashed banana, and milk. Stir in the coconut sugar. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in 2 ½ tablespoons of miniature chocolate chips. Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- Drop the cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheet using a spoon and a spatula. Flatten the cookie dough to ⅜" thick. Gently press the remaining miniature chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Banana Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Banana Cookies
♡ Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Brownies
♡ Peanut Butter Banana Bread Brownies
♡ Strawberry Blueberry Banana Bread
♡ Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
♡ Chocolate Chip Banana Oatmeal Muffins
♡ Banana Chocolate Chip Scones
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy banana recipes!
Hi Amy, I just took them from an oven and they are so chewy but I will eat them anyway because they tastes good 🙂
Do I have to use coconut sugar. Can I use the sugar no calories
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Jacqueline! I’ve actually provided the best alternative to coconut sugar in the Notes section of the recipe (located directly underneath the Instructions — I know it can be easy to miss!).
If neither of these sweetener options work for you, then did you have something specific in mind? If you share the exact brand + product name, I can try to determine whether it’ll work as a replacement! 🙂
Hello Amy! I Tried these out tonight but my cookies rose so much!! They look like dinner rolls now – haha. Is it because of too much baking powder? But I followed the recipe.. So strange!
It means so much that you tried another one of my recipes, Connie! It’s strange that your cookie rose so much… I’m happy to help solve that mystery! In order to do so, I have few questions for you. 🙂
Did they have a soft and chewy texture, or were they more cake-like?
Did you make any substitutions or modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups/spoons, especially for the flour, banana, and milk?
How much did you flatten your mounds of cookie dough, and how thick were they before baking? (If you have a ruler nearby and can guesstimate, that would be helpful!)
How long did you bake them?
Did they collapse while cooling at all?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but I’ll have a much better idea of the culprit once I know your answers to all of them!
Can almond flour be used?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Angelica! Yes, in this particular recipe, almond flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour. 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think of these cookies if you end up making them!
Hello, Amy!
I’ve been on a weight loss journey and have the WORST sweet tooth. I was looking for a healthy sweets recipes that didn’t taste like cardboard (lol) and just have to say that these cookies taste amazing!! I substituted regular butter for a lower calorie butter as well as using an unsweetened vanilla almond milk to make it even less calories (and more vanilla-y). 🙂 Can’t wait to try some more of your recipes…Cheers!
This recipe was AMAZING!! I decided I’d try a healthier version and they turned out even better then the normal choco banana cookies!! Really nice and soft 🙂 though I did substitute brown sugar for coconut sugar and all purpose flour for the white whole wheat flour the recipe still turned out delicious ! I will definitely be making again 😀
I’m so glad you enjoyed these cookies, Daphne! That’s the best kind of compliment there is, if you already think you’ll make them again. Thank you for taking the time to let me know — it truly means a lot! 🙂
I made these cookies today. I liked them very well I liked the texture
And the taste was the best I have tasted for a long time.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed these cookies, Cindy! We are so honored that you feel like these are the best you have tasted in a while! Thanks for taking to the time to share such a nice compliment and rate this recipe. It really means a lot! 🙂
Amy,
First time making these cookies and they turned out great! Substituted 2% milk and light brown sugar. I might try the recommended unsweetened vanilla almond milk next time, and wonder how that would taste. Also thinking of adding a little more mashed banana but don’t want to overpower the taste…what do you think? Anyway, couldn’t be happier the way they turned out!
Dennis
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed these cookies, Dennis! We really appreciate you taking the time to let us know and rate the recipe. It really means a lot! 🙂
Using more banana will add moisture to the cookie dough, so it’ll turn out wetter and stickier. You’re welcome to experiment on your own if you’d like to try it! We’d recommend using another 2 tablespoons of mashed banana and eliminating the milk, at least to start, to compensate for the added “liquid” volume. Since you’ve already made these cookies, you’re hopefully familiar enough with what the cookie dough’s consistency looks like! If it’s too dry without the milk, then add some in ½ teaspoon or so at a time until the cookie dough is the same consistency as before.
We’d love to hear how it works out if you decide to try making these cookies with more banana, Dennis!
Hi Amy – I would like to make these to send to my daughter and family in California (from Maryland) – do you think they will travel well, or might they be too moist of a cookie to ship? Thank you!
That’s so sweet of you to do that for your daughter, Robin! We’re honored you would use one of our recipes for that! Amy actually has a great guide all about how to mail cookies here! This particular recipe would be considered “drop style” cookies. If you package them as outlined in our guide and they arrive within 3-4 days of baking them, then that should be fine!
I followed the recipe to the gram using a kitchen scale, but my cookies came out looking like tiny bites of banana bread. Still tasted good, but it’s not cookies! Maybe the dough was a bit dry? But i used precisely as much sugar, banana, butter and milk as the recipe states.
Not sure what went wrong!
It means a lot that you tried our recipe, Hannah! That sounds disappointing and not like how these cookies are supposed to turn out, so we’re happy to work with you to figure out what happened. In order to do so, we have some questions for you!
Did you make any substitutions or modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
Did you use white whole wheat flour or the homemade gluten-free blend provided in the Notes section?
What brand of coconut sugar did you use?
Were your bananas almost entirely or 100% completely brown?
Can you describe the consistency of your cookie dough before and after chilling? Did it match the consistency of the cookie dough in our video? (Our video is in the blog post above the recipe!)
How much did you flatten the cookie dough before baking?
How long did you bake your cookies?
Were the centers still soft and slightly underdone when you removed them from the oven?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but we’ll have a much better idea of the culprit once we know your answers to all of them! 🙂