Before every trip to the grocery store, I organize my list by departments. I start with the produce (it’s at the front right next to the entry doors!), followed by the nonperishables, then the dairy and refrigerated items, and ending with anything frozen (to minimize the amount of time it has to thaw before I put it in my freezer at home!).
During last week’s trip, I grabbed a bunch of ingredients I needed for upcoming blog baking recipes. I picked out a few oranges, a basket of blueberries, a bunch of bananas, a container of instant oats, a bag of mini chocolate chips, a jar of peanuts, a carton of buttermilk, and a big tub of Greek yogurt.
To anyone who didn’t know about my baking profession, that would look like quite an eclectic mix!
I found a cashier with virtually no line, and I started unloading my shopping basket onto the conveyer belt. As the man reached for my groceries to scan and bag them, he politely made small talk, as all cashiers seem to do around here.
Yet instead of asking about my day, as the rest of his coworkers always do, he posed a different question. “What are you making today?” (Although that inquiry makes perfect sense at a grocery store!) I smiled and rattled off the next three recipes I planned to bake…
Including these Healthy Banana Monster Cookies! They’re soft and chewy oatmeal cookies with sweet banana and peanut butter flavors, then finished with mini chocolate chips and M&Ms… And these healthy cookies are really easy to make and only 102 calories!
They’re also perfect for an indecisive person like me who can’t decide whether peanut butter + banana –OR– peanut butter + chocolate is a better combination… So why not have all of them together?? ?
Nerd alert! Just in case you felt like I did the first time I heard of “monster cookies” and envisioned something blue and fuzzy like the Cookie Monster from Sesame Street… That’s definitely not what monster cookies are!
Traditional monster cookies are peanut butter oatmeal cookies with chocolate chips and M&Ms, invented by a man named Dick Wesley. He intended to make a batch of peanut butter cookies for his six children, along with some of their friends, which made for quite a big bowl of cookie dough. (Imagine 3 pounds of peanut butter, 12 eggs, 6 pounds of sugar, and 18 cups of oatmeal!) He continued to add in other “fun” ingredients like chocolate chips and candy-coated bits (aka M&Ms), and he actually ruined the motor of two different mixers in trying to make the cookie dough!
So… Monster cookies earned their name for their sheer “monstrous” volume of ingredients and because they were a “monster” to mix up! ?
With that little history lesson out of the way, let’s go over how to make these healthy monster cookies!
You’ll start with whole wheat flour (or gluten-free, if you prefer!) and instant oats (like these, or gluten-free instant oats like these!). Instant oats are also called “quick-cooking” or “one-minute” oats, and they’re thinner and smaller than traditional rolled oats. They’re usually sold in canisters right next to the old-fashioned oats.
It’s extremely important that you measure the flour and oats correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own!) Too much of either ingredient will make your cookies taste cakey, rather than chewy, and too many oats will make your cookies turn out dry and crumbly. That’s because oats act like little sponges and soak up tons of moisture from your cookie dough!
Although traditional monster cookies contain eggs and butter (or margarine, like in Mr. Wesley’s recipe), these healthy monster cookies contain neither… You’ll use mashed banana instead! It replaces the eggs and adds a sweet, fun fruity flavor.
For the best results, make sure you use a very ripe banana, one with more brown spots than yellow! See the ones below? That’s the minimum amount of brown I recommend. More is even better! That’s because the brown bananas have a stronger, sweeter flavor than the pure yellow ones.
Instead of refined sugar, you’ll sweeten your healthy monster cookies with pure maple syrup (like this!). Use the real kind that comes straight from maple trees! Skip the pancake syrup and sugar-free syrup because those usually contain artificial ingredients and negatively affect the cookies’ texture. You can usually find pure maple syrup in thin glass bottles or squat plastic jugs at the grocery store.
Of course, we can’t forget those special mix-ins… Mini chocolate chips (I’m obsessed with these!) and mini M&Ms (like these!). For a vegan version, I stumbled across these candy-coated chocolate bits while searching online… And from the ingredients list, they’re also naturally dyed!
How fun do these healthy banana monster cookies look? From my family’s reaction, they taste even better than they look! ?? 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 I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your healthy monster cookies!
| Healthy Banana Monster Cookies | | Print |
- 1 cup (100g) instant oats (gluten-free if necessary and measured like this)
- ¾ cup (90g) whole wheat or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp salt
- ¼ cup (63g) mashed banana
- 2 tbsp (32g) homemade easy blender peanut butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120mL) pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp (28g) miniature chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp (28g) miniature M&Ms
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate bowl, stir together the mashed banana, peanut butter, and vanilla. Stir in the maple syrup. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the 1 ½ tablespoons of miniature chocolate chips and 1 ½ tablespoons of miniature M&Ms. Let the cookie dough rest for 10 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- Using a spoon and spatula, drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops onto the prepared sheet, and flatten to the desired thickness and width using a spatula. Gently press the remaining miniature chocolate chips and M&Ms into the tops. Bake at 325°F for 10-12 minutes. Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
Instant oats are also known as quick-cooking or 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 oats to a food processor, and pulse 10-12 times or until the oats are about ¼ to ⅛ of their original size.
For the gluten-free flour, I recommend the following blend: 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 (like this one!) will also work, if measured like this.
For the best results, use the ripest and spottiest bananas you can find! (See my blog post and photo above for more information!)
I used my homemade easy blender peanut butter (recipe here). If using store-bought peanut butter, make sure it’s the natural drippy-style kind with the only ingredients as peanuts and salt.
For a vegan version, I found these vegan-friendly “M&Ms” while searching online. I haven’t personally tried them, but they look like they’d work really well!
For a clean eating version, substitute additional miniature chocolate chips in place of the miniature M&Ms.
For answers to all other questions regarding substitutions and tips, see my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page.
{gluten-free, clean eating option, vegan option, low fat}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Classic Monster Cookies
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Monster Cookies
♡ Healthy Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Healthy Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Banana Cookies
♡ Healthy Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Healthy Banana Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy oatmeal cookie recipes!
These cookies look so cute, yet are beautiful at the same time. I’m still quite new to your blog, but I love what I’ve seen so far. I have yet to actually try a recipe, though, because it’s too hard to settle on just one dessert. Everything looks equally fabulous. I also like the energy and little stories you include in each post, as it’s much more fun to read than just the typical “I could eat these all day. Health schmelth.” I hope you have a great Monday!
You’re so sweet — thank you for your wonderful comment, Natasha! That means so much to me that you’re enjoying my stories, as well as my recipes. I’m honored! 🙂 I can definitely relate to not knowing where to start… I’m one of the most indecisive people in the world! 😉 Have a wonderful week, and I can’t wait to hear what recipe you finally settle on to try first!
Cool recipe. Thanks for sharing!
My pleasure, Jason! I’d love to hear what you think if you try these cookies! 🙂
Amy I tried this recipe last night and as written it was extremely dry and did not look anything like your images. could you please review and be sure all your listed measurements and ingredients are listed.
Thank you,
Barb
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Barb! Did you review my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page, which is linked to in the Notes section underneath the Instructions? I go over what causes dry cookies on that page! 🙂 Did you happen to scoop either the oats or flour (or both!) directly from the container with your measuring cups, by any chance? And did you measure by grams or by volume (cups)?
These cookies/healthy snacks are great, thank you.
I added a little xtra banana, worked great, and split flour with wheat germ.
Great for traveling and healthy snack alternative.
Thanks
I’m so glad you enjoyed these cookies! 🙂
It’s a keeper, amazing “”better for you” monster cookies! These were a hit in my house. I didn’t have M&Ms so i substituted butterscotch chips 🙂
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed these cookies Tori! I love your idea of substituting butterscotch chips — yum!! 🙂
My daughter’s 4th grade teacher retired this year. She was substituting in a class and we decided to make her some cookies. I found this recipe and it was perfect. My daughter’s teacher loved it. Let’s just say the cookie I was supposedly just taking 1 bite of to taste, got gobbled down with another cookie. 😉
I’m so honored that you’d make these cookies to share with your daughter’s teacher, Chassidy! That truly means the world to me — thank you so much for letting me know! 🙂 You’re so sweet to do that for her, and I’m really glad everyone enjoyed these cookies. I’ve also had my fair share of “mysterious” cookie disappearances like that too… You’re not alone! 😉
I made these and they turned out absolutely delicious!! I love making this style of cookie every once in a while. I used the unreal milk chocolate greens for substituting m&ms, they don’t have soy.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed these cookies, Erika! Thanks for taking the time to let us know and share your modifications too. We always love to hear what recipe tweaks work out! 😉