If you’re anything like me, you’re always looking for healthier dessert alternatives. I am so excited to share this recipe with you because these Healthy Banana Oat Cookies have become my new favorite sweet tooth fix. I have been making these cookies FIVE times a week because they are just that good, and not to mention they make for a wonderful breakfast option because they are packed with wholesome ingredients. Cookies for breakfast? Count me in!

These Healthy Banana Oat Cookies are:

soft and chewy

gluten free and vegan

quick and easy (less than 20 minutes and no mixer required)

made with SIMPLE and CLEAN ingredients

perfectly balanced with banana, peanut butter, and chocolate chips

Recipe Breakdown

These cookies only call for 100% vegan and clean ingredients that you can feel good about “splurging” on, but they still taste and feel indulgent. Let’s talk about how a handful of magical ingredients work together to make this result possible.

The base of these cookies is made up of whole oats and oat flour (which is easily made by blending whole oats in a blender until flour consistency is reached). Oat flour is one of my favorite flour alternatives because it results in a chewy (gluten-free) texture.

The source of sweetness within these cookies comes from the banana and a few tablespoons of maple syrup. Feel free to substitute honey in for the maple syrup if that is your preferred sweetener. In this recipe, the banana doubles as a sweetener as well as a vegan egg replacement, giving these cookies their soft and addicting texture.

This recipe calls for 1/4 cup of peanut butter and three tablespoons of coconut oil. These two ingredients team up to create a healthy (and delicious) fat source. I love the flavor that peanut butter adds to these cookies when paired with the banana and chocolate, but you can substitute any nut or seed butter that you prefer.

Oh, and last but not least, the perfect amount of chocolate chips bring these cookies to the next level.

In less than 20 minutes you can have these amazing, easy, and completely guilt-free cookies at your fingertips! Be sure to check out some of my other favorite cookie recipes: Double Chocolate Brownie Cookies, Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies, and my Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies. Happy baking!

Print

Healthy Banana Oat Cookies

Course Dessert

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups of old fashioned oats gluten free if desired
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon of oat flour made by blending whole oats in a blender or food processor until flour consistency is reached
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 overripe mashed banana
• 4-5 tablespoons maple syrup depending on desired sweetness
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips I like to use mini and vegan if desired
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil
• 1/4 cup of peanut butter can be substituted with preferred nut or seed butter, but the flavor of the cookies may change

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Whisk the first 5 dry ingredients in a medium bowl until combined.
• Add in the rest of the ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.
• Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheet and press down slightly to flatten (these cookies do not spread a lot in the oven).
• Bake for 7-8 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Cool on wire rack and enjoy!

Notes

These cookies are so good after they have been frozen! I love putting a few in the freezer overnight and eating them the next day for breakfast.

The post Healthy Banana Oat Cookies appeared first on Splurge with Ella.

It’s finally starting to feel like fall! Fall is one of my favorite seasons for many reasons: the crisp air, oversized sweaters, colorful trees, but above all, the pumpkin desserts! In my opinion, there is no better way to celebrate fall than with pumpkin cookies, and I am pleased to tell you that these cookies are everything that a pumpkin cookie should be. The hints of warm cinnamon and pumpkin spice alongside rich dark chocolate chips create a magical (and addicting) flavor combination. I am not kidding around when I say these babies are addicting…I have made this recipe three times in one day because they seem to disappear instantly!

These cookies are not only delicious, but they are SO easy to make. No mixer required! If you have two bowls and a few minutes to whisk together the ingredients, you have everything you need for these cookies! This makes these cookies the perfect dessert for any occasion, and I promise people will be begging you for the recipe.

These cookies are:

Soft and Chewy

Filled with pumpkin flavor and chocolate chips

Easy to make

(Secretly) VEGAN

Why this recipe works

These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies have two key ingredients that help to create their soft, moist, and chewy texture: Oats and Coconut oil. What replaces the egg in these (secretly) vegan cookies? The pumpkin! Yes, pumpkin is a wonderful egg replacement in vegan baking, and it also happens to be the key flavor profile in these cookies!

I promise you will instantly fall in love with these cookies and no one would ever know that these little gems are vegan. Put a plate of these on any dessert table and they will most definitely be the star of the show! If you’re looking for more vegan cookies, try out one of my other favorites: Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies.

Print

Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are thick, chewy, and filled with pumpkin flavor.

Course Dessert

Prep Time 7 minutes minutes

Cook Time 9 minutes minutes

Servings 18

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups flour I like to use all purpose
• 1 1/4 cups whole oats
• 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin spice
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons almond milk slightly warm so it does not solidify the coconut oil
• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil
• 1/2 cup pumpkin
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/3-1/2 cup chocolate chips vegan if desired

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk first 8 dry ingredients until well combined.
• Whisk almond milk, pumpkin, melted coconut oil, and vanilla until well combined.
• Add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined.
• Add the chocolate chips.
• Drop heaping tablespoons of dough into a nonstick cooking sheet and bake in preheated oven for 9-12 minutes or until puffy and bottoms are golden brown. Cool on wire rack and enjoy!

The post Oatmeal Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies appeared first on Splurge with Ella.

You will absolutely LOVE these thick and chewy Peanut Butter Chickpea Cookies! Yes, you read that right. These cookies are made with chickpeas, and YES they’re amazing. Did I mention these little gems are also vegan, refined sugar-free, and grain-free? Although, I promise you would never know the difference because these cookies are filled with peanut butter flavor and melt in your mouth with every bite.

I developed this recipe during a phase of chickpea obsession. After eating chickpeas multiple times a day, I finally decided that I wanted to utilize them as a healthy flour alternative in baking. I first tried to make my own chickpea flour out of dried chickpeas, but it was slightly unsuccessful. I then moved onto using canned chickpeas, which lead to the creation of these amazing cookies!

Why this recipe works

I wanted this recipe to be easy, guilt-free, and still taste indulgent. There are four key ingredients in this recipe: chickpeas, peanut butter, maple syrup, and baking soda.

Chickpeas have become one of my new favorite flour alternatives. Not only are they are filled with health benefits, but they also make these cookies super thick and chewy. Using peanut butter in this recipe gives these cookies the addition of healthy fat, and further gives them their amazing peanut butter flavor! I chose to use maple syrup as the sugar alternative to help thin out the dough and add a wonderful sweetness. The last key ingredient is baking soda. This leavening agent is used in baked goods to help give batters or doughs a lighter texture, and works to give these cookies a little extra lift!

Now that you know the basics, all you have to do is throw together everything in a food processor! Then you will have your amazing and healthy cookies in less than 15 minutes! Be sure to check out this Flourless Peanut Butter Blondie recipe for another easy, healthy, and amazing dessert.

These cookies have become a staple item in our household, and I have definitely made this recipe multiple times in a day because they disappear so fast! I hope you enjoy these guilt-free indulgences as much as we do. Happy baking!

Print

Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies are made secretly healthy and vegan with a little help from chickpeas. Chickpeas make these cookies soft, chewy, and completely guilt free!

Course Dessert

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 10 people

Ingredients

• 1 cup canned chickpeas (well rinsed and drained)
• ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon of creamy peanut butter
• ¼ cup maple syrup (add an extra tablespoon for extra sweetness)
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ¼-⅓ cup chocolate chips vegan if desired

optional

• a pinch of salt if using unsalted peanut butter

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Place all ingredients except for the chocolate chips, in a food processor and blend until completely smooth (you may have to scrape the edges and blend a few times).
• Stir in chocolate chips by hand.
• Place heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared cookie sheet and flatten slightly (or shape to desired size) since these cookies do not spread much in the oven. 
• Bake for about 10-12 minutes until bottoms are light golden brown.
• Cool on pan for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack. Enjoy!

The post Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies appeared first on Splurge with Ella.