Chewy Banana Oatmeal Cookies (Printable)
Soft, chewy cookies bursting with ripe banana and hearty oats—perfect for breakfast or snacking.
# What You'll Need:
→ Wet Ingredients
01 - 2 ripe bananas, mashed (about 3/4 cup)
02 - 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
03 - 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
04 - 1/4 cup granulated sugar
05 - 1 large egg
06 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
→ Dry Ingredients
07 - 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
08 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
09 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
10 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
11 - 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
→ Optional Add-ins
12 - 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chopped walnuts
# Steps:
01 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
02 - In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together using an electric mixer on medium speed until pale, light, and fluffy—about 2 to 3 minutes.
03 - Add the mashed bananas, egg, and vanilla extract to the creamed mixture. Continue mixing on medium speed until fully combined and smooth.
04 - In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and salt until evenly distributed.
05 - Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients, stirring gently with a spatula or wooden spoon until just combined. Avoid overmixing to keep the cookies tender.
06 - Fold in the rolled oats along with chocolate chips or chopped walnuts, if using, until evenly distributed throughout the dough.
07 - Drop rounded tablespoon-sized mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart to allow for spreading.
08 - Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the edges are lightly golden and the centers appear just set.
09 - Let the cookies rest on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before serving or storing.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- They use up bananas that would otherwise end up in the trash and taste like a warm hug straight from the oven.
- The oats give them a satisfying chew that makes them feel almost like a breakfast you can hold in one hand.
02 -
- Overbaking is the enemy here, so pull them out when the centers still look slightly underdone because they will set up perfectly on the pan.
- Using a scale for the flour instead of scooping with a cup changed my results completely and saved me from dry, crumbly cookies.
03 -
- Use bananas that are so ripe they look awful on the outside because that is when their natural sweetness and moisture peak for baking.
- Press the dough mounds down slightly with the back of a spoon before baking if you prefer a wider, flatter cookie shape.