Calling all fans of oatmeal cookies, peanut butter, banana, chocolate and coconut! Because these Everything Cookies have all of that and more… hence the name “Everything Cookies”. These vegan gluten-free treats have all the flavor, are easy to make, and (of course) are healthy!
This recipe calls for ingredients you likely already have in your kitchen, especially if you bake on occasion. Old-fashioned rolled oats, flaxseed, peanut butter, ripe banana, dark chocolate chips, and coconut. Plus a few other baking staples ~ salt, cinnamon and vanilla.
And these cookies are a breeze to make, as in it takes all of 10 minutes to prep and only 12 minutes in the oven. Easy breezy!
I came up with this recipe because I love oatmeal cookies, chocolate, banana and peanut butter. Oh, and of course coconut. It sounds like a lot going on in one little morsel, but it just works.
Flaxseed and banana are natural binders
Did you know?…
Did you know banana is a naturally binder in baking? Yup, it can technically be used in place of eggs, as mashed ripe banana plays some of the same roles as eggs do in baking. It adds moisture and binds the ingredients.
The ratio is about one ripe mashed banana (or 1/2 cup) per each egg called for in a recipe.
Using mashed ripe banana also adds natural sweetness to cookies, cakes and quick breads, without adding extra sugar.
Flax “egg” is also a natural binder/egg replacer, in addition to adding healthy fats to a recipe. The ratio for flax egg is one tablespoon mixed with 2.5 tablespoons of water per egg.
The trick is to either buy ground flaxseed or grind them yourself in a spice grinder, as it needs to be powder-like to work. Then you just mix it with the water and watch the magic happen. It gels up in about 5 minutes and, voila, flax egg!
Adding coconut on top makes these extra delish!
And speaking of binding…
I also grind the oats a little to help the cookies bind. I just toss ‘em in my food processor and whiz a few times until they are coarsely ground.
For the chocolate I went with vegan dark chocolate chips, but you can use baking discs or your favorite chopped dark chocolate. My one tip for all things baking with chocolate is to only use high-quality chocolate that would taste good eating out of hand.
When using chopped bars I like Theo 70% dark. When using chips I like Guittard dark chocolate chips. Both are available at Whole Foods, etc.
With the peanut butter I highly recommend using peanut butter with only one ingredient ~ roasted peanuts. No salt. No sugar. And definitely NO palm oil. My favorite is Santa Cruz (just be sure to not get the one that has palm oil).
Not only is this the healthier option, it just tastes better! Plus, you can control the sugar and salt more when using peanut butter in baking.
Peanut butter and mashed banana make these extra moist!
So that’s really about all I have to say about these cookies. It’s an easy, kid-friendly and crowd-pleasing treat to make. You can even swap out the chocolate and add raisins to make them a breakfast cookie. Yum!
Swap chocolate chips for raisins for a breakfast cookie
If you make these “Everything” Cookies be sure to leave a comment below and tag me on Instagram. I love seeing your kitchen magic at work!
Nuts for coconut? Peep these recipes…
Coconut Date Rolls (vegan, GF)
Chocolate Dipped Fruit (vegan, GF)
| Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time | 12 minutes |
| Passive Time | 5 minutes |
| Servings |
cookies
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- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ceylon cinnamon
- 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana about 1 large banana
- 1/4 cup natural peanut butter free of salt, sugar and oil is best
- 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp finely shredded coconut
Ingredients
|
|
- heat oven to 350° and line a large sheet pan with parchment baking paper
- in a small bowl make flax egg by combining 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed with 2.5 tablespoons filtered water, stir and let sit 5-10 minutes to allow it to gel
- in a blender or food processor pulse oats a few times until roughly ground (you want some pieces of whole oats)
- in a large bowl combine dry ingredients: oats, salt and cinnamon
- in a medium bowl combine wet ingredients: mashed banana with peanut butter and vanilla, then add flax “egg"
- combine wet and dry ingredients and mix well, fold in chocolate chips, then form cookie dough into 8 balls and flatten lightly with palm
- bake cookies at 350° for 12 minutes, then sprinkle with coconut on top when you remove from the oven
- let cookies cool on pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack or plate
Original recipe created by Jerran Boyer
www.healthnutchefs.com