Chewy Banana Oatmeal Cookies (Printer-Friendly)
Soft, chewy cookies bursting with ripe banana flavor and hearty oats—a wholesome anytime treat.
# What You'll Need:
→ Wet Ingredients
01 - 2 ripe bananas, mashed
02 - 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
03 - 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
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
# How to Make It:
01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
02 - In a large mixing bowl, beat together the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar using an electric mixer on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes.
03 - Add the mashed bananas, egg, and vanilla extract to the creamed mixture. Beat 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 flour 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 tablespoonfuls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing each mound about 2 inches apart to allow for spreading.
08 - Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the edges are golden brown 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 Advice:
01 -
- The banana flavor is real and fragrant, not artificial or cloying, and it pairs beautifully with cinnamon and brown sugar.
- Oats give every bite a hearty chew that makes these feel substantial enough for breakfast but indulgent enough for dessert.
- The recipe is nearly impossible to mess up, even on a sleepy Sunday morning with coffee in one hand.
02 -
- Pulling the cookies from the oven when the centers still look slightly underbaked is the single most important step for that chewy texture.
- Brown bananas mash easier and taste dramatically better than yellow ones, so patience with your fruit bowl always pays off.
03 -
- If your dough feels too wet to scoop, chill it in the refrigerator for 15 minutes and it will firm up perfectly.
- Using a cookie scoop instead of a spoon gives you uniform cookies that all bake at the same rate.