Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
Made with whole grains and almond butter (and no eggs), this luscious Healthy Oatmeal Cookie Recipe are a healthier choice!
Apparently, the most popular recipe to date on this website is a recipe that I haven’t even put on here yet. And I’m beginning to fear the consequences if I don’t get it posted. ; -)
The minute I shared my recipe for Coconut Brazil Nut Milk with you, emails started coming in. But the emails had nothing to do with the lusciously rich and creamy Coconut Brazil Nut Milk.
Nope. Everyone wanted the recipe for the cookies in the photo!
I get it. A healthy milk? Nah. A savory soup? Uh-uh. A dip for veggies? Noooo.
GIVE ME THE COOKIES!! ; )
Even my mom said to me the other day, “You need to post that cookie recipe.”
Oooo-kay! I can take a hint. Here it is. : )
Healthy Oatmeal Cookie Recipe
This healthy oatmeal cookie recipe is … well … healthier than most cookie recipes. 🙂
Instead of the fattening sugar, oil, butter, and eggs that most oatmeal cookie recipes contain, this healthy oatmeal cookie recipe offers you a ton of nutrition.
We replaced much of the refined fats with almond butter which gives you vitamin E and loads of slimming fiber. Then we’ve got lovely omega-3s from the flax seed. Oh, and the delicious coconut, which gives these cookies a yummy flavor and a good dose of manganese too.
Tips for Making these Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
Preheating Oven
These cookies will spread too much if the oven is not preheated (as will many other types of cookies), but I really like the chewiness that results when they spread a little. If you like chewy cookies too, preheat your oven to only 250°F, and then when you put the cookies in to bake, increase the temperature to 325°F. The cookies will spread like the ones in the Coconut Brazil Nut milk photo.
Sweetness
We think these cookies are quite sweet – which you will probably like if you’re looking for a sweet treat. If you like your cookies not so sweet, you can reduce the sweetener amount to 1/3 cup.
Flax Meal
I used to use my Blendtec blender to grind my flax seed into flax meal. It did a superb job, but it seemed like every time I wanted to use my blender there were flax seed meal “crumbs” in it. (Good for smoothies, but not so great for Creamy Italian Salad Dressing.)
So I was thinking about purchasing a coffee grinder to make flax meal, but before I could buy one, a sweet friend gave me one and it PERFECTLY grinds flax seed into a very fine meal. I really like it! Thank you sweet friend. : )
Almond butter
I usually make these cookies with homemade almond butter. My local grocery store carries MaraNatha No Stir almond butter, but I don’t like to use that kind because it has palm oil and sugar in it. I share my favorite brand in my post about almond butter.
In the comments section below someone mentioned that Costco carries almond butter (the good kind) for a reasonable price. Good to know. 🙂
I’ve tested these cookies with different brands of almond butter and the varieties that are thin produce a thinner cookie and the thick ones result in a more “mound-shaped” cookie. Your mileage will vary according to your almond butter consistency. Whatever you do, don’t add liquid to the cookie dough to thin down thick almond butter. This will result in a cookie that has a flour-y taste and isn’t as rich and chewy.
Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
Why are these healthy oatmeal cookies a healthier option if you’re trying to lose weight (and even if you aren’t)? Why are these cookies healthier than your average cookie?
1. Much of the fat that you would normally have in a cookie is replaced with healthy, high-fiber almond butter. So you get a rich taste without the hip hugging fat.
2. There are no eggs in this cookie, which means no cholesterol and fewer calories.
3. These cookies are made without baking powder or baking soda – which contribute to bone loss and digestive disorders.
4. There are no refined flours in these cookies – only wholesome, high-fiber, whole-grain oats. Refined foods contribute to weight gain independent of caloric intake, but increased fiber intake helps tremendously with weight loss.
Enjoy!
Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons flax seed meal
- 1/4 cup non-dairy milk
- 1/3 cup almond butter
- 3 tablespoons soft coconut oil
- 1/2 cup raw sugar, turbinado sugar, or evaporated cane juice - – divided (see note on sweetness below)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/4 cups regular rolled oats - gluten-free if desired
- 1/2 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut
Optional Addition
- 1/3 cup carob chips
- 1/4 cup chopped raw walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. (See preheating oven note below.)
- In a small saucepan, whisk together flax and milk. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally. When mixture comes to boil, remove from heat. Set aside.
- Place almond butter, coconut oil, and approximately 1/4 cup of the sugar in a large mixing bowl. Mix together very well with an electric mixer.
- Add flax mixture, salt, and vanilla and mix.
- Stir in oats, coconut, and remaining sugar by hand. Mix until very thoroughly combined. Dough will be very thick.
- Using a cookie scoop, scoop dough onto prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
- Bake at 325°F for 17 to 19 minutes or until very lightly browned on the bottom. You don’t want them to brown too much or they will be overdone.
- Allow to set for about 1 minute before removing to rack to cool.
Notes
>> One quick request: if you like this recipe, please leave a rating and a comment. Ratings help more people find these healthy recipes!
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Finally! I’ve been waiting for this recipe. They look so good. I’ll probably make these tomorrow and report back after I eat them all!
Thanks!! I have been waiting for this too, I remember asking for it myself. 🙂 Now we have something to go with the milk! ha! ha! By the way, I made your coconut pie recipe on Friday with the almond crust you sent me too and it was really good! I had a hard time finding it here, maybe you can put an index for the recipes? That would be really helpful, uh oh, I am giving you another project!
Hi Zoraida,
I’m glad you liked the pie. It’s one of our favorites too.
Sorry you had trouble finding it on the website. The index is a great idea! I just don’t know if I know how to create one. I wish I knew more about how to make a good, easy-to-use website. I really struggle with website stuff.
There is a search bar at the bottom right side of the webpage that you can use if you’re trying to find something. I know it isn’t as nice as an index, but maybe it will help some. I will put “recipe index” on my list of things to figure out how to do 🙂
Enjoy your cookies and milk! 🙂
P.S. I get my almond butter from Costco, ingredients – dry roasted almonds, Maranatha brand, 26oz jar for about $6.
Thank you for the tip!! Very, very good to know! I’ll make a note of that in the post.
Thank you.
I made these cookies for breakfast. Why not? Look at all the healthy ingredients. Much healthier than most store-bought cereal. I like the idea of using flax seed meal in place of eggs.
I made my own almond butter, but since I don’t have a very good food processor, it wasn’t quite as “buttery” as it should have been, which resulted in the cookie dough being dry. I baked them that way, but I think I could have added some applesauce or more coconut oil to moisten them a little. Also, I used only the 1/4 cup sugar and didn’t add the additional 1/4 cup at the end. They were plenty sweet for me. I added a few chopped pecans.
Final analysis: Excellent taste, but slightly dry (my fault). I will definitely make these again, with some better almond butter. Keep these good recipes coming.
I’m glad you like them!
The consistency of the almond butter definitely makes a difference in the outcome. Most store-bought almond butters are a good consistency for these cookies.
Zoraida left a comment about getting almond butter at Costco – I’m thinking I might pick up a few jars next time I’m near a store.
I think these could count as breakfast, right?! 🙂
I love this ingredient list! Nothing to feel guilty about, and these cookies look super soft and chewy. I need to try this soon 🙂
They are very, very good! The more they spread out (see my note on oven preheating) the chewier they are and I really like them that way. 🙂
Abby, these ARE breakfast cookies. I made them again this morning, and enjoyed 3 of them for breakfast! I used store-bought almond butter this time. They turned out much better than using my homemade almond butter. I also used only 1/4 cup sugar, which made them the perfect sweetness for me. I’m going to add dates next time, and maybe even cut down the amount of sugar some more. Yummy!
These look delicious! I also have all the ingredients on hand and heading to the kitchen. Thank you!!
I made them this weekend and they were very very good! Thanks!! I made them in mounds and they were crispy. Sort of like a coconut macaroon.Oh, I reduced the sugar to 1/3 cup like you suggested and it was sweet enough. Thanks 🙂
These are amazing! Thank you for the yummy recipe. 🙂
You’re welcome, Angela. Love your blog!
This is a great recipe! I substituted cane sugar for coconut sugar and left out the exta nuts and carobs chips. The flavor and consistency is perfect:) Will continue using this recipe!
So glad you like them, Christy. Thank you for your comment.
I made these last night, and they were AWESOME. A little crumbly, but I think next time I’ll process the oats to give them a more flour-like consistency. I used about half almond, half peanut butter, and added in sultanas and pecans. The sultanas gave them a nice carmelly taste, and the pecans and coconut made them positively decadent!
Hi Lindy,
Glad you liked them.
Not sure about the crumble. They are always come out super moist and even a bit chewy for me. It could be the brand of nut butter since they are all a bit different.
Anyway, happy you enjoyed them 🙂
Hi – I made these today and the dough didn’t really come together at all – more like granola. The cookies are basically just granola as a result. It’s tasty dough so I’d love for them to work. I’ve rechecked the ingredients a couple times and everything was correct. What is the binder for these if there is no egg? Thanks for the help!
Hi Amy,
I’m so sorry these didn’t work for you. I’ve had two people tell me their dough was crumbly, and I can’t figure out why since they always turn out great for me and for many others who’ve made them.
The almond butter and flax meal whisked with the milk provide binding to replace the eggs. The dough should be thicker and a little bit drier than most cookie dough (because of the lack of eggs), but it definitely shouldn’t crumble when you put them on the baking sheet. I use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough out and then turn them out onto the baking sheet. (I adjusted the recipe to say this in case that makes a difference.) This results in a nice round ball of dough that isn’t soft and sticky like other cookie dough, but still holds together very well.
Almond butter comes in a variety of consistencies. Obviously, this could affect the outcome. What brand of almond butter did you use?
Did you use sugar as the sweetener? Replacing the sugar with another sweetener may affect the dough.
The mixing process in step #3 of the recipe is absolutely CRUCIAL. Be sure to thoroughly “cream” the dough.
I hope some of these thoughts help. I really want all of my recipes to work well for everyone who tries them. 🙂
Jennifer
Hi – thanks for replying. I used the pure almond butter from Trader Joe’s – I’d say it’s a medium consistency – not super thick or thin. In step #2, the flax meal is the only thing simmered with the milk. In your reply above, you noted the almond butter should be simmered also. Or should that be creamed as in step 3? I didn’t substitute anything in the recipe (used raw sugar but it didn’t dissolve in the dough – should it?) and I did use a hand mixer so everything was blended well. I ate the cookies for breakfast this morning with some strawberries – barely holding together but really good!
Sorry my reply was a little confusing. I meant that *both* the almond butter and the flax-milk mixture help bind. They both are binders, but they don’t get simmered together. You are correct – the almond butter gets creamed in step #3. Sorry for being confusing.
It sounds like you followed the recipe exactly, so I have no idea what would make the dough crumbly. I really wish I could help.
The only other suggestion I can think of is to preheat the oven to 225°F – 250°F instead of 325°F before putting the cookies in the oven. This makes the cookies chewier, which may help the hold together better.
I’m glad you enjoyed them for breakfast even though they fell apart. 🙂 Sorry they didn’t turn out as they should.
Hi Jennifer, I followed the recipe exact except I’m allergic to soy and almonds. In replace of almond milk I used cashew milk and in replace of almond butter I used regular butter. Everything else I followed and my dough came out loose. Is it because I replaced it with regular butter?
Hi Christine,
Almond butter is very high in fiber and this helps stiffen the dough. Regular butter doesn’t have any fiber, so without this component the dough would be very loose. I’m not sure what you could successfully replace almond butter with since it is quite unique in its fat/fiber ratio.
I hope it was still edible 🙂
Jennifer
Thank you Jennifer, yes the taste is great. I crumble it on ice cream, yogurt or just eat it as a snack.
Hi there! Would you mind if I share your blog with my facebook group?
There’s a lot of people that I think would really enjoy your content. Please let me know. Thank you
Do you mind if I quote a few of your posts as long as I provide credit and
sources back to your website?
These cookies sound amazing! Can i use steel cut oats?
Hi Krystal,
They are really good!
I think it would be best to stick with regular rolled oats in these cookies. Steel cut oats tend to not absorb moisture in a recipe the same way rolled oats do, so they probably wouldn’t turn out right.
🙂 Jennifer
Just wanted to say that I LOVED these cookies! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Aw, thank you. I’m so glad you liked them.
Jeniffer – I loved ur class at Cedar Lake. I did not attend for weight loss but was very interested in healthy choices in food. Thanks loads
Hi Biruta,
I am really happy you were able to attend and that you liked the class. It was nice to meet so many new people. Thank you for your encouraging comment.
I was searching the web for a recipe that used almond butter and coconut (two of my favorite ingredients) and happened upon your recipe. I just tried making the cookies yesterday, and they are DELICIOUS! I could not find any unsweetened coconut, and I also already had Vanilla Almond milk that had some added sugar, so I simply eliminated the extra sugar from step 5, using a 1/4 cup total. The dough was thick and sticky, and the cookies have a wonderful chewy and soft texture. I am amazed at how delicious these healthy cookies are – thanks for the great recipe.
These are the best cookies! Thanks for sharing this recipe. I have to double the recipe as everyone loves them and they go quickly!! Have you done the calculations of the calorie content of each cookie? Just curious?
Aw, thank you, Donna! I’m so glad you like them.
I don’t have nutritional information for my recipes; you can read my reason for that here.
Thank you for your comment! 🙂
Hi, Jennifer thanks for sharing this recipe. I am wandering if adding some maltex instead of sugar would make cookies more chewy. Maltex is some sticky rubbery stuff made of barley. Local brewery sells it here in my country and industry uses it extensively for cookies because it binds more moisture than sugar. It is sad that it also contains more fiber and by the way maltosis gets metabolised very quickly, so it helps when you’re exhausted after exersise.
Also I heard somewhere that adding table spoon of apple vinegar to dough mix makes cookies more crispy, for those who like them that way. Supposedly it’s because vinegar evaporates during baking and leaves some void in cookies that make them crispy. Greetings from Europe:)
Hi Zoltan,
I’ve never used Maltex before, so I couldn’t give you any thoughts on that. Let us know if you try it.
Thanks!
Jennifer
BEST cookies. Thank you Jennifer for the best tasting healthy cookie. I’ve tried many different other recipes but nothing is as good ! You nailed it , thanks for such a great tasting cookie – taste , texture everything. !!!!
Pardon me, but oats are gluten free 🙂 so no need to buy a special brand
Hi Ray,
Yes, you are correct that oats are naturally free from gliadin (the gluten in wheat), hordein (the gluten in barley), and secalin (the gluten in rye).
The problem is that most oats are harvested and processed using the same equipment and facilities that also process these gluten-containing grains (wheat, barley, and rye) and the oats get contaminated with the gluten in these grains.
If someone is very sensitive to gluten, eating contaminated oats can cause discomfort or illness, and if they have celiac disease, eating contaminated oats can damage the intestines. (Actually, some with celiac can’t eat oats at all – contaminated or not – without damage to the intestines.)
The degree of contamination can vary from batch to batch.
This is why GF oats are recommended for those who are sensitive to gluten.
I hope you enjoy the cookies!
Jennifer
These turned out good for me overall. However, mine didn’t spread even after following the preheating oven tip, which is fine. I checked them at 17 minutes, flattened them some with my hand to give more of a cookie shape, then baked an additional 3 minutes. I also used coconut palm sugar and only 1/3 cup. My almond butter was the marantha brand that is sweetened and because of that, I think I could’ve used even less of the sugar as these were pretty sweet. Will keep that in mind next time. They hold together until you start eating them, then they want to crumble. I can’t think of what I might have done wrong, but they are delicious and doing a fine job of satisfying my oatmeal cookie craving today.
HI Sylvia,
I’m so happy you liked the cookies. The coconut sugar may have caused the crumbliness; also, these need to be mixed very well – this helps them hold their shape when eaten.
Thanks for detailing what you did – that’s helpful for others.
Glad they satisfied your oatmeal cookie craving. : )
Jennifer
These are amazing! I’ve made the recipe 3 times!
Wonderful! SO happy you enjoyed them.