Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies — These cookies are soft, moist, and oh-so chewy. They taste like banana bread and chocolate chip cookies rolled into one dessert! Hundreds of 5-star reviews for a reason – they are just SO AMAZING! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Table of Contents
These chocolate chip banana oatmeal cookies are my holy grail of desserts rolled in one. They have the flavor of banana bread, the chewy texture of oatmeal cookies, and the soft and gooey factor of chocolate chip cookies.
They’re soft, chewy, moist, and not at all cakey, which can be a problem when baking with bananas. Cookies that taste like little banana cakes instead of cookies are not my idea of cookies, and thankfully these are all cookie, zero cake.
These banana cookies are adapted from my favorite oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. I reduced the butter, added bananas, and increased the flour. Bananas contain so much moisture that more flour is needed to absorb it.
You’re going to love the bold banana flavor, the chewy oats that add so much texture, and plenty of chocolate that melts in your mouth in every bite.
Recipe Ingredients
For these banana oat chocolate chip cookies, you’ll need:
- Egg
- Bananas
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Unsalted butter
- Vanilla extract
- Old-fashioned oats
- All-purpose flour
- Cinnamon
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
If you’ve ever made regular chocolate chip cookies before, you can easily make these oatmeal chocolate chip cookies with banana! Here’s an outline of the recipe steps:
- Whip together the wet ingredients (because of the bananas, the mixture won’t look light and fluffy at all).
- Stir in the dry ingredients and carefully fold in the chocolate chips.
- Scoop the cookie dough onto a parchment paper-lined baking tray and chill for at least 2 hours.
- Pop the chilled cookie dough balls into a preheated oven and bake until the edges are just set. You don’t want to over bake the cookies — remember that they’ll firm up as they cool on your counter.
Recipe FAQs
You can use your favorite chocolate chips (or chunks!) in this banana cookie recipe. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend using white chocolate chips since I think they’d make these cookies too sweet, but use whatever flavor of chocolate chips you like.
No, quick and steel cut oats will not work for these banana oat cookies. Rolled (old-fashioned) oats are a must for these banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
Yes! The banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough is soft, loose, moist, and must be chilled before baking or the cookies will spread into thin, flat pancakes.
Your bananas should be nice and ripe, but not black. If the bananas are very overripe (black), the cookies won’t be quite the right texture or taste.
Recipe Tips
Adding the bananas: When I add the bananas to the wet ingredients, I add them in whole and don’t pre-mash them. Your mixer should do all the hard work for you, but if you’re making the cookie dough by hand it might be helpful to pre-mash the bananas.
Cinnamon: The cinnamon is optional but recommended. Adding 1/2 teaspoon doesn’t make the cookies taste overly of cinnamon, it just adds some warmth to the cookies.
Bake time: Because bananas have differing levels of moisture and no two are exactly alike, baking times could range. Don’t get too hung up on what the clock says and bake until your cookies are done.
Make-Ahead Instructions
You can actually make the banana chocolate oatmeal cookie dough ahead of time and freeze it for later. Just scoop out the dough as if you’re going to bake the cookies immediately, but freeze them instead of placing them in the fridge.
You can bake the frozen cookie dough as is, but you may have to leave them in the oven for an additional 1 to 2 minutes.
Storage Instructions
Room temperature: Let the cookies cool completely, then store in an airtight container or zip-top bag. The cookies will last up to 5 days.
Freezer: Store in an airtight container and freeze them for up to 6 months.
Recipe Video Tutorial
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Chocolate Chip Banana Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- 2 small/medium or 1 extra-large ripe bananas, about 1/2 heaping cup mashed banana
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, softened 1/2 of 1 stick
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups old-fashioned whole rolled oats*
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ to 1 teaspoon cinnamon, optional
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) combine the egg, bananas (I leave them whole and don’t pre-mash them before adding to bowl), sugars, butter, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until well combined, about 4 minutes. The mixture won’t be smooth, fluffy, or ‘creamed’ like traditional cookie dough and will have small chunks of bananas present and it’s on the runnier side.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the oats, flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the chocolate chips, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds.
- Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form approximately 14 equal-sized mounds of dough.**
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 5 days. This is a wetter, looser dough and isn’t suitable for baking until it’s been chilled. Do not bake with unchilled dough because cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray. Place dough mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 8 cookies per sheet) and bake for about 13 minutes (for very soft cookies, longer for more well-done cookies), or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center; don’t overbake.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and don’t use a rack.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Even More Oatmeal Cookie Recipes:
ALL OF MY OATMEAL COOKIE RECIPES!
The Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies — Soft, chewy, loaded with chocolate, and they turn out perfectly every time! Totally irresistible!!
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One-Bowl, No-Mixer, No-Chill Oatmeal Cookies — An incredibly FAST and EASY recipe that produces perfectly thick cookies with chewy edges and soft centers!! One bowl to wash, no mixer to drag out, and no waiting around!!
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies — 3 favorite cookies combined into 1 so you don’t have to choose!! Easy, no-mixer recipe, and always a hit!
Soft and Chewy Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies — These pumpkin oatmeal cookies are bursting with chocolate chips in every bite! They’re thick, hearty, perfectly chewy, and not at all cakey.
Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Scotchies Cookies – My favorite classic oatmeal cookie base loaded with sweet butterscotch chips! A classic cookie that you’ve just got to try!
Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies — These oatmeal coconut chocolate chip cookies are packed with oats, shredded coconut, and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Sure to be a new favorite recipe!
Salted Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies — Soft, chewy, loaded with chocolate, and the flaky sea salt adds the PERFECT touch!! If you’re an oatmeal cookie fan, these will become your new FAVORITES and they’re so EASY to make!!
Originally published April 13, 2015 and republished April 9, 2021 with updated text.
Yum! Our favorite breakfast cookie, moist and packed with flavor. I cut down the sugar (hubby has diabetes) but the banana and dark chocolate chips make up for it. Don’t overbake, they’re best on the soft side. They freeze well too. Thanks Averie!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad these are your new favorite breakfast cookie and that you were able to cut the sugar down, too!
I almost never leave comments but these cookies are mind blowing! I’m on my second batch already. Love the dense chewy texture with the hint of banana. Also I found if you let the batter sit for 5 minutes, the oats soak up the butter and the dough thickens enough on its own so you can bake them right away, no refrigeration required. And no delays to getting this yummy cookie in your mouth! My new favorite cookie – thanks so much!
I almost never leave comments but these cookies are mind blowing! I’m on my second batch already. Love the dense chewy texture with the hint of banana. Also I found if you let the batter sit for 5 minutes, the oats soak up the butter and the dough thickens enough on its own so you can bake them right away, no refrigeration required. And no delays to getting this yummy cookie in your mouth! My new favorite cookie – thanks so much!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad these are blowing your mind and you took the time to comment!
Great tip/trick too, thanks for sharing!
I LOVE these cookies, almost too much so I only make them when I have other people who will help me eat them since I have ZERO self control. :) (the first time I ever made these I ate the entire batch in one night- it was worth it). My only question is this- can I freeze them once baked? I wanted to make some and send them to friends a few states away but was curious how to go about it with shipping.
I LOVE these cookies, almost too much so I only make them when I have other people who will help me eat them since I have ZERO self control. :) (the first time I ever made these I ate the entire batch in one night- it was worth it). My only question is this- can I freeze them once baked? I wanted to make some and send them to friends a few states away but was curious how to go about it with shipping.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad that you realllly love these cookies!
Yes you can freeze them once they’re baked but I recommend just freezing the raw dough balls instead, and then baking off as many as you need. Just add 1-2 mins to the baking time, straight from the freezer.
Oh I just read the second half…sending them out of state. Hmmmm. I would send freshly baked rather than frozen.
Just made these and sooo happy I did. The only thing is if I only made 14 cookies from the recipe, they would be ginormous ! I actually got 2 dozen big cookies but hey , no complaints from anyone involved. This is a keeper-Thanks
These cookies are SO yummy! I made these and took these to a friend’s for dinner — her son loved them as did my family. We just made another batch and I did include coconut — delish! I also used gluten-free flour. I agree that they are really good slightly underbaked. Thank you, Averie!
These cookies are SO yummy! I made these and took these to a friend’s for dinner — her son loved them as did my family. We just made another batch and I did include coconut — delish! I also used gluten-free flour. I agree that they are really good slightly underbaked. Thank you, Averie!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad to hear that GF flour worked well and I’m sure the coconut addition was great too!
These are really good! My daughter and I decided they remind us more of a “muffin top” than a cookie, so when I make them again, I am just going to make smaller portions to get more cookies out of the dough. It’s a great alternative for using those extra ripe bananas!
These are really good! My daughter and I decided they remind us more of a “muffin top” than a cookie, so when I make them again, I am just going to make smaller portions to get more cookies out of the dough. It’s a great alternative for using those extra ripe bananas!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad you’ll make them again!
I love these cookies. This time I had some left over shredded coconut in the refrigerator that I added. A nice twist on an already perfect recipe!
I love these cookies. This time I had some left over shredded coconut in the refrigerator that I added. A nice twist on an already perfect recipe!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I bet the shredded coconut was absolutely perfect with the chocolate + banana flavors!
Filled 3/4 full muffin tins and baked for about 13 mins for perfect moisture and bite. (I decided to prepare these as muffins because its just slightly less messy to freeze and reheat in tins.) Muffins are plenty sweet, soft and just slightly oaty. There’s a time and a place for healthy cookies, and this is not it! I plan on taking these as an on-the-go breakfast. Don’t judge, they’re still more nutritious than my beloved poptarts- even with all those chocolate chips ;-P.
Filled 3/4 full muffin tins and baked for about 13 mins for perfect moisture and bite. (I decided to prepare these as muffins because its just slightly less messy to freeze and reheat in tins.) Muffins are plenty sweet, soft and just slightly oaty. There’s a time and a place for healthy cookies, and this is not it! I plan on taking these as an on-the-go breakfast. Don’t judge, they’re still more nutritious than my beloved poptarts- even with all those chocolate chips ;-P.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad this worked well in a muffin tin and I would never judge! Trust me!
Just made these and sooo happy I did. The only thing is if I only made 14 cookies from the recipe, they would be ginormous ! I actually got 2 dozen big cookies but hey , no complaints from anyone involved. This is a keeper-Thanks
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad they turned out great and that you were able to get 2 dozen out of the batch!
Delicious! These turned out perfectly! I made them to take to an event was so happy with them we had to bake more for home. The recipe made more than expected so we had extra yumminess!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad these turned out perfectly!
These are great and my kids love them. I have made these probably more than 50 times and I ALWAYS use quick oats and NEVER refrigerate my dough, and they come out great. I make these on a whim, especially when I have lots of very ripe bananas. If you are busy like me, and don’t have all that time to wait around on your dough to get cold- no worries- they will still turn out great!
Thanks for the five star review and I’m glad quick oats and not chilling the dough still works out great for you! You’ve officially made them more than me if you’ve made them 50+ times!
Yes! If my son sees a banana going brown, he asks for these! I’ve made them for years! Thank you!