Soft, chewy, and loaded with chocolate oaty goodness! These healthy chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are made with wholesome ingredients and make a perfect snack for any time of the day! {one-bowl, vegan, gluten-free}
Holy smokes. It’s been a hot minute since I posted a recipe here on Spoons. And by ‘hot minute,’ I mean somewhere along the lines of 2.5 months.
And that just blows my mind. Like… I knew I took some time off, but I honestly didn’t realize it was that much time… Although I guess I should have clued in when I sat down to put this post together and couldn’t remember how I used to go about doing it back in the day 😆
But I was dealing with some hardcore burnout and just needed to step away and focus on other things for a little while…. which made things pretty quiet here and on social media, and for that I’m sorry. Blogging just started feeling way too scripted and formulaic, and I honestly feel like a lot of that was because I spent too much time looking up and trying to follow blogging tips. It was like… you need to write like this, you need to put these keywords here, you need to make sure your post has this many words, you need to pin this number of pins a day, you need to X, you need to Y, you need to Z… And by the end it basically felt like plugging numbers into an equation and getting a post to pop out.
I remember back when I first started blogging… when I really loved it. I didn’t worry about that stuff. Heck, I didn’t even know any of that stuff. I just did what felt right, messed up a lot along the way, and still somehow managed to grow Spoons. So do I really want to worry about that stuff now? Not really. I’d rather do it “wrong” and have it be real than feel like I’m just writing to fit some mold… you know?
And I really didn’t mean to spew all that word vomit at you. But, believe it or not, this is something I’ve been mulling over for all those months I’ve been away – I was trying to figure out how to fall back in love with blogging. Or at least how to move away from the rigidity. And to be honest, I’m not even 100% sure how to do that, but I do know I’m ready to come back. With cookies. Of the chocolate chip oatmeal variety.
And I know, I know… not the most groundbreaking or amazing recipe in the world, but I’m obsessed with these things, and I’d like to share what I love instead of always worrying about what kind of recipe has the best chance of being super popular… and then being wrong half the time anyways.
So cookies it is, dammit.
These guys are based off my chocolate chip banana oatmeal cookies, only without the banana… because I know some ppl don’t like them and/or are allergic. Ok, that’s only partly true. The honest truth is that I really wanted to bake cookies one day but didn’t have any ripe bananas (we have a green banana situation up here, ok?), so I figured applesauce would make a perfect replacement. And oh.heck.yes it did. I’d even go as far as to say that I almost prefer these over the banana ones? But don’t tell.
Like their predecessors, these cookies are both gluten-free and vegan. I’ve made them with regular all-purpose flour a few times, which you can definitely do if you don’t need them to be GF, but you might want to add an extra tablespoon of oil so they don’t end up too tough or doughy. Personally, I just use this all-purpose gluten-free flour* because I like the texture it gives them.
They’re soft, they’re chewy, they’re made in one bowl, and they have some pretty stellar nutritionals.
Happy eating!
I’d love to know if you make this recipe! Leave a comment and rating down below to let me know what you think, and subscribe to our mailing list to receive new recipes in your inbox!
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Healthy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
- Total Time: 18 mins
- Yield: 24 cookies 1x
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tbsp (7 g) ground flaxseed
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) water
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) lightly flavoured vegetable oil*
- 1/3 cup (66 g) cane sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups (160 g) quick oats
- 3/4 cup (90 g) all-purpose gluten-free flour**
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup (60 g) chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF (176ºC) and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a non-stick baking mat. Set aside.
- Add the applesauce, ground flax, water, vegetable oil, sugar, and vanilla to a large mixing bowl, mixing until fully combined.
- Add the oats, flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt, mixing until fully incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Using a rounded tablespoon, drop the dough onto your prepared baking sheet, and flatten each cookie slightly. They won’t change shape much while they bake, so shape them how you want the finished product to look.
- Bake for 8 – 10 minutes, or until the edges begin to turn golden brown. Remove your cookies from the oven and let them cool for 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Notes
* I used canola oil, but feel free to use whatever you have on hand. I wouldn’t recommend using olive oil because of its strong taste. ** If your mix doesn’t have xanthan gum, you might want to add 1/4 tsp to the dry ingredients if you have problems with getting the cookies to hold together. You can also use regular all-purpose flour if you don’t need these to be gluten-free, but you might have to add an extra tablespoon of oil to keep them from being too doughy.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 8 mins
Looking for more healthy cookie recipes? Try one of these!
Chewy Flourless Oatmeal Cookies
Almond Joy Oatmeal Cookies
Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Oatmeal Cookies
Blueberry Banana Oatmeal Cookies
*Disclosure: Some of the links included in this post may be affiliate links, meaning I’ll earn a small commission if you purchase through them, at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I personally use and believe will add value to my readers. Thank you so much for helping support Spoons!
Hi Amanda 🙂
Greetings from Mexico!!
Love your recipes! Already made a couple of them!!
Question, how can applesauce be sub?
Here in Mexico it’s quite difficult to find it
These were one of the best healthy cookies I’ve ever tasted. I added less than 1/4 cup of sugar and it was sweet enough for me because apple purée is sweet already. I can’t believe a batch of such tasty cookies only has 2 tablespoons of coconut oil. These are chewier than traditional recipes.
This recipe looks so amazing! I tried making this, with a few substitutions, and can’t figure out why they turn out rubbery on the inside. I subbed with whole wheat flour, and berry sugar because that’s what I have at home. Do you have any insight on what could be the culprit?
I totally hear you. I tried the whole formulaic blogging approach a few years ago while I was between school and getting my first job – although I didn’t last as long as you did and I didn’t find nearly as much success as you lol! But anyway yeah, it caused me to fall out of love with blogging pretty quickly and I don’t know if I ever really found that same level of love again. To be honest I think I loved blogging the most when I treated my blog more as a diary (and everyone else did as well) way back in the early days – I felt so much more connected with other bloggers back then!
On another note, these cookies look fab!
Not to mention they look delicious. And I love the healthier twist on the ingredients mainly for the baby.
Also this is my favorite post of yours in a hot minute. I so appreciate the openness and the honesty. You do you (not some silly blog rules), and the rest will follow.
Thank you for your honesty about why you slipped of the radar. I do think you put way too much pressure on yourself though. As a reader, I appreciate every post and recipe you share with us folk. Speaking of which, I’m going to have to finally make one of these cookies but which one, applesauce or banana? Which do you personally prefer/recommend for a first timer ?
Welcome back Amanda! I’ve missed you! Totally get what you mean about blogger burnout. I just started a blog a little over a month ago, and already I had periods when I had to step back because I realized I was getting too obsessed with doing all the “right” things to grow my social media and online presence. And for what? This is a hobby for me, something I love doing, and if I get to help or inspire someone along the way, then that’s awesome.
You should know that you were one of the inspirations for me to start a blog because I just remember fangirling over yours so much. I may or may not have found your very first post and then proceeded to click on Next Post over the course of the next few weeks until I’d literally read everything you’d ever posted. Which only made me fangirl harder :p
So whatever it is that you did before, girl, just keep doing it, and don’t you worry about anything else. I feel like there will always be ways to get better or bigger or whatever, but as long as you’re doing you I think that will happen naturally and will be so much more enjoyable for you. Lots of love! <3
Oh and def trying these 😉
So good to have you back, lady! I suspected that you were needing a break, especially after cranking out a cookbook. Keeping up with blog content is a feat in itself. It’s no wonder you were burnt out.
I love the philosophy to get back to how things were when you started. It’s hard when there is so much pressure to consistently grow but I try not to stress about it…which means a lot of things never get done, haha! Whoops.
These cookies are the perfect recipe to come back with. I want to grab one through my screen and take a big bite!
One bowl/pot recipes are always among my favorites, they’re usually very easy to make and always turn out equaly delicious! Thanks for sharing this one!
Those look so good! Cookies are always a WIN in my book!!
I have soooo been needing a recipe like this as I’m trying to go more toward the vegan side of things lately. And I trust your recipes!
I’m glad you’re back with recipes! and you know what? who says you have to do it this way or that way or this many pins a day or etc.!!! Do what you want and whenever you want. We’re just glad you still want to do what you do!! Thanks!!
Hi Amanda
We follow you because we enjoy your words and your recipes..and when you need a break for whatever reason then that’s that..no need to explain 😉
‘I’d rather do it “wrong” and have it be real’ – i love this!
SPoons, i love ya! I have been trying to text you. Glad you stepped away. YOu know i get this! Let’s have cookies and coffee and catch up. Ok?
Welcome back! Don’t worry about needing a break, we all need that sometimes. Plus, it sounds like there is a lot to think about behind the scenes. As someone who has no clue about these things, I’d rather see fewer posts that you feel good about than more frequent posts that you have to force out. These cookies look delicious, thanks for sharing!
I’m glad your back! I always enjoy you writing style. These cookies though YUM.
Arlene <3
Totally get burn out… feeling that right now actually. I always love seeing new recipes from you. You manage to make everything look so mouthwatering too!
I am so glad to see a new recipe from you! Don’t put so much pressure on yourself. You are awesome and I always appreciate your honesty.
Good for you! I think taking a break is so important with blogging. I took a, hem hem, year and a half off. And now my blog is completely different and I absolutely LOVE it.
don’t apologize for unplugging for a bit! like they say “almost EVERYTHING will reset itself after unplugging…including YOU!” – its good to do that and work on you – because my friend you cannot pour from an empty cup! <3 this recipe definitely looks worth the wait! thank you!