Nikki's Healthy Cookies

I've told you about my favorite cookies before right? Well you can find them here. Well these? These are my second favorite cookies! Actually they are pretty much on par with my favorite cookies but perhaps even better because they are healthy to boot! Generally I don't really care if something is healthy or not. If it tastes good, I most definitely will eat it. You can see me eating a quinoa and tempeh salad one day, then an entire bag of hot cheetos the next day. But if I can cut back on unnecessary sugars and fats without having to sacrifice taste, then I say why not?

I had been wanting to try this recipe for a while now and finally got down to doing it... and boy I am so, so, so glad I did. These cookies are amazing. Pure amazingness in a tiny little package. Would you puuulease look at that ingredient list? It is so hard to believe that there is no butter, no eggs, no flour and no added sugar! These are slightly crisp on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. They don't have the typical "cookie" texture but they are sure to satisfy your craving for something sweet! I promise!!!

Nikki's Healthy Cookies Recipe

Yields: 3 dozen bite sized cookies

Original recipe from 101 Cookbooks, which can be found here.

Printable Recipe

3 large, ripe bananas, well mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 cup coconut oil or olive oil

2 cups rolled oats

2/3 cup almond meal

1/3 cup coconut, shredded and unsweetened

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking powder

6 - 7 oz. chocolate chips (I like using dark chocolate)

Preheat oven to 350 F, racks in the top third. In a large bowl combine the bananas, vanilla and oil, set aside. In another bowl whisk together the oats, almond meal, coconut, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Add the dry to the wet and stir until combined. Fold in the chocolate. The dough is looser than a standard cookie dough but don't worry about it. Drop dollops of the dough, each about 2 teaspoons in size, an inch apart onto parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake for 12 - 14 minutes.