5-Ingredient Healthy Strawberry Oatmeal Cookies made with wholesome ingredients and less added sugar. This simple gluten-free dairy-free dessert recipe is vegan and refined sugar-free! Perfect for those who enjoy a health-conscious treat!
If you’re like me and you go bananas over all things oatmeal and strawberries, these cookies will blow your mind!
My Healthy 6-Ingredient Apple Oatmeal Cookies and 5-Ingredient Healthy Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies were so well-loved that I had to swing back around with a strawberry version.
I just can’t resist these fruit-sweetened oatmeal cookies!
They have an incredibly rich flavor on account of the almond butter with hints of refreshing berries, are so easy to make for a practically guilt-free treat, and they have the most delightful texture.
Speaking of texture, let’s talk about the texture of these cookies.
The texture of these amazing cookies is soft and chewy, kind of like a rich muffin top.
Because the recipe is flourless, you don’t get the same texture as you do with a regular cookie recipe that uses flour, but everyone who has tried these cookies has enjoyed the soft texture.
Nevertheless, if you’re in for a chewy cookie treat, I think you’re going to love this easy oatmeal cookie recipe.
If you’re a big strawberry dessert fan, also be sure to check out my Almond Flour Strawberry Crumble or my Vegan Strawberry Cobbler (made with gluten-free all-purpose flour).
Now let’s discuss the healthy ingredients for this healthy strawberry oatmeal cookie recipe.
Ingredients for Strawberry Oatmeal Cookies:
Quick Oats or Rolled Oats: Taking the place of flour, we use quick oats or old-fashioned oats to make these easy strawberry cookies.
Quick oats will produce a softer texture whereas rolled oats will give you a little nuttiness with a more noticeable chew. I personally love both versions!
If you follow a gluten-free diet, use gluten free oats that specify on the package that they are certified gluten-free. I use gluten-free sprouted quick oats.
Ripe Bananas: Overripe bananas that have plenty of brown spots are responsible for much of the moisture and sweetness in this healthy cookie recipe.
Be sure your bananas are properly ripe for the best result, as they will bring a creamy sweet flavor versus that tangy banana flavor.
You can definitely taste the banana so if you aren’t a banana lover, try using ⅔ cup of unsweetened applesauce as a replacement.
Unsweetened Almond Butter: The richness of the cookies comes from creamy almond butter. You can use any nut butter or seed butter such as peanut butter, sunflower seed butter, or cashew butter.
Just note that you will be able to taste the ingredient you choose so be sure it’s a nut butter you love.
I like the fact that almond butter has a subtle flavor so it doesn’t stand out quite as much as peanut butter, which allows the oat and strawberry flavors to shine through.
Pure Maple Syrup: While mashed bananas make up the majority of the sweetness in this healthy cookie recipe, we add some pure maple syrup to bump up the sweetness to just the right amount.
For extra sweetness, you can add 1 to 3 tablespoons of brown sugar, white sugar, or sugar-free sweetener.
Fresh Strawberries: Delicious ripe juicy strawberries get chopped up into small chunks and mixed into the oatmeal cookie dough for a little berry infusion that no one can resist! For the best results, use sweet strawberries but unripe strawberries will work too.
If you have freeze-dried strawberries on hand, feel free to replace the fresh strawberries with 2/3 cup freeze dried strawberries. This will result in even more strawberry flavor!
Frozen strawberries will work but I recommend thawing them completely before using them to remove any excess liquid.
Sea Salt: A pinch of sea salt enhances all of the flavors of the individual ingredients so that the bold flavor really tickles your taste buds and satisfies the sweet tooth. Don’t skip it unless you need to!
Optional Additions:
If you have it on hand, add 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract and/or 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.
Feel free to add up to 1 cup of chocolate chips if you love chocolate and berries together! Semisweet chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips and white chocolate chips are all a great way of adding decadence to this delicious treat.
These gluten-free cookies are also a great vegan recipe for those who eat a plant-based diet because they don’t require eggs and are dairy-free. Similarly, there is no need for an egg replacement like a flax egg in this easy strawberry cookie recipe.
In addition to being a delicious strawberry dessert, this is also a great breakfast for those times you’re looking for something quick with whole grains.
Now that we’re familiar with the simple ingredients list, let’s whip up a batch of these delicious chewy cookies!
How to Make Healthy Strawberry Oatmeal Cookies:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Mash the bananas into a large bowl until they’re creamy. Add in the pure maple syrup and almond butter (and vanilla extract if adding) and mix until the wet ingredients are well-combined into a thick, sticky substance.
Note: if you keep your almond butter in the refrigerator and it is chilled, you can either place it on the counter for 20 minutes or so before baking to bring it to room temperature or microwave it for 20-30 seconds or until it is easy to stir.
Add the oats and sea salt (dry ingredients) to the mixing bowl with the wet ingredients (also add the ground cinnamon here if you’re choosing to add it) and mix everything until well-combined.
Transfer the chopped strawberries to the mixing bowl with the oatmeal cookie mixture and stir well until the strawberries are well-distributed throughout the cookie dough. The cookie dough will be very sticky and thick – this is normal.
Drop mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheet using a spoon or a small cookie scoop.
Note that the cookies will come out of the oven the same size and shape as they go in, so choose your size and shape accordingly. I like to make 9 huge round cookies but you can make up to 20 small cookies.
Bake cookies for 10 to 15 minutes on the center rack of the preheated oven, or until the edges are slightly golden brown and they feel firm when poked. Smaller cookies will require less time (8 to 12 minutes) and larger cookies will require more time (12 to 15 minutes).
Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool for at least 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. If you don’t own a wire rack simply allow the cookies to cool completely on the cookie sheet before peeling them off and enjoying.
Store leftover cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. You can also freeze strawberry cookies in a zip lock bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.
And that’s it! A healthy strawberry cookies recipe that you’ll want to put on repeat during strawberry season.
This simple recipe is the perfect healthy dessert or grab-and-go snack for those times you’re craving something sweet but want to keep it mindful.
I also love that this recipe is easy enough for kids to participate in as it doesn’t require any special equipment like a stand mixer or a hand mixer and very little skill.
If you love easy healthy dessert recipes like this one, also try out these reader favorites!
More Healthy Desserts:
- 5-Ingredient Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- 4-Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Bars
- Keto Cowboy Cookies
- Paleo Blueberry Crumb Bars
- Vegan Strawberry Crumb Bars
Strawberry chewy oatmeal cookies for breakfast!
Ingredients
- 2 large ripe bananas, mashed (⅔ cup)
- ¼ cup (60 ml) pure maple syrup
- 2/3 cup (160 g) unsweetened almond butter
- 2 cups (214 g) quick oats
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 3/4 cup (110 g) fresh strawberries, chopped into small chunks
Optional Additions:
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mash the bananas into a large bowl until they’re creamy. Add in the pure maple syrup and almond butter (and vanilla extract if adding) and mix until the wet ingredients are well-combined into a thick, sticky substance. Note: if you keep your almond butter in the refrigerator and it is chilled, you can either place it on the counter for 20 minutes or so before baking to bring it to room temperature or microwave it for 20-30 seconds or until it is easy to stir.
- Add the oats and sea salt (dry ingredients) to the mixing bowl with the wet ingredients (also add the ground cinnamon here if you’re choosing to add it) and mix everything until well-combined. Transfer the chopped strawberries to the mixing bowl with the oatmeal cookie mixture and stir well until the strawberries are well-distributed throughout the cookie dough. The cookie dough will be very sticky and thick – this is normal.
- Drop mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheet using a spoon or a small cookie scoop. Note that the cookies will come out of the oven the same size and shape as they go in, so choose your size and shape accordingly. I like to make 9 huge round cookies but you can make up to 20 small cookies.
- Bake cookies for 10 to 15 minutes on the center rack of the preheated oven, or until the edges are slightly golden brown and they feel firm when poked. Smaller cookies will require less time (8 to 12 minutes) and larger cookies will require more time (12 to 15 minutes).
- Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool for at least 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. If you don’t own a wire rack simply allow the cookies to cool completely on the cookie sheet before peeling them off and enjoying.
Notes
Nutrition
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Marlene
Tuesday 8th of August 2023
Thank you for another awesome recipe Julia, I made them and added crushed walnuts,I'm going to make your apple recipe next.
Julia
Thursday 10th of August 2023
Ooh, I love the idea of adding crushed walnuts - sounds delightful! I hope you enjoy the apple version too!
Carrie
Tuesday 8th of August 2023
Can you make your recipes pinnable on Pinterest? It make it easy for people to save.
Julia
Tuesday 8th of August 2023
Hi Carrie! The images should be pinnable. For me, a little PIN icon pops up in the left corner of each photo, or you can click the purple icon at the bottom of the screen with the three prongs. If all that fails, you may consider adding the Pinterest extension to your browser so that you can easily pin images on any website :) I hope this helps!
Daisy
Monday 7th of August 2023
I’m allergic to nuts. Do you have an alternative to the nut butter?
Julia
Monday 7th of August 2023
Hi Daisy! I haven't tested the recipe without a nut butter and truthfully I'm not sure whether or not it would work because it's so sticky. Can you do sunflower seeds? If so, sunflower seed butter is a great option if you like the flavor. I wish I had a better answer for you!