2-Ingredient Banana Oatmeal Cookies Couldn't Be Any Easier

Who doesn't love a sweet and creamy all-natural dessert? Even though bananas are delicious all on their own, this tropical fruit also serves as a primary versatile ingredient used to level up your favorite nighttime treats and breakfast foods. Not only are bananas a natural sweetener, but according to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, bananas are also a vital source of fiber, vitamin B6, and potassium. Whether you're in the mood for a healthier snack to satisfy your recurring sweet tooth or simply want a more portable breakfast than your usual baked banana oatmeal recipe, you can use bananas to make simple cookies thanks to one additional ingredient.

Sure enough, you can create healthy and filling banana oatmeal cookies by combining just bananas and oats. With enough ripe bananas and the right type of oats, you can easily form this mixture into cookie-like patties and bake them into convenient, tasty treats in no time. The best part about these delightful snacks is that once you've found the correct ratio of mashed banana to oats, you can get creative with these naturally sweet treats and add all sorts of extra ingredients. Before we reveal some mix-in suggestions, what exactly do you need to know before you attempt to make your own two-ingredient banana oatmeal cookies?

Instead of making multi-ingredient breakfast-friendly oatmeal cookies, you can make an easy, delicious alternative with just these two ingredients. To avoid the use of additional sweeteners, choose bananas that are ripe or spotty. The starch in ripe bananas converts to sugar, so perfectly ripe bananas have just the right amount of sweetener and can give these simple cookies an ultra-sweet flavor. Moreover, the type of oats you choose may also affect your finished product. While rolled oats are fine to use, for a softer bite, use quick-cooking oats. Traditional rolled oats and quick oats are both oat groats, which are processed oat kernels, yet the difference is that quick oats have been cooked longer and rolled into finer particles. These smaller oat groats may adhere more to your mashed bananas and take less time to cook.

Whichever type of oats you choose, make sure to press the combined mixture into your desired shape. Bake your banana oatmeal cookies at 350 F for roughly 15 minutes. You may need to extend the cooking time if you decide to use rolled oats. Your cookies are done once they become golden brown and can easily be removed from your baking sheet. Now that you know what to consider when choosing the basic ingredients for these simple snacks, let's discuss recipe variations.

Now that you don't need to bust out the flour, sugar, and oil to make these, you can use that saved time to add your favorite mix-ins to your banana oatmeal cookies. If you want a simple way to enhance the flavor of these convenient treats, try adding some chopped dark chocolate, mini chocolate chips, or chopped nuts. To keep it even simpler, add a few pinches of your favorite warming spices like cinnamon or nutmeg.

If you want to transform these simple cookies into a heartier breakfast option, you can play around with different ingredients to pack an extra protein punch. By adding an egg, nut butter, and a scoop of your favorite protein powder, these cookies can easily become a new reliable way to enjoy your first meal of the day. Instead of protein powder, you can use a few tablespoons of chia seeds, flax seeds, or ground flax meal.

Plenty of creative ways to upgrade these cookies to your specific taste preferences exist. If you want to make these two-ingredient snacks more of a dessert, add cocoa powder, chopped marshmallows, or even drizzle these mouthwatering treats in easy chocolate sauce. Whatever additional ingredients you decide on, just use ripe bananas and quick oats to give your next batch of easy-bake cookies a naturally sweet taste and extra satisfying texture.