With natural sweetness from apple, carrots, and raisins, these Healthy Oatmeal Cookies are a yummy treat that you’ll love to share with the kids. And they’re a one-bowl dessert that’s a super fun way to serve up produce too!
Healthy Oatmeal Cookies
These cookies have a batter that’s loaded with nutritious ingredients including a full cup of carrots, a grated apple, raisins, and oatmeal—and they taste SO good. I love baking these with my girls because there’s no need for electric tools and you can mix the batter together in one bowl. The kids usually nibble on the carrots and apples as they help!
The sweetness in this recipe comes from the produce and honey. The honey also helps the batter hold together and makes it easy to form into cookies. You can use maple syrup if you prefer.
(My oldest kiddo always requests to make a batch of these to leave for the Easter Bunny in the spring!)
TIP: These are made without eggs or gluten, so they’re a great option for kids with allergies.
Ingredients
To make this recipe, you’ll need:
TIP: I prefer to grate the carrot myself on a box grater as it usually has a finer texture than shredded carrots from the store, though both will work in the recipe.
- Quick oats: Or rolled oats ground finely in a blender or food processor.
- Whole wheat flour
- Baking powder
- Cinnamon
- Grated carrot: I like to grate a whole carrot on a box grater.
- Grated apple: I like to grate a whole apple, peel and all, on a box grater.
- Raisins: I love golden raisins here for their color, but any variety work.
- Seeds or chopped nuts: Choose sunflower seeds, chopped walnuts, or chopped pecans.
- Coconut oil, melted: Or you can use butter.
- Honey or maple syrup
TIP: I prefer to grate the carrot myself on a box grater as it usually has a finer texture than shredded carrots from the store, though both will work in the recipe.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at how to make this recipe so you know what to expect. Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full information.
- Add the ingredients to a bowl.
- Stir together to make a uniform batter.
- Portion out the batter. (I used 2 tablespoons per cookie here.) Roll into a ball and place onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Press flat.
- Bake.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool fully.
TIP: I use a tablespoon measuring spoon to portion out the batter evenly.
What’s the best option for icing on these cookies?
As an option, you can stir together ¼ cup powdered sugar and about ½ teaspoon milk to make a simple icing. Then use a spoon to drizzle it over the cookies.
Are these oatmeal cookies vegan?
These healthy oatmeal cookies are egg-free and dairy-free, which I hope lets more kids enjoy them. You can also easily make these cookies gluten-free by using gluten-free oats and a gluten-free flour like this one from King Arthur (my personal favorite).
Can these work as breakfast cookies?
While these oatmeal cookies are a yummy treat, they also make a nutritious breakfast cookie if you want to mix things up in the morning. Or, try them as a snack paired with a little protein from milk, cheese, nut butter, or beans.
How to Store
These cookies store well for a few days, so you can make a batch on the weekend, and enjoy them throughout the week. Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
They get a little softer as they sit in the container and younger toddlers may prefer them warmed just slightly so they are easier to chew. (They are a little dense from all the good stuff inside each!)
You can also place the uncooked dough balls into a zip top plastic bag and store in the fridge for up to 5 days if you run out of time to bake them right away or you only want to bake half of a batch at a time. Then bake more when you are ready.
Best Tips for Success
- If your honey is very firm and not very runny, warm it slightly before adding it so it’s easier to stir together.
- If the batter seems crumbly, add a little more oil until it holds together. (It is not a super wet batter.)
- Use gluten-free flour blend and certified gluten free rolled oats for a gluten-free version.
- Warm slightly as needed to soften cookies that have been stored.
- Carrots that you grate yourself have a slightly softer texture than store bought grated carrots. If you want to use store bought ones, cut them up with a pair of kitchen shears before adding to the batter.
- Any type of apple will work here.
- I prefer golden raisins, but any kind works.
- You may also like Banana Breakfast Cookies, Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies, Healthy Banana Cookies, and Favorite Carrot Cake Muffins.
I’d love to hear your feedback on this recipe if you try it so please comment below! I always appreciate hearing what your families think of my recipes.
This post was first published March 2017.
Healthy Oatmeal Cookies with Apples and Carrots
Ingredients
- 1 cup quick oats (or rolled oats ground finely in a blender or food processor)
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup grated carrot (about 1 large)
- 1/2 cup grated apple (about 1 medium)
- 1 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds, chopped walnuts, or chopped pecans (optional)
- 1/2 cup coconut oil (or unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled)
- 1/3 cup honey (or maple syrup)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix together all ingredients in a large bowl using a wooden spoon to start and then using (clean) hands to bring the batter completely together if needed.
- Portion out 2-tablespoon sized balls of dough, place onto the prepared baking sheet, and press down until 1/4-½ inch thick. Space them about an inch apart—they won't spread, so close is okay.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until lightly golden around the edges. Let cool on the baking sheet and serve.
- These are best eaten on the day they are made, but can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Notes
- Stir together ¼ cup powdered sugar and 1/2-1 teaspoon milk to make a simple icing and drizzle it over the cooled cookies.
- You can also make the batter and portion into balls, then store in a zip top bag in the fridge or freezer until ready to bake. This is handy if you want to make just half of a batch at a time. Thaw frozen dough overnight in the fridge before baking.
- If your honey is very firm and not very runny, warm it slightly before adding it so it’s easier to stir together.
- If the batter seems crumbly, add a little more oil until it holds together. (It is not a super wet batter.)
- Use gluten-free flour blend and certified gluten free rolled oats for a gluten-free version.
- Warm slightly as needed to soften cookies that have been stored.
- Carrots that you grate yourself have a slightly softer texture than store bought grated carrots. If you want to use store bought ones, cut them up with a pair of kitchen shears before adding to the batter.
Third time making these for my son & these are the best ones yet! I left out the raisins and cut the white flour in half with buckwheat flour for an earthier approach. For the nuts & seeds option, I just added chia. Used maple syrup instead of honey – love that maple taste with these.
Also I took the baking time down to 11 minutes, but maybe this worked for me bc I portioned the cookies out smaller (1 tbsp size.)
These look delicious! Any idea if I can leave out the raisins — should I add in something else instead?
You can just omit them or trade in finely chopped walnuts or another diced fruit
Mmm delicious. Taste so good. Made them for my children’s lunchbox and had to stop myself from eating them all up.
So delicious! Thank you for a fab recipe. My kids (and I) loved them.
These are so good! While he loved squashing them flat before baking, my toddler wasn’t that into eating the cookies (this time – will definitely be making again) so I froze most of them and ate them myself straight out of the freezer. They would of course need to thaw for young kids, but for me that firm but not rock solid frozen texture was addicting!
Hey! Just wanted to make a note that these are not gluten free, but CAN be made gluten free if using gluten free flour. Whole Wheat Flour contains gluten. But thanks for the recipe because it’s an easy swap. Hopefully those avoiding gluten aren’t confused about the whole wheat.
Yes. I always mark recipes as Gluten-free (or dairy-free) when I put that option in the Notes at the end of the recipe.
Make them!! So delicious, thank you! My husband and two year old loved them! Easy to make, tasty and healthy snack/treat!
Can’t say enough good things about these- they are a fave! My toddler usually doesn’t go for baked goods with “stuff” in it, but she gobbles these up.
Could I use apple sauce instead of a whole apple? I don’t have any apples on hand.
It may make the batter a lot wetter so I can’t say for sure that they’d turn out the same.
I did this and they came out amazing.
This recipe is AWESOME!! Made one batch as written and an extra with some shredded coconut I wanted to use up and I am OBSESSED with them. Love love love having my freezer stocked with snacks.
I’m so glad to hear that!
This recipe is AMAZING!! I made the oatmeal cookies for my 2 yo and he loved them. Brilliant recipe
I’m so glad to hear it!
can you skip the honey (maple syrup) or would not be sweet at all? or use something else to sweeten them up?
It’s possible that something like a thick applesauce or apple butter would work, though they won’t be as sweet. I haven’t tried them that way but please let me know if you do!
thanks! what about mashed banana?
I bet that would work!
Soooo good! We made this today and ate the whole batch!
Seriously yummy, and I love how much fruit, veg, and fibre is packed in!
Just made these with my kids today for a healthy treat! These were so delicious! We subbed gf measure for measure flour and instead of maple syrup I used date syrup! They came out sweet and perfect!