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Three ingredient oatmeal raisin cookies are soft, chewy little cookies sweetened with nothing but a ripe banana. They’re simple enough for a preschooler to stir together, and they make a snack you can feel good about handing over, even first thing in the morning.
Table of Contents
- Notes from My Kitchen
- Ingredients for 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Yield Notes
- Variations
- How to Make 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Tips for the Best 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Serving 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookie FAQs
- More Cookie Recipes
- 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe
- More Ways to Use Ripe Bananas
A banana, a scoop of oats and a handful of raisins are the whole recipe. There’s no flour, butter, egg or added sugar, so the cookies are naturally vegan. Make them with certified gluten-free oats and they’re gluten free too.
They bake up soft and a little cakey, somewhere between a cookie and a breakfast bar. Though they’re cookies at heart, they also make a quick breakfast on the go. They’re just as handy in a lunchbox or on the after-school snack plate.
When the bananas on your counter are past eating, these cookies are one more way to use them up. Spotty bananas also go into maple banana bread, yeasted banana bread, Swedish banana bread and whole wheat banana muffins.
For a classic cookie with butter and brown sugar, try my einkorn oatmeal raisin cookies. And if chocolate wins out over raisins in your house, there are always oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
Notes from My Kitchen
I first made these one morning when my kids were small, and one of them was a rambunctious 3-year-old asking for cookies at 7 a.m. Sometimes you just want a treat, even when you don’t really need one. A ripe banana, some oats and a few raisins turned into cookies a 3-year-old could stir together with almost no help.
I kept the batch small on purpose, just six cookies from one banana. That’s enough to satisfy a sweet tooth without a pile of extras on the counter. And I never once felt bad watching that plate get cleaned by tiny hands.
Ingredients for 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
The oats and the raisins both have some wiggle room. The banana doesn’t, because it has to be good and ripe.
- Ripe banana: The binder and the only sweetener. Choose one with plenty of brown speckles on the peel, soft enough to mash smooth with a fork. A firm yellow banana makes bland, starchy cookies.
- Quick oats: Quick-cooking rolled oats soak up the banana and hold the cookies together. Old-fashioned rolled oats work too, and they give you a chewier, more rustic cookie. For gluten-free cookies, buy oats labeled certified gluten free, since regular oats often pick up wheat in the field or at the mill.
- Raisins: Little pockets of sweetness in every bite. Dark or golden raisins both work, and dried cranberries or chopped dates can stand in.
Yield Notes
One medium, very ripe banana, 1/2 cup of quick oats and 1/4 cup of raisins make about 6 cookies, using a heaping tablespoon of dough for each one. That’s just enough for a snack, with nothing left over.
The recipe doubles or triples easily. Use one banana for every 1/2 cup of oats, and plan on about 6 cookies per banana.
Variations
A few add-ins keep these interesting without changing how they bake.
- Cinnamon: A pinch stirred into the banana makes them taste more like a classic oatmeal cookie.
- Chocolate chips: Swap some or all of the raisins for mini chocolate chips. Check the label if you need them to stay vegan.
- Peanut butter: A spoonful mixed into the mashed banana makes them richer and more filling.
- Nuts or coconut: Chopped walnuts or shredded coconut add a little crunch.
How to Make 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
This is a one-bowl recipe with no mixer, and the dough comes together in about five minutes. It’s a good one to hand over to kids, since there’s no egg to crack and nothing hot until the tray goes in the oven.
If your bananas ripen faster than you can bake, these are a quick fix on a busy morning. For a slower weekend breakfast, my Icelandic oatmeal pancakes are made with cooked oatmeal.
Mash the Banana
Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Peel the banana into a bowl.
Mash it with a fork until it’s mostly smooth, with only a few small lumps left. For a double or triple batch, a potato masher makes quick work of it.
Stir in the Oats and Raisins
Add the oats and raisins to the banana. Stir until the banana coats every oat and the raisins spread through the dough.
The dough will be wet and sticky. That’s just what you want, because the banana is the only thing holding it together.
Scoop the Cookies
Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheet, about an inch apart. The dough is sticky, so I use a small cookie scoop with a trigger to drop it cleanly.
These cookies don’t spread much in the oven, so the shape that goes in is the shape that comes out. Nudge any tall mounds down a little so they bake evenly.
Bake Until Golden
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the edges and bottoms are lightly browned and the tops look set rather than wet.
Ovens vary, so check them at 15 minutes. Tall, heaping mounds need the full 20 minutes, while flatter cookies are done sooner.
Cool Before Eating
Let the cookies cool completely on the pan. They’re soft and fragile while they’re hot, and they firm up as they cool.
Once they’ve cooled, a thin spatula slides right under them. Any you don’t eat right away can go straight into a container.
Tips for the Best 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Wait for a really ripe banana. Brown speckles mean softer, sweeter fruit, and with no sugar in the dough, that’s where the sweetness comes from. Thawed frozen bananas work too, as long as you pour off the extra liquid first.
Keep them small. A heaping tablespoon bakes through before the outside gets too dark. Big cookies tend to stay gummy in the middle.
Don’t skip the parchment. With no butter or oil in the dough, these stick to a bare pan. Parchment paper or a well-greased sheet lets them lift off in one piece.
Serving 3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
These are as welcome at breakfast as they are after school. Serve them with yogurt and fruit for a simple breakfast plate, or tuck a couple into a lunchbox. Slices of bread machine honey oat bread with peanut butter make a good partner on the plate.
Store cooled cookies in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. Because they’re full of banana, they stay moist, so they keep better cold than on the counter.
For longer storage, freeze them in a single layer, then move them to a freezer bag for up to 3 months. They thaw on the counter in about half an hour.
If you’re looking for another simple oat treat, Danish havregrynskugler are no-bake chocolate oat balls that are easy for small hands to roll. For a grain-free cookie with a vegan option, there’s also my grain-free maple shortbread. And when the holidays roll around, there are dozens more in my Christmas cookies from around the world.
3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookie FAQs
Most questions about these cookies come down to gluten, banana flavor and texture.
They are as long as you use oats labeled certified gluten free. Oats don’t contain gluten on their own, but regular oats often pick up wheat, barley or rye in the field or at the mill.
A little. The banana is the only sweetener, so you’ll taste it, but the oats and raisins make them taste more like a soft oatmeal cookie than banana bread.
They need more time in the oven, or the cookies were too big. Bake them until the tops look dry and set, and let them cool completely, since they firm up as they cool.
You can stir in a spoonful of brown sugar or maple syrup if your banana isn’t very sweet. A really ripe banana usually makes it unnecessary.
More Cookie Recipes
Simple cookies for snack time, lunchboxes and holiday baking.
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3 Ingredient Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Equipment
- Rimmed Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper
Ingredients
- 1 banana, very ripe, see notes
- 1/2 cup quick-cooking rolled oats, certified gluten free if needed
- 1/4 cup raisins
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mash the banana with a fork until it’s mostly smooth.
- Stir in the oats and raisins until the banana coats every oat.
- Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheet about 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart, and nudge any tall mounds down a little.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the edges and bottoms are lightly browned and the tops look set.
- Let the cookies cool completely on the pan before lifting them off.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Ways to Use Ripe Bananas
Bake one of these when the bananas on the counter are spotty and soft.
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This is a good choice for someone with Parkinson’s.
Glad to hear it!
Even though extremely easy to make I won’t be making them anymore.
great tasting cookie, and simple. Thank you