6-Ingredient Banana Chocolate Chunk Cookies
These 6-ingredient banana chocolate chunk cookies are soft, chocolatey, and wildly easy, made in one bowl with pantry staples and zero fuss.
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Okay, hear me out.
I recently stumbled on these chocolate chunk cookies and something shifted. Minimal effort. Maximum chocolate payoff. No mixer. No chilling. No drama. Just a bowl, a spoon, and a handful of ingredients that somehow come together like edible magic.
I made them once to quiet a late-night chocolate craving, and now they're a regular thing around here. They're cozy, satisfying, and made with ingredients that feel wholesome enough that you start asking yourself if they technically count as breakfast.
I'm not saying yes. But I'm not saying no either.
Why these banana chocolate chunk cookies work
Mashed banana does a lot of the heavy lifting here. It sweetens, binds, and keeps the cookies soft without needing eggs or flour.
Almond butter adds richness and gives the cookies some structure, while oats bring that chewy texture you actually want in a cookie.
The dark chocolate is the reward, obviously. And baking them hot and fast is the trick. The edges set just enough, the centers stay tender, and you don't end up with dry banana cookies.
"I made a batch for the week and we devoured them in a day! These cookies are so healthy you can definitely justify eating them with coffee in the morning...or at least, I sure did... yum."
- Anne (email subscriber)
Recipe
6-Ingredient Banana Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, mix the mashed banana, almond butter, and maple syrup until smooth.
- Stir in the oats until fully combined.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and chopped nuts.
- Scoop the dough onto the baking sheet and gently flatten into cookie shapes.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are set and lightly golden.
- Let cool slightly, then enjoy.
Notes
- A very ripe banana gives the best sweetness and texture here.
- These cookies won't spread much, so flatten them before baking.
- A pinch of flaky salt on top right out of the oven is optional but highly encouraged.
Nutrition
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Can you use almond flour instead of oats ?
Sure! You can sub almond flour for the oats 1:1. Almond flour will give you a chewier cookie, so the end-result will be slightly different than this recipe describes, but still delicious!
What would be the ratio if you use gluten-free oat flour instead of rolled oats? (I have some oat flour in my freezer.). Would I still use 2 cups to make 12 cookies?
hi renee! For substituting oat flour for rolled oats, the swap isn't 1:1 by cup measure. Here's why: rolled oats are light and airy, so a cup of them weighs a lot less than a cup of oat flour, which is denser and more finely ground. Oat flour also absorbs liquid differently.
General rule of thumb for oats → oat flour: Use about ¾ the volume. So 1 cup rolled oats → roughly ¾ cup oat flour.
Can't wait for you to enjoy these. They are delish!
I will be slipping these into my kid's lunchboxes all year long! I made a batch this week and we took them to the pool - they kids ate. them. up.
Can you use honey instead of maple syrup and butter instead of almond butter?
Hi Janette! Great questions! Honey works as a straight 1:1 swap for the maple syrup here, no adjustments needed. Butter for the almond butter is a bit trickier though...this recipe has no flour or eggs, so the almond butter is actually doing double duty as the binder that holds everything together, not just adding flavor. Butter is a much thinner, greasier fat without that same sticky binding power, so the dough may end up looser and spread more than intended. If you want to skip almond butter, peanut butter or cashew butter would be your best bet since they behave almost identically. Hope that helps!
What can be substituted for the banana which I don’t like?
Hi Susan! Unsweetened applesauce would work as a 1:1 swap for the mashed banana by volume. Since banana adds a bit more natural sweetness and structure than applesauce, you may want to add an extra tablespoon of maple syrup and a tablespoon or two of extra oats to help the dough bind and hold together. The texture will be slightly less soft/cakey and the flavor more neutral, but the cookies should still hold their shape and bake up well!