Healthy Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies Recipe – Best Cookies Ever: It tastes like a mix of oatmeal cookies and zucchini bread! With lots of oats and spices, they’re very chewy, moist, and soft, and they taste sweet and cozy. Since they only need a few simple items and don’t take long to make, you can make them any day of the week or whenever you want cookies!
If you store leftover cookies in a sealed container at room temperature, they will last at least two days. If you put them in the fridge, they will last up to a week or more. Once the cookies are done baking and have cooled, they freeze really well.
Healthy Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies Recipe – Best Cookies Ever
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup (100g) instant oats (gluten free if necessary and measured like this)
- ¾ cup (90g) whole wheat flour or gluten free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120mL) pure maple syrup
- 1 cup (90g) freshly grated zucchini, patted dry (see Notes!)
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil or butter, egg, and vanilla until thoroughly combined. Stir in the maple syrup. Add in the oat mixture, and stir until just incorporated. Fold in the zucchini. Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
Using a spoon and spatula, drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops onto the prepared sheet. Flatten to ⅜”-thick using a spatula. Bake at 325°F for 11-14 minutes. Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
NOTES
MAKE SURE YOU READ THIS IMPORTANT NOTE BEFORE YOU START: It’s very important to use this method or a kitchen scale to measure the oats and flour properly. (← I have that one and love it!) Cookies will become cakey, bready, or dry if there is too much of either. They will not be soft and chewy.
NOTES ON ZUCCHINI THAT YOU SHOULD READ BEFORE YOU START: Before you pat the zucchini dry, measure it. To get rid of the extra wetness, you must pat it dry very well. If you don’t, the cookies will become weak and fall apart. Put two layers of paper towels on a cutting board and put the freshly grated zucchini on top of them. This will help dry the zucchini. Add another layer of paper towels that is twice as thick as the first one on top of the zucchini and press down hard until the top layer of towels is completely wet. Do it again and again with new double-thick paper towels on top until you can’t squeeze any more water out of the zucchini.
Don’t add any more zucchini! Like not drying your zucchini enough, adding too much zucchini will make the cookies weak and fall apart.
NOTES ON IMPORTANT BAKING ITEMS—READ BEFORE YOU START:These cookies spread a little, but not too much. When you flatten the cookie dough before baking it, it helps them spread out more quickly.
Do not bake these cookies for too long! When the cores are still a little soft and not quite done, they’re ready to be taken out of the oven. Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes after taking the pan out of the oven. The heat from the warm baking sheet will keep cooking the centers all the way through.
Notes on oats and an alternative: “Quick cooking” or “one-minute” oats are other names for instant oats. Like oats from the past, they come in big containers. They’re not the ones in the breakfast bags with different flavors.
A food processor should be used with the same amount of old-fashioned rolled oats. The oats should be pulsed 10 to 12 times, or until they are about ¼ to ≛ of their original size.
Other types of flour that can be used instead of whole wheat flour are white whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, and all-purpose flour.You can also use gluten-free oat flour instead, but be very careful when measuring it because it tends to soak up more liquid than wheat-based flours!
OTHER SWEETENERS: You can use honey or agave instead of pure maple syrup. Make sure it’s at room temperature no matter what you use. The butter or coconut oil will harden again after being cold.
Most of the time, I don’t suggest using sugar-free maple syrup instead. Most of the time, it’s made with water, which makes your oatmeal cookies more cakey or bready.
This recipe is gluten-free if you use certified gluten-free quick oats (like these) and certified gluten-free oat flour (like this). If you don’t want to use oat flour, you can use the following instead: sixty grams of millet flour, fifteen grams of tapioca flour, fifteen grams of brown rice flour, and one-eighth of a teaspoon of xanthan gum. If you measure them this way, most store-bought gluten-free flour blends will also work. This one from Bob’s Red Mill is my favorite.
NOTHING WITH NUTS: Use plain butter or vegan butter in the form of a stick (I like these two).
If you don’t want to use dairy, you can use coconut oil or vegan butter on a stick (I like these two).
HOW TO STORE: Put any extra cookies in a jar that won’t let air in. They’ll last for a few days if you leave them at room temperature. They will last about a week (or longer!) if you keep them in the fridge. These oatmeal cookies freeze really well after they’ve been baked and cooled down completely.
FAQS
Q) Are these healthy zucchini oatmeal cookies gluten free, dairy free, clean eating, or low calorie?
Yes — to all of the above! As written, this oatmeal cookie recipe is naturally clean eating, low calorie, and dairy free. (Nut free too!)
Q) Can I use old-fashioned rolled oats?
Sort of! Pulse them in a food processor or blender first so they’re the correct size and to ensure that you end up with a better soft and chewy cookie texture.
Q) My cookies turned out cakey and didn’t spread. Why’s that?
There were either too many dry ingredients or not enough wet. Make sure you’re measuring the oats and flour correctly (see the “measure correctly” header in the “How to Make Healthy Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies” section above for more info!) so you aren’t adding too much of either one. Double check that you’re using the full amount of pure maple syrup too. Don’t use a kitchen scale to measure the maple syrup, and don’t substitute sugar free maple syrup either. (It’s water-based, and that can make your cookies cakey!)
Q) My cookies were really wet and flimsy. Why’s that?
Did you skip drying the zucchini? Or add more than the recipe called for? Those are the top two culprits! Otherwise, try baking your cookies a little longer so they’re firmer and hold together better.
Q) How should I store these healthy zucchini oatmeal cookies? And how long do they last?
Store them in an airtight container. They should last for at least a couple of days as room temperature or closer to a week (if not more!) if refrigerated.
Q) Can I freeze them?
Absolutely! These cookies freeze and thaw quite well. I like to reheat individual cookies in the microwave on 30% power until they’re warmed all the way through. They almost taste freshly baked when thawed like that!
