Banana Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts

Banana Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts are easy homemade cookies packed with ripe banana, old-fashioned oats, mini chocolate chips, and toasted walnuts. These chewy banana oatmeal cookies are crispy around the edges, soft on the inside, and a delicious way to turn a ripe banana into something delicious.

These Banana Oatmeal Cookies are what happens when banana bread, oatmeal cookies, and chocolate chip cookies decide they should all hang out together. And I’m totally here for it. They’re loaded with banana, oats, chocolate chips, and walnuts, with crispy golden edges and a soft, chewy center.

I love banana and chocolate together (like these Chocolate Chip Banana Bread and Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Muffins). It’s a delicious combo, I must say.

If you’ve made banana cookies before, you may already know the problem. Bananas add a LOT of moisture.

Too much banana can turn a perfectly good cookie into something overly soft, cakey, gooey, or even soggy. That’s great if you’re making banana bread, but not necessarily what I want when I’m craving a cookie.

I actually tested these cookies a few times to get the texture right. One batch was way too soft and soggy. Another spread so much that the cookies were thin and almost Florentine-like. Delicious experiments, but not quite what I was going for.

The trick was using just enough mashed ripe banana to add banana flavor without adding so much moisture that it completely changes the cookie texture. The result is a homemade Banana Oatmeal Cookie that’s crisp on the outside while staying soft and chewy on the inside.

Mini semi-sweet chocolate chips add little bits of chocolate throughout, while toasted walnuts give the cookies some extra crunch and nutty flavor.

These cookies are a fun change from oatmeal raisin cookies and classic chocolate chip cookies, especially when you have one lonely ripe banana sitting on your counter!

What I Love About This Recipe

• These Banana Oatmeal Cookies have a little bit of everything going on. You get chewy old-fashioned oats, sweet banana, mini chocolate chips, and crunchy walnuts all in one cookie. The combination is almost like banana bread meets an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. They’re loaded without being overly gooey or heavy.
• The texture is one of my favorite things about this recipe. Banana cookies can sometimes be so soft and cakey that they barely feel like cookies, but these have crispy golden edges with a soft and chewy center. Cornstarch helps give the cookies a nice texture, while the oats add plenty of chew. Just be careful not to overbake them because they can go from golden to overly crispy quickly.
• They’re a great recipe when you have a ripe banana but don’t have enough bananas for a whole loaf of banana bread. You only need 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana for the entire batch. That’s enough for subtle banana flavor without overwhelming the chocolate, oats, and walnuts. If you want a stronger banana flavor, you can add a little banana extract.
• These cookies are VERY easy to customize. Swap the walnuts for pecans, almonds, or peanuts, or replace the mini chocolate chips with dark chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter chips, or toffee chips. Raisins, dried cranberries, shredded coconut, and cinnamon are also delicious possibilities. You can make a different loaded oatmeal cookie practically every time.
• They may contain banana and oats, but I wouldn’t exactly call these breakfast cookies. There’s still plenty of butter, sugar, and chocolate involved, so I’d put them firmly in the delicious dessert category. But if one happens to find its way next to your morning coffee? I won’t tell.

Equipment You May Need

• Parchment Paper – Helps prevent the cookies from sticking and can help keep the bottoms from over-browning. Precut parchment sheets make cleanup especially easy.
• Baking Sheets – Good-quality baking sheets can make a surprisingly big difference when you’re trying to get evenly baked cookies.
• Medium Cookie Scoop – A 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop helps make evenly sized cookies and speeds up portioning the dough.
• Small Mixing Bowl – Use this for combining the flour, cornstarch, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
• Large Mixing Bowl – You’ll need plenty of room for the butter and sugar mixture plus the oats and mix-ins.
• Electric Mixer – Makes it easy to beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
• Fork – Perfect for mashing your ripe banana until soft and mushy.
• Cooling Racks – Let the baked cookies cool completely without trapping excess heat underneath.

You can also check out my How to Bake Cookies with tips and tricks to help get the perfect cookies every time.

(Full printable recipe card is at bottom of post.)

Banana Oatmeal Cookies Ingredients

You don’t need anything too unusual for these easy homemade cookies. Most of the ingredients are basic baking staples.

• All-Purpose Flour – Regular all-purpose flour gives the cookies their structure.
• Cornstarch – Just a little cornstarch helps create a nice cookie texture.
• Salt – Balances the sweetness and other flavors.
• Baking Powder – Helps the cookies rise.
• Baking Soda – Works along with the baking powder to help give the cookies the right texture and lift.
• Unsalted Butter – Make sure your butter is softened to room temperature before you start. If you only have salted butter, you may want to adjust the added salt.
• Brown Sugar – Light brown sugar is my preference for these cookies. You can use dark brown sugar if you don’t mind a stronger molasses flavor.
• Granulated Sugar – Regular white granulated sugar helps sweeten the cookies and contributes to their texture.
• Egg – One large egg helps hold everything together.
• Vanilla Extract – Adds classic cookie flavor that pairs well with banana and chocolate. You can also use homemade Vanilla Extract.
• Ripe Banana – Your banana should be very ripe and soft. Mash it well with a fork until mushy. Don’t be tempted to toss in a lot of extra banana because the additional moisture will change the consistency of the cookies.
• Old-Fashioned Oats – Old-fashioned oats give these Banana Oatmeal Cookies plenty of chewy texture.
• Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips – Mini chocolate chips spread little bites of chocolate throughout every cookie. Regular chocolate chips or chopped chocolate are other options.
• Walnuts – I like toasted chopped walnuts because toasting brings out more nutty flavor. You don’t have to toast them, and you can omit or substitute the nuts if you’d like.

How to Make Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Step One: Preheat the Oven
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step Two: Combine the Dry Ingredients
Mix together the flour, cornstarch, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a small mixing bowl.

Step Three: Mix the Wet Ingredients
Beat the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, followed by the vanilla and mashed banana until well combined.

Step Four: Finish the Cookie Dough
Beat the dry ingredients into the butter and sugar mixture until just combined. Stir in the old-fashioned oats, chocolate chips, and walnuts.

Step Five: Scoop the Cookies
Use a medium 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop to portion the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about two inches between cookies. Flatten each cookie slightly with your hand because these cookies don’t spread a lot while baking.

Step Six: Bake Until Golden
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 10-14 minutes or until golden brown around the edges, rotating the pans about halfway through baking. Cool slightly, then transfer the cookies to cooling racks to cool completely.

(Full printable recipe card with full details is at bottom of post.)

Serving Suggestions

• These Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies are delicious at room temperature, but they’re also SO good slightly warm when those mini chocolate chips get a little melty. Warm an individual cookie briefly in the microwave or oven if you’d like.
• And what goes with warm cookie? Milk! A big glass of cold milk is always a good choice, but these cookies are also delicious with hot chocolate, coffee, tea, or your favorite latte.
• You can also serve them as part of a cookie tray with classic chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, peanut butter cookies, or other homemade favorites.
• They make a fun after-school snack or easy dessert too.
• And although banana, walnuts, and oats might make these look a little like breakfast cookies, remember that they’re still traditional sweet cookies. Save the protein-packed, applesauce-sweetened, honey-drizzled breakfast cookie ideas for another recipe! But I wouldn’t judge, if you had these as a breakfast cookie either.

Quick Tips for Best Results

• Use a VERY ripe banana. A soft ripe banana gives you better flavor and is much easier to mash smoothly into the dough.
• Don’t add extra banana without expecting the texture to change. More banana means more moisture, which can make your cookies softer, cakier, and potentially soggy.
• Measure the mashed banana. The recipe calls for 1/2 cup, so don’t just assume one banana is exactly the right amount.
• Soften the butter first. Room-temperature butter will combine much more easily with the brown and granulated sugars.
• Beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. This helps set up the texture of your cookie dough before the remaining ingredients go in.
• Don’t overmix after adding the flour. Mix until just combined, then stir in the oats, chocolate chips, and walnuts.
• Toast the walnuts for extra flavor. It’s optional, but toasted walnuts add a deeper nutty flavor and delicious crunch.
• Flatten the cookie dough slightly. These cookies don’t spread or flatten much on their own.
• Rotate the baking sheets. Rotating the pans halfway through baking helps the cookies bake more evenly.
• Watch the last few minutes closely. The cookies can go from soft and golden to overly brown and crispy pretty quickly.
• Adjust the baking time for different cookie sizes. Smaller cookies may bake faster, while larger cookies may need additional time.
• Let them cool. The cookies continue setting up as they cool, which helps create that crispy-outside, soft-and-chewy-inside texture.

Banana Oatmeal Cookie Variations

One of the BEST things about this recipe is how easily you can change the mix-ins.

• Banana Oatmeal Raisin Cookies – Replace some or all of the chocolate chips or walnuts with raisins for more of an oatmeal raisin cookie spin.
• Banana Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies – Dried cranberries add a sweet-tart flavor that works well with banana, oats, and nuts.
• Banana Oatmeal Coconut Cookies – Add shredded coconut for extra texture and coconut flavor.
• Banana Oatmeal Pecan Cookies – Swap the walnuts for chopped pecans. Toast the pecans first if you’d like even more nutty flavor.
• Banana Oatmeal Almond Cookies – Use chopped almonds instead of walnuts for a different crunch.
• Dark Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Cookies – Replace the mini semi-sweet chips with dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate.
• White Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Cookies – Swap in white chocolate chips for a sweeter variation. White chocolate would also be delicious paired with dried cranberries.
• Peanut Butter Chip Banana Oatmeal Cookies – Peanut butter chips is an easy mix-in. Keep in mind that this makes a peanut butter chip variation, not a peanut butter cookie dough.
• Cinnamon Banana Oatmeal Cookies – Add a little cinnamon to give the cookies a warmer flavor that’s especially good with banana and walnuts.
• Toffee Banana Oatmeal Cookies – Replace some of the chocolate chips with toffee chips for little crunchy, caramel-like bites throughout the cookies.

Banana Oatmeal Cookies FAQ

How should I store the Banana Oatmeal Cookies?
Store the cookies at room temperature in an airtight container. Keeping them well covered helps maintain their soft and chewy texture.

Can I freeze the cookies?
Yes! These cookies freeze well. Be sure to wrap them well or store them in an airtight freezer-safe container.

How long will the cookies last?
The cookies should last a few days at room temperature, about a week in the refrigerator, or a few months in the freezer.

Substitutions?
nstead of chocolate chips and/or walnuts, substitute other baking chips or nuts. Try dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, toffee chips, pecans, peanuts, almonds, raisins, dried cranberries, shredded coconut, or chopped candy.

Can I use low-fat ingredients?
You can try a low-fat butter substitute, but I haven’t tested it, so I can’t guarantee the results. You could also reduce the amount of chocolate or nuts, although that will change the finished cookies.

What else can I add to this recipe?
Try dark chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter chips, pecans, almonds, peanuts, toffee chips, raisins, dried cranberries, shredded coconut, chopped candy, or a little cinnamon. There are plenty of ways to turn the base recipe into your own loaded Banana Oatmeal Cookies.

Can I make this vegan/vegetarian/low carb/gluten-free?
Here are some suggestions, but I can’t guarantee results. Be sure as always to check particular brands and ingredients if you’re following a specific diet or have diet restrictions or allergies.

Vegan – You’d have to substitute something for the eggs and butter.

Vegetarian – It’s vegetarian.

Low-Carb – You can try a sugar substitute, but there are still a lot of carbs in these Banana Oatmeal Cookies.

Gluten-Free -Try a gluten-free baking flour that has a 1:1 substitute ratio.

Other Cookie Recipes You May Enjoy

• Cannoli Cookies – Easy Italian-inspired drop cookies with chocolate, orange, cinnamon, vanilla, and ricotta cheese!
• Mudslide Cookies – Delicious chocolate cookies inspired by the popular drink.
• White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies – Another easy drop cookie with white chocolate, dried cranberries, and a little orange zest.

If you love banana bread, oatmeal cookies, and chocolate chip cookies, these Banana Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts give you a little bit of everything. They’re easy, loaded with delicious mix-ins, crispy around the edges, soft and chewy inside, and a great way to use that ripe banana sitting on your counter!

Hope you enjoy these Banana Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts! Tell me in the comments about other mix-ins you added to them!

Banana Oatmeal Cookies Video

Check out this quick video to see how easy these Banana Oatmeal cookies are to make…

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For more of a chocolate version of these delicious cookies, you might also these Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Cookies. Similar cookie, but with a lot more chocolate. Perfect for the chocolate lovers out there.