I love Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey ice cream. This cookie evolved from it.
This healthy cookie recipe hits the spot. They have only 56 calories a cookie! They don’t have any eggs or flour in them and are so easy to make. If you taste the batter and decide it isn’t sweet enough, a little bit more honey and a little bit of semi-sweet chocolate chips will do the trick (don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone).
Keep in mind that these cookies are from a healthy recipe with natural sweeteners . . . if you are looking for a different kind of chocolate peanut butter cookie, be sure to check out our favorite ones here.
Skinny Chunky Monkey Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 bananas , ripe
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- ¼ cup creamy natural peanut butter
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 4 Tablespoons honey
- dash cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ cup semi sweet chocolate chips
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Mash bananas in a large bowl, then stir in remaining ingredients.
- Let batter stand for approximately 20 minutes, then drop by heaping spoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet.
- Bake 10-12 minutes (these cookies retain their shape and don't spread out on the cookie sheet, so keep that in mind).
Notes
Cool completely, then place cookies in a freezer bag. Seal, label, and freeze.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a review or a question in the comment section below the post.This post was included in our 10 of the BEST Cookie Recipes video – for more inexpensive and delicious recipes like this one, click here to check it out!
They look amazing 🙂 I’ll have to try them someday.. My medicin has made me gain 45 pounds, so this would be a great thing to have when I crave chocolate and sweets 🙂
I can’t wait to try these! They look amazing and love that they are low cal!
Sounds awesome, except the bananas. 😛 If I left that out, would they work just as well? Everything else sounds yummy. Any substitutes for the bananas?
I am absolutely going to be making these! HOORAY for a gluten-free (if you use GF products) egg-free, dairy-free, refined sugar-free treat I can eat!!! And they sound so simple. Of course, I also have to substitute Sunbutter for the P.B., but hey, I can do that! THANK-YOU!!!
Ooh these look so so yummy and I can’t believe they are only 47 calories. I have some frozen bananas that I may just have to defrost to make these!
Victoria xx
These look amazing! How many per serving?
I agree..All sounds great, except the bananas!
YOu described me to a T. I gained 60 lbs with baby #2 and hated cooking for myself at home. My baby is 10 months old and I still have 5lbs to be back to pre-baby, but I just can’t go a day without sweets!!! Thanks for sharing, love yall’s site!
47 cal per cookie, and each cookie is 1 teaspoon??!!!
I can’t imagine 1 Tablespoon of batter would be very satisfying – 1 teaspoon? Not worth it.
Freeze? Are you kidding? Like there would be any of these left.
Look yummy!! Buy I’m confused. 47 calories per cookie, but how many cookies does the batch make?
Hmm these look delicious but 1 teaspoon for each cookie?! That is really tiny, how many cookies should this batter make? Also are the oats uncooked (just to clarify?) I am a WW member and want to be precise. Thanks!
I have had 3 babies, and gained 65 to 70 with each kiddo. Sounds normal to me. And this looks like something I should try with my kiddos. Thanks!
I would also wonder about leaving out the bananas, what could you use in place of them? I’m allergic to bananas so all these great new recipes that use them are driving me crazy. 🙂
Just made these. I got about 50 cookies out of the batch. Made them as written, and it is what it is. Tasted like a healthy banana-based cookie. Not my fave, but I usually have sugar-laden treats.
oh, and for those wondering about a teaspoon…they don’t spread. and a teaspoon of this as a cookie is a nice big mouthful. two daintier bites. they’re not super tiny cookies.
Also wondering about how many cookies this should make so that way the calories would be accurate
You can replace bananas with pumpkin, although banana is sweet and pumpkin isn’t you should put something in in to sweeten it up a little bit like honey. Hope this helps 🙂
I’m confused by the comments because 1 teaspoon isn’t THAT small! Anyway, for me I came out with 78 cookies exactly. I gather the reason for these cookies is to eat healthier compared to the crazy processed calorie laden alternatives. For that, this is a great recipe. I would encourage people to venture out and try them, even with banana, even with only 1 teaspoon, just try it! Thank you for the recipe, my hubster will love them.
These look really good. I think I’d like to add some dates for sweetness instead of the apple sauce, just melt them down in a saucepan with some water and blend in.
Yum!
We made these and they were very bland. Great texture but as far as flavor goes, I’ve had better “health cookies”.
Thanks for sharing anyway! Love your blog. 🙂
I am allergic to nuts so no peanut butter…could you suggest a substitute?
Wow, this sounds amazing! Thanks for sharing!
These taste horrible!
I even tried adding chocolate chips and two packets of splenda to the second batch. They were still not good, we threw them out!
How many cookies per batch?
Hi Holly,
The recipe makes 30 cookies and each cookie is a serving. Thanks!
Hi Samantha!
The recipe makes 30 cookies and each cookie is a serving. The oats are uncooked. Thanks!
Hi Jennifer!
This recipe makes 30 cookies and each cookie is a serving. Thanks!
Hi Angie!
This recipe makes 30 cookies and each cookie is a serving. Thanks!
I haven’t tried switching out the peanut butter but I’ve heard people like Biscoff Spread as a substitute. Sorry I am not more help!
Sorry you didn’t like them. They definitely aren’t the gooey, yummy desserts we are use to. Hard to find a really delicious, healthy dessert! We’ll keep our eyes peeled for an alternative. Have a good day!
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You could also replace the bananas with an egg and a bit more applesauce to bring to desired consistency…or try replacing them with other fruit purees like strawberry, pear, etc!
These sound delicious!
I wish I had read the comments before I made these. While the lack of sugar didn’t bother me, the blah taste of the cookie and the texture were odd. I was really looking fwd to a cookie that had no dairy, no fat, and no processed sugar but these missed the mark for my tastebuds. Thanks for sharing but they’re just not for me.
I just made them and they are very yummy and you don’t really taste the bananas at all. I did add about 2 T of agave and next time I think I will add 1/3c chopped pecans or almonds. Thanks
I wish I would have read the reviews before I made them. We did NOT like them. I was thinking they would be sweet or anything, but they just didn’t do it for us. I should have made banana bread with my ripe bananas. 🙁 Lesson learned: read reviews. 🙂 On another note, I love your blog and have had really good luck with other stuff!!! The three envelope pot roast sliders are AWE-SOME!!!
I have these in the oven as I write this, I used quick oats and very over ripe bananas from the freezer, and the texture was similar to no bake cookies with the quick oats (this might be the solution for the texture issue and I didn’t have to wait the 20 mins). I have high expectations for the cookies because the batter was so yummy. On the plus side, if the cookies do not turn out the batter can be eaten raw (no eggs YAY) as a Chunky Monkey pudding or as Chunky Monkey Overnight oats as a breakfast treat! Keeper for me either way, perfect “treat” for my 3 year old 🙂
http://www.centplay.com/affiliate/id_139/
And for this I say “God bless you” 🙂
I added about a tbsp of sugar and used chunky pb, and these were delicious. I know I upped the calorie ante, but if it’s the difference between meh and scruptious, I’m okay with it.
I thought they were yummy. But , I added chocolate chips and a package of instant vanilla pudding mix to give it some flavor with a splash of milk to mix. I loved these cookies thanks!
Made these last week and I didn’t really care for them. I felt there were way too many bananas that left them super mushy and a off putting consistency. So I made them again yesterday but added some twists.
1 banana
1 pint raspberries
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup chopped pecans (walnuts or almonds would work as well)
1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
2 squares, broken into bits, 90% cacao chocolate
Drop these by the spoonful, bake at the same temperature for 12-14 minutes.
It makes about 15(good sized cookies) with 74 calories, 12 carbs, 3g fat, 2g protein.
Without the 2 squares of 90% cacao it would be 66 calories, 11 carbs, 2g fat, 2g protein.
And without the nuts or 90% cacao it is 53 calories, 11 carbs, 1g fat, 2g protein.
Anyways, thanks for letting me share! 😀
As Canadian mom says pumpkin, but if you want something sweeter, maybe try smashed up sweet potatoes. Use them all the time as a substitute for pumpkin cake.
Sunbutter. It is the closest you will get to texture and consistency of PB. It’s made from sunflower seeds. And when you buy it there will be a layer of oil on top, be sure to blend it in or your sunbutter won’t have the creamy-ness you are looking for.
ohhh, maybe have to try them with strawberries instead of Rasp. would almost be like a banana split
I found this recipe via Pinterest and made them this week. We love them! I think (like most things in life) it’s a matter of expectations. If you expect this to taste like a chocolate chip cookie, you’ll be disappointed, but as a healthy cookie alternative, these are great. Just enough to take care of a sweet craving. Attempts to cut out sweets never end well for us, so I’m always looking for something sweet we can have that’s not terrible for us. I got 26 cookies out of it, but then I always make cookies too big.
I dont understand the bad reviews. These cookies are AMAZING!!!! If you’re expecting mrs fields, these aren’t for you… If you are trying for a sweet tooth fix in a super healthy way, this is it! I refrigerate them and it’s like a nice cool pudding cookie I treat myself to after a workout. I’m still shedding the baby weight and these make me feel like I’m not deprived of sweets so I stick to my Vegan weight loss diet better. Thank you!!!!!
That would be good too! Even blueberries, blackberries, ooohhhh, mango! 😀
Banana is used as an egg replacement in vegan cooking. Here is a link to some other replacements! Worth trying them out to see what works best for you with different recipes. They won’t all automatically work for every recipe!
http://www.veganbakingsecrets.com/?p=240
Banana is used as an egg replacement in vegan cooking. Here is a link to some other replacements! Worth trying them out to see what works best for you with different recipes. They won’t all automatically work for every recipe!
http://www.veganbakingsecrets.com/?p=240
Thank you for the recipe, we love them. My kids especially.
These were great. I’d already had the thought of adding some chocolate chips before I read through some of the comments. I’m also going to take the suggestion of adding almonds and I’m taking these on my GoRuck Challenge next week.
Oh my these we’re horrible. My kids wouldn’t eat them and neither would I. Thankfully I only baked one tray and then tried them. I was making these to bring them to a bridal shower. In order to not have wasted the ingredients I doctored up the rest with shredded coconut, cream of coconut and some sugar. Accidentally added the bad cookies onto the plate for the shower. Thankfully I told the guests and warned them. The two that accidentally got the o Reginald recipe cookies couldn’t even finish them. Don’t know how anyone could like this recipe. Sorry. Would rather have a few more calories and get some flavor.
Just made these and they were great! Added about 3/4 cup of mini chocolate chips and I couldn’t stop eating the batter. Great vegan cookie!
I just made thes,e, cut the recipe down for a small batch added a few chocolate chips and WOW! They’re delicious. Thanks for sharing!
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I just made this! I think next time I will add chocolate chips for a bit more sweetness but they are great and very satisfying for my sweet craving! I cooked them for double the time so they weren’t so soft on the inside. You can see mine here:
http://imake2.blogspot.com/2012/07/skinny-chunky-monkey-cookies.html
Thanks!
I made this recipe and it was not good. I am going to try the egg instead of bananas… I am NOT a VEGAN so I will enjoy using an egg and hopefuly it will add more taste. 🙂
To all those who feel the cookie is a little bland – try adding a dash of salt to the batter. I always use a dash of salt in my cookie recipes (especially anything with chocolate) and it makes all the difference! I found it really knocked up the flavor on these as well – quite delicious for a guilt-free treat! 🙂 And a nice recipe I can let the kiddos gorge themselves on without worry. 😛
They were pretty good, wish they could be sweeter! but still delish
I thought these were pretty good for ~50 calories! I’ll make them again, for sure!
I just made these today. I did not vary from the recipe except I added a little salt to mine. It made about 75 cookies. I am on weight watchers and they do the trick for just wanting a little something sweet. I like the banana flavor. Two cookies= 1 wwp+. I like the fact that they are natural. I think that in a world full of fat, calories, and preservative enriched foods we get so used to having a TON of sweetness in our foods.
I just made these today…I did big cookies though so I only got 12. They are pretty good but I would like to sweeten them a little without adding a lot to the sugar…hmmm
Found this on pinterest and got around to trying it today. I hate to be a negative nancy here, but wow these are NOT good. Very bland. I’ve ate a lot more yummy things with 50 calories in them, this isn’t one of them.
I’m pretty shocked by all of the negative comments for these cookies! I was SO excited to find a cookie that was sugar free, dairy free, egg free, gluten free, and peanut free (I substituted almond butter for the peanut butter)!!! After making the first batch already I can tell you that these cookies ARE yummy! No, they are not a straight across substitute for melt in your mouth chocolate chip cookies, but they are sooo much healthier. You just need to keep in mind they don’t have sugar – so they won’t be the type of sweet you’re used to! If you don’t like bananas, then this recipe probably isn’t for you!
Thanks for your comment. Just depends on how sweet you like your treats! We have a sweet tooth, and this doesn’t fall under that category. This is a healthier option to a cookie! So glad you liked them. Have a great weekend. -The Six Sisters
I am following weight watchers and just made these cookies. For one point, they are good. Considering what else one point will get you. They satisfy the chocolate crave.
I am following weight watchers and just made these cookies. For one point, they are good. Considering what else one point will get you. They satisfy the chocolate crave.
Just got done making these and before freezing them I really like them! I love that it’s a recipe that I can safely let my toddler help with and not worry when the inevitable happens and he sticks his fingers in the batter for a taste. We are doing B-Banana week for his home school and this is a great treat for him. We used a tablespoon for each cookie resulting in 36 cookies at about 40 calories each with crunchy peanut butter for more texture. And best of all my diabetic husband has something that works for him as a little treat!
Sorry to say but we didn’t like these at all. Very bland and they needed to be sweeter. Maybe some pureed dates would have done the trick…plus a little cinnamon, salt and Enjoylife choco chips.
I made them as directed at first but then added a bit more vanilla & then a bit of sugar (2 tsp) and liked them better. Easy recipe & interesting chewy texture. Thanks for the efforts!
When I first tasted the batter I thought it tasted WAY too bitter, and so I added about 6 spoonfuls of sugar to it, along with a few handfuls of semisweet chocolate chips. I know this added to the calorie count, but it made the cookies way better! Also, you will want to freeze them for two reasons. One is that for some reason they taste much better that way, and I did try them both warm from the oven and frozen. Two is that the bananas in the recipe will go bad quickly if you leave the cookies sitting out on a plate. Overall, a good recipe! Even with the sugar and chocolate chips it is still a low calorie desert!
Just made these and I used a small ice cream scoop to portion out cookies. I got 24 cookies out of one batch, but I made them to feed kids a healthy snack. They taste great, the kids love them and they are not filled with refined sugar! Will have to try the pumpkin option for an autumn flare and will have to look in to some type of nut free substitute for school friendly batches.
Thanks for finding and sharing! love them!
I had 6 very very ripe bananas and I wanted to try something besides the usual banana bread. I think these cookies turned out quite nice. The first batch I made up following the directions (though I forgot the vanilla!) and the kids liked them. The 2nd batch I made a few slight changes. I only used 2 T cocoa powder, put the vanilla in there, added 2T sugar and a 1/4 tsp cinnamon. I also used a TBS when dropping the cookies and I got 2 dz out of each batch. I prefer the taste of the 2nd batch and they taste better the next day. They are nice and chewy and have a nice hint of PB and banana with that slight cocoa taste.
It is interesting that half of the posts say how great the cookies are and the others hate them. I really think it might depend upon how much sugar one normally eats, plus ingredient preferences. Since I have reduced my sugar intake my taste buds have changed and many things are now too sweet for me. I have a favorite breakfast fruit smoothie that my husband and I love but it contains no sugar. When I proudly gave it to my friend and her daughter they hated it and thought it was the worst smoothie they have ever tasted! Oh we’ll, different strokes for different folks. Thanks for the recipe, can’t wait to try it.
How many cups of mashed bananas do you need for this recipe. As bananas come in so many sizes, I really don’t know what size to buy. I think that would make a difference in the consistence of the batter. Thank you.
You want about 1 cup of mashed bananas. That equals about 3 bananas.
I have not tried these cookies yet but would love to…one question are they good for diabetics? how much sugar is them I know we don’t add sugar but there is sugar in p.b and the bananas ….thanks
Are they supposed to be soft or crunchy?
Love these! Raw mix tastes great, cooked and eaten warm or frozen, they taste great. I understand some folks need a little more sweetness and that’s fine too, just add your preferred sweetener to taste. I find the riper the bananas the sweeter the cookie. I also use raw cacao instead of cocoa powder.
This one is a keeper! Thanks
I freeze bananas too, just for this kind of thing! Not to mention, my kids love making “frozen banana ice cream”!!
I made these cookie last week & they didn’t taste good at all. In fact, I feel that it was a waste of good ingredients. 🙁
Love these!!!! After reading reviews I added 2 tsp light amber agave and 1/2 dark chocolate morsels. They’re 2pts for a 20 cookie batch and we’ll worth it to be healthy and kick my sweet tooth a bit. Thank you six sisters!!!!!!
These taste like crap
Suggestion: It would be more environmentally friendly if you didn’t suggest preheating the oven for a batch of cookies that is going to sit for twenty minutes before baking. Thanks for the recipe.
Due to food allergies, I substituted cooked quinoa for the oats, vanilla almond butter for peanut butter, and per other reviews, added a bit of agave nectar. I thought they turned out pretty decent. Like someone else mentioned, if you are used to eating regular cookies you will probably not like these. I eat mostly paleo so to me they actually taste pretty good. My husband and 3.5 year old did not care for them!
There are so many nut butters out there like cashew or almond would be great to use. It would be a tastier alternative if someone doesn’t want to use peanut butter for whatever reason.
We wanted to let you know we shared your delicious recipe on our 40+ Skinny Recipes To Start Your Year Healthy post! Check it out! Feel free to share on social media! Happy & Healthy New Year!
http://www.theshoppingmama.com/2015/01/40-skinny-recipes-to-start-your-year-healthy-including-desserts/
Catherine @ The Shopping Mama
I made them and wondered why they were so dry? What can I add for make them moister?
You could add some more honey or some more applesauce . . . and that will help! 🙂
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Hi, any suggestions for a replacement for the pb? Thanks
This is a must try recipe. Thanks
Tried these without chocolate chips to keep fat down. They were gummy. I would not make again.
These are perfect for a Whole Food Plant-Based person! I used pure maple syrup instead of honey and added 2 Tablespoons of ground Chia seeds (or can use flax or hemp seeds).
If you are used to eating refined sugars saturated fats, oils, these might not be pleasing as others reviews state.
But I will be making a version of these for a long time!
Thank you!
That akward moment when you realize you were supposed to get 30 cookies out of this recipe…and you only made 17…. 😜Angie
This looks delicious, thank you for sharing!
https://littlegreencloth.com/
Hi there can I get the nutrition facts please .the macros.
Hi there can I get the nutrition facts please .the macros.
Are the nutrition facts for the whole recipe or per cookie?
It’s per cookie.
I made a recipe yesterday that is very similar to this one, and I absolutely love it. I am sure that this one is just as good, if not better. The one I made is a 3 ingredient recipe that calls for only the oats, peanut butter and exceedingly ripe bananas. I added a tsp. of vanilla extract, a pinch of salt and an 8 oz. bag of sugar-free chocolate chips. Pressed into a 8X8″ baking pan and baked at 350 degrees F. for 15 minutes. They are wonderful and are storing nicely in an airtight container on my counter. They are a bar cookie version, and are simply delightful. So, for all of you out there, if you want to do without the applesauce and cocoa powder you easily can, because that works well too!!!