No-bake and easy to make in one bowl, these breakfast cookies are naturally sweetened, gluten-free and delicious! The perfect healthy on-the-go breakfast or snack.
Healthy Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
Whenever I get a little lazy to make breakfast or know I’m going to have a hectic week ahead of me, I whip up these healthy no bake breakfast cookies. They are gluten-free, refined-sugar free, dairy free and oh so delicious!
I eat a few of them for an easy breakfast and I love snacking on them when I get a mid-afternoon dip. They are a healthy no bake cookie packed with protein that keeps you full! Banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies or healthy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, are two others we love.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Hearty and wholesome: No oil, flour, refined sugar or butter! Plus, completely dairy-free. These breakfast cookies are ones you can feel good about eating!
- Easy to customize: Just like my homemade granola bars, mix and match the ingredients to what you have on hand and make your own custom breakfast cookie.
- Simple and delicious: All you need is one bowl and 5 minutes to make these! There is lots of chewy and crunchy texture in each bite and they actually taste so good!
Breakfast Cookie Ingredients
Below are the base ingredients needed for this breakfast cookie recipe. From there, feel free to add in any additional mix-in’s to make the cookies your own (ideas below).
- Peanut butter: I used peanut butter, but other types of nut butter such as almond butter, cashew butter or sunflower butter will work too as long as they’re the CREAMY type. The creamy consistency holds the cookies together.
- Oats: This recipe calls for old fashioned oats. They’re chewy, delicious and are a great source of fiber.
- Honey: You can use honey (or maple syrup if vegan) to sweeten the cookies.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract adds an extra boost of flavor.
- Chia seeds: I love adding these for extra protein, fiber and antioxidants. You can’t really taste them, but they help pack a punch of nutrients!
Optional Mix-in’s
You can stick with the base ingredients above, or add extras to make some fun variations.
- Chocolate chips
- Chopped almonds, pecans or walnuts
- Raisins
- Dried cranberries
- Pumpkin seeds
- Protein powder or collagen
- Ground flaxseeds
- Shredded coconut
- Cinnamon
How to Make Breakfast Cookies
- Combine liquid ingredients: Place the peanut butter, honey and vanilla in a microwavable medium bowl and microwave for 20 seconds. Taste and add more honey or vanilla to reach desired taste.
- Add remaining ingredients: Stir the mixture until well combined, then add in the remaining ingredients and any extra customizations. Stir well and ensure everything is well incorporated. If it’s too runny, add more oats. If it’s too dry, add more honey and peanut butter.
- Make cookies: Roll your cookie dough mixture into 8 balls and place the balls on a prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Press the balls flat slightly and add any extra desired toppings.
- Chill: Place them in the fridge or freezer until the cookies are set. Take out a few minutes before serving. Serve and enjoy.
Expert Tips
- Microwave. After mixing together the wet ingredients (peanut butter, honey and vanilla), give it a quick 20 second nuke in the microwave. It’s much easier to stir together with the rest of the ingredients when the mixture is a bit warm and melty.
- Consistency. You can always adjust the consistency until it’s just right. If the mixture is too runny, add in a little more oats to soak it up. Or if it’s dry and crumbly, add in more creamy peanut butter or honey.
- Taste test. Give the mixture a quick taste before shaping into balls. Add in a little more honey to sweeten if needed or a small pinch of salt or cinnamon for more flavor.
- Shape. These cookies are larger than energy balls, so after rolling them up, don’t forget to press down on the ball to slightly flatten them out. You can use the palm of your hand or the bottom of a cup to do this. This gives them that round cookie shape.
- Let chill. After shaping the cookies, they will need to chill in the refrigerator or freezer in order to set. Although they’ll still taste delicious at room temperature, they might fall apart easier. Giving them time to set helps them keep their shape.
Storing and Freezing
- To store: Simply place in an airtight container or zip top bag and keep in the refrigerator. The cookies will stay for up to 2 weeks if stored properly in the fridge.
- To freeze: I like to flash freeze the cookies first, so they don’t stick together. Simply freeze them on a baking sheet until hard (about 30 minutes to an hour). Then stack in a freezer container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
Other make ahead breakfast recipes we love include these oatmeal pancakes, mini egg frittatas, my breakfast bars recipe or breakfast meatballs recipe!
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Breakfast Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- ¾ cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 to 4 Tablespoons honey , more to taste
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 to 3 Tablespoons chia seeds
- 3/4 cup old fashioned oats , more if needed
Optional Mix In’s: 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips, chopped almonds, raisins, pumpkin seeds, protein powder, flaxseeds
Instructions
- Microwave liquids. Place 3/4 cup peanut butter, 2-4 Tablespoons honey and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a microwavable bowl and microwave the ingredients for 20 seconds. Taste and add more honey or vanilla to reach desired taste.
- Add oats. Stir the mixture until well combined, then add in 3/4 cup oats and 1-3 Tablespoons chia seeds (and any extra mix-in's). Stir well and ensure everything is well incorporated. Taste and add any extras if desired. If it's too runny, add more oats. If it's too dry, add more honey and peanut butter.
- Roll the mixture into 8 balls and place the balls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Press the balls flat slightly and add any extra desired toppings. Place them in the fridge or freezer until set.
- Take out a few minutes before serving. Serve and enjoy.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Recipe and photography contributed by Jane from Baking-Ginger.
Categorized as: American, Breakfast, Chocolate, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Cookies, Dairy-Free, Desserts, Energy Balls + Bars, Make Ahead, Meal Prep, No-Bake, Oatmeal Cookies, Reader Favorites, Snacks, Sweet Breakfast, Vegetarian
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
Simple and delicious. I set a couple in the freezer to eat right away! May add more syrup next time to make more moist.
I love the recipe! However I am allergic to nuts. With the exception of almonds. Do you have any suggestions for peanut butter replacements?
You could definitely use almond butter! :)
Can I put these in the freezer to make them set faster?
Definitely!
Easy and delicious!
These breakfast cookies look delicious! Also looks great for on the go!
Yes, they are great to take on those busy mornings. Hope you enjoy!
Do you think you could use sun butter? Or another nut free butter?
I’ve tried almond butter and it worked great! I’m sure any would work. :)
OMG thank you for this recipe i love it
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! :)
no thank you
AWESOME no bake cookies!!! Thank you sooooooo much for sharing your recipe!!!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! :)
Have you ever made these with a natural peanut butter that’s made from only peanuts and tends to be more runny? If so, how would that affect the consistency?
I’m sorry I haven’t tried it before. I’m sure it would work, you may just need to add more of the dry ingredients to get the right consistency. :)
A little salt in this recipe would help with the flavor. I’m using unsalted sunflower butter….so that may be why. Something to think about you’re subbing ingredients.
Thank you for your comment!
Hi can I use rolled oats for this? Dont oats need to be cooked first? Or just add them out of the packet? Can one also bake these? If yes,for how long and what temp?
Hello! It is under the third picture with the ingredients.
This recipe is so easy to make, and it is delicious! I love the flexibility to do different add-ins and to make it unique to you. So good!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for leaving a comment and review Alison. :)
Loved it! Added 1 1/2 tablespoons of maple syrup instead of 1 tablespoon. Will make again. So easy to make. Thanks so much for sharing.
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! :)
I LOVE this recipe!! I’ve added walnuts, almonds, cranberries (wanna try mini chocolate chips). When I didn’t have chia I used toasted sesame seeds and another time pumpkin seeds. Always scrumptious! Thanks very much for sharing.
Sounds delicious! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed them Denise!
I used almond butter, muesli instead of oats and 2 TBSP of chia. It came together beautifully!
Sounds delicious!!
It IS :D
Superb happy with how these turned out. I have gestational diabetes and have been trying to find a palatable bedtime snack to keep my numbers low. These are quite tasty, packed full of protein, and helped with my numbers a lot. I ended up not adding the honey because my peanut butter has a few grams of sugar, and they are still delicious! Happy to have these in my recipe book to get me through the end of my pregnancy! Thanks for sharing.
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Thank you for your comment and review Jess. Best of luck with the rest of your pregnancy and delivery!
Tastes good but, I had to add more peanut butter and maple syrup to get them to stick together. I added sugar free chocolate chips, but, I added them before the mixture had cooled so they melted. Very messy making the cookies.
They are so good! I added chocolate chips and almond slivers. Will be making these often.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed them! Thanks for your comment and review. :)
How many can you eat as a breakfast or snack?
Hi Tori! A serving size is 1 breakfast cookie!