Healthy Apple Peanut Butter Cookies With Oatmeal
This website uses affiliate links which may earn commission for purchases made at no additional cost to you.
These Healthy Apple Peanut Butter Cookies With Oatmeal are a favorite snack amongst my kids!
Made with fresh apples, applesauce, creamy peanut butter, oatmeal, and chia seeds, these cookies pack a punch with their nutrition.
My kids also really love these Vegan Apple Cinnamon Muffins and Healthy Sweet Potato Zucchini Muffins as other delicious snack options!
*This post was originally published on October 15, 2021 and updated on November 30, 2022 and November 29, 2023.
Peanut Butter Apple Oatmeal Cookie
This healthy cookie recipe has a rich peanut butter flavor with a hint of cinnamon, apple, and oats. This is a cookie I feel good about giving my kids (ages 2.5 and 5). They’re a healthy snack and are similar to the classic snack – apple slices and peanut butter!
Feel free to use any kind of apples for this recipe. I used Granny Smith apples. This recipe has no flour and no added sugar. There is a small amount of maple syrup, but you can omit this if needed.
What You’ll Love About This Apple Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe
- Low sugar. The cookies are mostly sweetened naturally with applesauce and chopped apples, but I also included 1/4 cup of maple syrup. Feel free to omit the maple syrup if you’d like, just not that the cookies will be very mildly sweet tasting.
- Protein-rich. These cookies get their protein from the peanut butter, chia seeds, and oats.
- Fun to make (and eat) with your kids! This recipe is not very hard to make and is a fun recipe to get your kids involved in!
Apple Peanut Butter Cookie Ingredients
- Chia seeds
- Water (for the chia egg)
- Peanut butter: You can use creamy peanut butter or crunchy peanut butter here.
- Applesauce (unsweetened)
- Maple syrup
- Olive oil
- Vanilla extract
- Oats: You can use quick oats or rolled oats (I used rolled gluten-free oats!).
- Cinnamon
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Granny Smith apples: Or use any kind of preferred apple.
How to Make Vegan Applesauce Cookies
STEP 1 – Make chia egg
In a small bowl, make the chia egg by mixing 1 tablespoon chia seeds with 2.5 tablespoons of water and let it sit for a few minutes until it forms a gel-like consistency.
STEP 2 – Make cookie dough
In a medium bowl, mix peanut butter, applesauce, maple syrup, olive oil, vanilla extract, and chia egg. In a separate bowl, mix oats, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Pour dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture and stir to combine. Add the apple chunks and mix again.
STEP 3 – Bake
Use a medium cookie scoop to scoop spoonfuls of dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake cookies in the oven for 13-15 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. The cookies will still be soft but golden brown on the bottoms.
Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.
How to Store
Store these cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 2 days and in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. They’re really good when they’re warmed up!
Apple Oatmeal Cookie FAQs
I find that these cookies are perfect the way they are, but for some extra flavor and/or nutrients, you could try adding raisins, dried cranberries, chocolate chips, or cacao nibs.
Yes! If your child has a peanut allergy or if their classroom is nut-free, you could try making these with sunflower seed butter! Please note that when sunflower butter is mixed with baking powder/soda, it can cause a reaction and turn it green.
As long as you are using gluten-free oats, then yes, they’re gluten-free cookies. I like to use Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Rolled Oats.
Yes, absolutely! Add it to the cookie dough mixture as you would the chia egg.
Yes! You can replace the maple syrup with more applesauce if you want this recipe to have no added sugar. This would be a great option if you were serving these cookies as a baby-led weaning recipe! If you are serving the cookies as a baby-led weaning recipe, use grated apple instead of chunks to minimize choking risk.
More Healthy Snacks for Toddlers
Spinach Banana Muffins for Toddlers (No Added Sugar!)
Healthy Gluten-Free Pumpkin Banana Muffins (Dairy-Free)
Healthy Sweet Potato Zucchini Muffins
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? LEAVE A COMMENT AND STAR RATING BELOW TO HELP OTHERS FIND IT, TOO!
If you tried these Healthy Apple Peanut Butter Cookies With Oatmeal or any other recipe on the blog, let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment/rating below! Thank you so much!
Be sure to follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook for even more deliciousness!
Healthy Apple Peanut Butter Cookies With Oatmeal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 2.5 tablespoons water
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 1 cup applesauce, unsweetened
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ⅛ cup olive oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup oats, (I use Trader Joe's gluten-free rolled oats)
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup green apples , chopped (or any preferred apple)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a small bowl, make the chia egg by mixing 1 tablespoon chia seeds with 2.5 tablespoons of water and let it sit for a few minutes until it forms a gel-like consistency.
- In a medium bowl, mix peanut butter, applesauce, maple syrup, olive oil, vanilla extract, and chia egg.
- In a separate bowl, mix oats, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Pour dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture and stir to combine.
- Add the apple chunks and mix again.
- Use a medium cookie scoop or a spoon to scoop spoonfuls of dough onto the baking sheet.
- Bake cookies in the oven for 13-15 minutes. The cookies will still be soft but golden brown on the bottoms.
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.