Healthy Pumpkin Oat Cookies
These healthy pumpkin oat cookies are more of a nutritious snack than a decadent cookie but they’re still delicious and satisfying. You’ll need less than 20 minutes and just 3 ingredients to make them.
Why Make this Recipe
- low-calorie – without the extras, these cookies are less than 80 calories each
- 3-ingredient – the most basic version of this recipe calls for just 3 simple ingredients
- dietary restriction and allergy-friendly – this recipe is vegan, gluten-free, oil-free and can be sugar-free
What You’ll Need
- Oats. Rolled oats, old-fashioned oats, and quick oats are all suitable.
- Pumpkin. Use plain pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. I suggest canned pumpkin but homemade also works.
- Sweetener. The cookies can be sweetened with coconut sugar, maple syrup or agave. For a sugar-free cookie, use liquid or powder stevia or monk fruit sweetener.
Quick Note: Optional but recommended ingredients include cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice and chocolate chips.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1. Mix all of the ingredients together to form a thick dough. There’s no need to worry about over-mixing, just keep working it together until you have a uniform dough.
Step 2. Form the batter into 12 cookie shapes using your hands and place them on a baking sheet.
Quick Note: These cookies will not spread or change shape during baking so be sure to create the shape you want before baking.
Step 3. Bake the cookies!
They need just 10 minutes at 350 degrees F. Let them cool on the pan for a few minutes then enjoy warm or let cool before storing.
Tips and FAQs
- Pumpkin. Good quality pumpkin puree will make a big difference in these cookies. I recommend Farmer’s Market Organic Pumpkin and if you can’t find that, E.D. Smith will do the trick.
- Add-ins. These cookies are easily customizable with your favorite add-ins. Mix and match up to 3/4 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans, pumpkin seeds, coconut, chocolate chips and raisins.
- Spices. If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, use 1 tsp of cinnamon plus a pinch of ground ginger and nutmeg if you have them. If not, just cinnamon is good too!
What do they taste like?
These taste more like a health food cookie than a dessert but they’re still hearty, yummy and satisfying. The texture is soft and somewhat like baked oatmeal or a hearty muffin.
If you’re looking for a super sweet, decadent dessert, this isn’t it but these are great for a pre or post-workout snack or healthier option to satisfy a craving. I recommend adding the chocolate chips to make these more of a treat!
How should I store them?
Let the cookies cool after baking then store at room temperature for up to 3 days, in the fridge for up to 6 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Related Recipes
- 3-Ingredient Tahini Date Cookies
- Carrot Walnut Oatmeal Cookies
- Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Cookies
- Flourless Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
- 3-Ingredient Oatmeal Cookies
For more pumpkin recipes, check out this collection of the best vegan pumpkin recipes. Extra pumpkin? This coconut pumpkin pasta is a must.
Did you try this recipe?
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Healthy Pumpkin Oat Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 cookies
- Category: Snack
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
While very tasty and satisfying, these healthy pumpkin oat cookies are more of a simple, nutritious snack than decadent dessert. Add the chocolate chips for a sweeter, yummier treat!
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups (250 g) rolled or quick oats
- 1 cup (240 g) pure pumpkin puree
- 2–3 tbsp maple syrup, agave syrup or coconut sugar
- 1–2 tsp pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon, optional but recommended
- 1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips, optional but recommended
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl to form a thick dough. Start with 2 tbsp of sweetener and adjust sweetness as desired. I use 3 tbsp of maple syrup.
- Use your hands to create 12 cookie shapes. The cookies will not spread or change shape during baking so be sure to create the shape you want before baking.
- Prepare a baking pan with parchment paper or place cookies directly on the pan. Bake for 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven and enjoy warm after a few minutes. Let cool completely before storing. Store at in a sealed container at room temperature for 3 days, in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze up to 3 months.
Notes
These are a soft cookie, the texture is somewhat like baked oatmeal or a hearty muffin. They are not a decadent dessert but more of a healthy and nutritious treat. They are still very yummy and satisfying though. I would definitely recommend adding the chocolate chips as some find them quite bland without, especially if you’re making them for kids. They’re still good with just the 3 ingredients but just a heads up if you’re used to sweeter treats, you may find these plain.
I recommend using the best pumpkin puree you can find as it will make a difference in the texture and sweetness of the cookies. The best one I’ve found and my go-to for all my pumpkin recipes is Farmer’s Market Organic Pumpkin. It’s super smooth and creamy and has a delicious, subtly sweet pumpkin flavor that works wonderfully in recipes.
Other add-ins that work well are shredded coconut, walnuts or chopped pecans. If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, use cinnamon plus a pinch of ginger and nutmeg if you have them. Just cinnamon is good too!
Nutrition facts include oats, pumpkin and 3 tbsp of maple syrup. If using a sugar-free sweetener, they will be 70 calories each. If using maple syrup (or agave or coconut sugar) and adding chocolate chips, they will be 172 calories each.
For for sugar-free cookies sweeten to taste with powdered or liquid stevia or monk fruit sweetener.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 79
- Sugar: 2.7 g
- Sodium: 1.5 mg
- Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 15 g
- Fiber: 2.3 g
- Protein: 2.3 g
Keywords: healthy pumpkin cookies, pumpkin oat cookies, pumpkin oatmeal cookies
UPDATE NOTE: This recipe was originally published on October 16, 2015. It was updated in April 2020 with new photos and text.
I’m interested in doubling this recipe so that I can use a whole can of pumpkin. Do you think it’d be better to prepare the whole batch in a 9×13 pan, or split into two 8×8 pans? Any suggestion for the baking time? Thanks; I appreciate it.
I don’t think the pan size will matter. Not sure on cooking time but probably around 30 minutes. Bake until firm in the centre. I haven’t tried baking them in a pan though. Thanks!
My 2 year old brother LOVES these. Some days it’s one of the only things he will eat. The original recipe is kinda dry so I found adding extra pumpkin puree or leaving out some of the oats help significantly with that. The dryness is more for me and my parents because we sneak one or two here and there but my brother takes it regardless but it’s just something to note. Other than that, I’m constantly making this.
Thanks! Glad you guys like them.
These are great. I use a cupcake holder with small muffin paper. Makes 24.
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Great idea! Glad you liked them.
Made these. They are hard too eat. Just a mouth full of dry oats. I also had to take out 1/4 cup of the chocolate chips while forming them. They would have been basically all chips. The flavors were ok, but I won’t make these again.
This is a good base recipe. I made the original but felt it lacked something~very bland . So upon making it again I added 1/2 tsp of sea salt (to taste), an extra Tbsp of maple syrup, and 1 tsp of additional cinnamon (plus the pumpkin pie seasoning). I then added a little more chocolate pieces and split the measurement of the optional nuts to 1/2 walnuts/1/2 pecans.
Very good.
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Some mornings I need a little boost before exercise and these work well. I made 2 batches so the pumpkin was a scant cup in each and I cut the chocolate chips to 1/4 cup. Definitely add in the pumpkin pie seasoning. I used quick oats in one batch and old fashioned in the other. I would recommend the quick oats. They’re in the freezer ready when I need them.
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These cookies are super plain, but I don’t dislike them. It’s nice grabbing a quick bite of autumn without all the processed sugar that often come along with it! I made them small and added a touch of salt.
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