No-Sugar Oat Drop Cookies

My friend Melissa admittedly has dessert issues. Meaning she eats way too much, too often. Yep, I just told the world, my friend. Per usual, I have problems with this. So per usual, I butted in and gave her some un-solicited advice. You know, the kind of thing you invite when you tell your friend you'll down a whole box of Oreo cookies in a day.

I suggested she try out some moderation for size. She's an all or nothing kind of girl when it comes to food. She said she really struggled just eating one, two or three cookies and didn't see how it was going to work. Her only option of avoiding this was to not buy them. I hate guilt. And I hate that she felt like she couldn't indulge at all. So, I told her I would find a healthier, lower sugar cookie to make at home so she could eat as many as she wanted without feeling bad. This oat drop is what I found. And it is delicious.

They contain no added sugar, relying on mashed bananas, shredded coconut and raisins for sweetness. It's not necessarily an oatmeal cookie even though the base is oats. The recipe calls for almond meal which I happened to have on hand, but if you don't and you own a vita-mix, you can easily blend a handful of almonds to make your own meal (which is just ground almonds)

Here you go, Melissa. Go ahead and eat the whole batch, girlfriend!

No-Sugar Oat Drop Cookies

adapted from Blueberry Girl

makes about 10-12 cookies

1 1/2 cups regular rolled oats
1 cup coconut flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 cup of almond meal
1/2 cup mixed nuts, finely chopped
1 cup dried fruit (I used 1/2 chopped dried cranberries, and 1/2 raisins)

3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine rolled oats, almond meal, mixed nuts and coconut flakes. Stir in allspice and cinnamon. Add dried fruit and stir until well and evenly mixed. Make sure the dried fruit do not stick together in big batches.
In another bowl, combine canola oil, mashed banana and vanilla extract. Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients and stir until well combined.

Mound spoonfuls of the batter into the parchment paper lined baking sheet and pat down gently with your hand to form a cookie shape. Bake for about 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown.