These healthy chocolate flavored oatmeal cookies are very crispy. They are just 4 ingredients and don’t contain any flour, eggs, refined sugar, dairy or butter. The cookies are easy to make and store well.
These crispy chocolate oatmeal cookies are a new favorite in my house. We love eating them for breakfast, snack or dessert. I love how crispy and crunchy the cookies are and they have a rich cocoa flavor.
Ingredients
- Quick Oats
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Coconut Oil
- Maple Syrup
Quick oats: These cookies work best with quick oats because the smaller oat pieces will crisp up faster. Quick oats are rolled oats that have been further processed so that they are smaller and thinner than rolled oats. If you don’t have quick oats available you can also use a food processor to break down rolled oats until they resemble the size of quick oats. I also have a version that is made with coconut instead of oats.
Unsweetened cocoa powder: The cookies get their chocolate flavor from cocoa powder. I used Dutch process cocoa powder because I think it gives the cookies a richer chocolate flavor.
Coconut oil: The oats are tossed in coconut oil to help them crisp up. I used unrefined coconut oil but I think the recipe should work with either refined or unrefined.
Maple syrup: The cookies are sweetened with maple syrup. The syrup also helps the oats bind together. I don’t recommend using honey as a substitute because the cookies don’t crisp up as much when using honey. Some sugar-free maple flavored syrup substitutes will also work.
How to Make Crispy Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
- The oats are first mixed with the cocoa powder until the cocoa powder is evenly distributed.
- The oats are then coated in coconut oil.
- Finally, the maple syrup is stirred in.
- The cookie mixture is packed in a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop and released onto the prepared baking sheet. Use the back of a metal spoon to flatten and shape the mixture into a round disk about 1/4 inch thick.
- The cookies are baked for about 15 minutes. Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet. Once cooled, they can be easily peeled off.
Cookie Texture and Sweetness
The cookies have a very crunchy crispy texture. They are similar to the large granola clusters except in cookie form. The cookies have a good chocolate flavor to them but are only lightly sweetened. They are not meant to be super sweet cookies. The level of sweetness is about the same as dark chocolate.
More Oatmeal Cookie Recipes
- 3 Ingredient Soft Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
- 4 Ingredient Crispy Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies
- 4 Ingredient Crispy Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
4 Ingredient Crispy Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (88 g) quick oats
- 1 tbsp (8 g) unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) melted coconut oil
- 5 tbsp (74 ml) maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Add oats and cocoa powder to a large mixing bowl. Mix with a spatula for about 20 seconds or until the cocoa powder is evenly mixed in with the oats.
- Drizzle melted coconut oil evenly across. Mix with a spatula for about 20-30 seconds, stopping a few times to scrape the sides of your bowl, until all of the oats are moistened with coconut oil.
- Drizzle the maple syrup across. Mix with your spatula until the oats are evenly coated in syrup and start to clump together.
- Using a 1 tbsp cookie scoop, pack 1 tbsp of oat mixture into your cookie scoop. Release onto your prepared baking sheet. The mixture will be loose and not fully hold together. Use the back of a metal spoon to press and shape the mixture until it becomes a thin round disk (about 1/4 inch thick; try not to make any thicker than that). Repeat with remaining mixture, spacing each about 1 inch apart. If your mixture is too sticky or you are having difficulty shaping, you can lightly wet the back of the spoon with water before using it to press the oat mixture.
- Bake the cookies for about 15-16 minutes. It is a little difficult to see when the cookies are done, but the surface of the cookies should turn a slightly lighter shade of brown.
- Remove cookies from oven but don't attempt to move them from the baking sheet until they are fully cooled and set. They will not yet be crispy when they first come out of the oven. Once they are cooled, the cookies will be fully set and crispy. The best way to remove them is to peel them off the parchment paper or silicone mat instead of using a spatula. Once cookies are ready, enjoy right away or store them in an airtight container. Do not leave them out in the open too long (especially if you have a humid kitchen) because they will absorb moisture from the air which will make the cookies soften and turn sticky.
Notes
- If you only have rolled oats you can pulse them in a food processor until they resemble the size of quick oats.
- I used unrefined coconut oil*.
- *This product link is an affiliate link. This means I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
- I don't recommend using honey as a substitute for maple syrup as the cookies don't crisp up as much when using honey. Many sugar-free maple flavored syrup substitutes will also work as a substitute for pure maple syrup.
- These are not meant to be super sweet cookies. The flavor of these cookies will be like dark chocolate or semisweet chocolate. If you find these types of chocolate too bitter then these cookies are probably not the right cookies for you to try.
- If you want to reduce sugar further, you can reduce the amount of syrup in these cookies to 4 tbsp. The cookies will still bind together with 4 tbsp syrup but some people may find the cookies are not sweet enough.
- It can be a little tricky to determine when the cookies are done. If you remove the cookies and let them fully cool and they are not crispy, you can always stick them back in the oven for a few more minutes. Be careful to watch the edges and make sure they don't turn too dark which would be a sign that the cookies are overbaked.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
I was so excited to make this since I had a deep craving for cookies like no-bake ones but didn’t have butter or milk or eggs…and I didn’t want to consume so much sugar. Unfortunately, I think I did something wrong somewhere. I had all the ingredients and followed the instructions but they ended up melting and coming apart during baking. I still ate them since they were still edible and I think they would’ve been satisfactory had they gone well.
Hmmm! If your mixture is too sticky or you are having difficulty shaping, you can lightly wet the back of the spoon with water before using it to press the oat mixture. Make sure to remove cookies from oven but don’t attempt to move them from the baking sheet until they are fully cooled and set. They will not yet be crispy when they first come out of the oven. Once they are cooled, the cookies will be fully set and crispy!
Wow, nice and very tasty!
Thank you so much!
can you substitute coconut oil with something else
You can try with melted regular dairy butter but we haven’t tested it so we are not positive it will work!
Hi Kirbie, I love your recipes, always so simple & pleasing! I would love to make these, but wonder what I could use instead of coconut oil?
I really don’t like it!
Thank you so much! You can try with melted regular dairy butter but we haven’t tested it so we are not positive it will work!
These cookie recipes look tempting. Can I use melted butter instead of coconut oil?
You can try with melted regular dairy butter but we haven’t tested it so we are not positive it will work!