These healthy soft and chewy oatmeal cookies are full of lemon flavor. They are also just 4 ingredients and don’t contain any flour, eggs, refined sugar, butter or oil. The cookies store well and make a great snack or dessert.
If you love tart and sweet lemon desserts then these cookies are for you. They are packed with zesty tart lemon flavor.
Ingredients
- Lemons
- Quick Oats
- Dates
- Cashew butter
Lemons: These cookies use freshly squeezed lemon juice and zest. It uses juice from approximately one whole lemon, which is why the cookies have such a strong lemon flavor.
Quick oats: Quick oats or rolled oats can be used to make this recipe. If you choose to use rolled oats, I recommend pulsing them through the food processor a few times until they resemble quick oats before using them because it is harder to break them otherwise.
Dates: The cookies are naturally sweetened with dates. I chose dates specifically because dates are naturally very sweet so they balance out the tartness of the lemon. The two fruits also pair well together. Make sure to use Medjool dates. Medjool dates have more soft flesh which makes it easier to puree.
Cashew butter: Cashew butter can also be replaced with peanut butter. Make sure that you use natural cashew butter (or peanut butter) meaning there are no added oils. The cashew butter adds a little healthy fat to the cookies. I chose cashew butter because the flavor of cashew butter is very mild so it doesn’t take away any of the lemon flavor. If you use peanut butter, you will taste the peanut butter but you should still taste lemon.
How to Make Lemon Oatmeal Cookies
- You will first need to create a thick date puree. The dates are soaked in warm water to soften them. The water is then drained and the dates are pulsed in a food processor with the lemon juice until there are no large pieces of dates left.
- The quick oats and cashew butter are then added in and pulsed until the ingredients are evenly mixed in and a dough forms.
- The dough is then scooped up using a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop. The dough balls are rolled between your palms and then flattened onto your prepared cookie sheet. The cookies are then ready to be baked.
Cookie Texture
The cookies are soft and slightly chewy. They are both sweet and tart in flavor.
More Oatmeal Cookie Recipes
- 4 Ingredient Crispy Lemon Oatmeal Cookies
- 3 Ingredient No Bake Lemon Oatmeal Cookies
- 3 Ingredient Crispy Honey Oatmeal Cookies
4 Ingredient Lemon Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 packed cup (87 g) pitted and halved Medjool dates see note
- 3 tbsp (1.5 fl oz/44 ml) lemon juice + 1 tsp lemon zest plus additional zest for garnish
- 2 tbsp (31 g) natural cashew butter
- 3/4 cup (70 g) quick oats
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Soak dates in very warm water for about 15-20 minutes or until dates are very soft. Drain out water. Add dates to a food processor.
- Add in lemon juice and zest. Pulse mixture until you get a mostly smooth date puree with no large pieces of dates visible. You will need to stop often and scrape the sides of your food processor with a spatula to help your food processor pulse the mixture. I pulsed at 10 second intervals and paused to scrape the sides in between. It's okay if you have small little bits of dates visible but you don't want any large chunks. See photo in post for reference.
- Add in cashew butter and rolled oats. Pulse until the ingredients are evenly incorporated and a thick dough forms.
- Using a 1.5 tbsp cookie scoop, scoop dough and place onto prepared cookie sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart. Roll a piece of dough between your palms until you have a smooth ball. Put it back onto the cookie sheet and press down on the ball to flatten with the palm of your hand, until it forms a disk about 1/4 inch thick. Repeat with remaining dough balls. The cookies do not spread during baking, so shape them how you want the final outcome to be.
- Garnish the top of the cookies with additional zest.
- Bake cookies for about 10-12 minutes (mine were done at 11 minutes) or until edges are lightly browned. Let cookies cool a few minutes before eating.
Notes
- Make sure to remove the pits and break the dates in half before adding them to a measuring cup to measure them. If you have a scale, it will be more accurate to weigh the dates.
- Make sure to use cashew butter or peanut butter that has no added oils.
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.
