These super simple and sugar-free cookies with mashed banana, coconut and walnuts are a delicious, healthy snack or dessert. Just 3 ingredients, they're vegan, whole food plant-based, gluten-free, requiring no flour, no egg and no oil.
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These easy cookies were inspired by my 3-ingredient banana oat cookie recipe on this site. I love recipes that don't require pulling out a ton of ingredients!
Using coconut and walnuts makes these cookies rich and full of texture.
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🧄 Ingredient notes
- Ripe bananas - Ripe, spotty bananas work best for this recipe (you know, the kind you would use to make banana bread). The mashed banana is the binder. It also makes the cookies sweet, since we are not adding any sugar or sweetener.
- Coconut flakes - Look on the baking aisle of your grocery store for unsweetened coconut flakes. They may also be called shredded coconut or desiccated coconut. Coconut chips are much larger in size and wouldn't work for this recipe.
📋 Substitutions and variations
Here are some suitable substitutions for the ingredients in this recipe:
- Coconut flakes - instead of coconut flakes, you can use rolled oats.
- Walnuts - instead of finely chopped walnuts, you can use more coconut, finely chopped pecans, pistachios, brazil nuts, hemp hearts, sunflower seed kernels or sesame seeds.
Switch things up with these variation ideas!
- Amp up the fiber - mix in ground flaxseed, whole flax or chia seeds for added fiber
- Dip in melted chocolate
- Add toppings! - these versatile cookies can be topped with all sorts of delicious add-ons: raisins, chocolate chips, peanuts, pecans, sunflower seed kernels, pistachios, macadamia nuts, dried cranberries, chopped dates, hemp hearts and more!
🔪 Instructions
Step by step photos and instructions showing you how to make these banana coconut cookies!
Preheat oven to 350 F. Peel and mash bananas in a medium bowl with a potato masher or fork. Make sure they are well-mashed, with only small chunks remaining.
Add coconut.
Add walnuts and stir everything together well.
This is what the finished batter will look like.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. (Cookies will stick if you skip this step). Drop spoonfuls of batter onto baking tray and then shape with your fingers. Cookies do not spread out while baking, so shape them into the width and height you want them to be.
This recipe will make about 16-18 small, 2-inch wide cookies.
Bake cookies for 20 minutes, until coconut is very lightly browned on the tips and the cookies feel firm to the touch.
Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before enjoying.
🧯 Food safety
- Wash hands with soap and water before cooking
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
🍳 Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper or silicone baking mat - this is important to prevent the cookies from sticking to the baking sheet.
🥡 Make ahead and storage tips
Store prepared cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
🚦 Calorie density score
🟡 This recipe gets a yellow light on the calorie density chart. Some of the ingredients (the coconut and walnuts) are higher than 600 calories per pound, so eating richer meals like this regularly may prevent you from losing body fat or may even cause you to gain weight. Learn more about calorie density from Jeff Novick, MS, RDN.
Get your own printable calorie density chart for your refrigerator and free ebook explaining calorie density in simple terms.
❓ FAQ
Coconut tastes creamy, rich and a little bit sweet. Coconut flakes are a little chewy and a little crunchy. Because of the high fat content of coconut, it is rich and indulgent when added to recipes.
💜 More recipes you'll love
If you love this 3-ingredient vegan coconut cookie recipe, check out these other plant-based dessert recipes!
Love this recipe?
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📖 Recipe
3 Ingredient Banana Coconut Walnut Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 ripe bananas mashed, 200g
- 1 ¼ cups coconut flakes shredded coconut for baking, 75g
- ¼ cup walnuts finely chopped, 35g
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Peel and mash bananas in a medium bowl with a potato masher or fork. Make sure they are well-mashed, with only small chunks remaining.2 ripe bananas
- Add coconut and walnuts and stir everything together well.1 ¼ cups coconut flakes, ¼ cup walnuts
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. (Cookies will stick if you skip this step).
- Drop spoonfuls of batter onto baking tray and then shape with your fingers. Cookies do not spread out while baking, so shape them into the width and height you want them to be. This recipe will make about 16-18 small, 2-inch wide cookies.
- Bake cookies for 20 minutes, until coconut is very lightly browned on the tips and the cookies feel firm to the touch.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before enjoying.
Jo D says
I'm going to try this recipe! In terms of storage, can I freeze these cookies?
Abi Cowell says
Hey Jo, I have not tried freezing these cookies, so I can't tell you with confidence how they would do. If you try to freeze them, please report back and let me know how it goes!