Are you looking for a healthy and delicious sweet treat with no added sugar? These healthy cookies will tick all the boxes! But don't hurry to turn the page if you're OK with adding sugar to your meals—this recipe works perfectly with or without sugar!
These healthy oatmeal cookies are great for lunch boxes, picnics, and afternoon snacks, as well as breakfast cookies or a sweet treat after any meal. With no sugar added, you can enjoy the chewy cookies without any regrets. This recipe has been crafted to ensure the cookies are sweet but not overly sweet (which is a common thing with many other oatmeal cookies).
This recipe has stayed unchanged for years in our family despite our recent focus on low-carb food. The only thing that we dared change about it was replacing sugar with monk fruit sweetener to avoid added sugars. We usually stick to our dietary choices rather strictly, but there are some rare occasions when we allow ourselves some "good old" snack, and it has to be worth the sacrifice. This one certainly is!
The simple ingredients mean you can whip up a tasty treat without a lot of fuss, and the optional lemon zest adds a little something extra. Feeling adventurous? Toss in some sugar-free dark chocolate chips or chopped nuts to take things up a notch. These cookies are flexible enough to match whatever you’re craving and fit easily into your diet.
What’s even better is how practical these cookies are. They’re perfect for road trips, lunch boxes, or those mornings when you’re rushing out the door. They hold up well and stay chewy and delicious even after a couple of days. Once you give these a try, they’ll probably be the snack you keep coming back to and include in your weekly meal plan!
Ingredients
Here's a list of ingredients required to make these healthy oatmeal raisin cookies:
- Oatmeal: Basically, we've tried this recipe with different kinds of oats, including quick oats, wholegrain oats, rolled oats, and regular oatmeal. They all work great, and the difference in texture or taste has been hardly distinguishable. So, choose what you have at hand.
- Wheat flour: This recipe typically uses regular all-purpose wheat flour, but that's not your only option! We've tried it with whole grain wheat flour for a heartier texture, and gluten-free flour works just as well if you need a gluten-free version of these cookies.
- Unsalted butter: It will add softness and flavor to the cookies and help to bring all the soft ingredients together.
- Monk fruit sweetener: Monk fruit sweetener is a great choice for sweetening cookies when on a sugar-free diet. However, it is not the only choice out there. For other sugar-free sweetener alternatives, check the FAQ section closer to the bottom of the post. When not on a sugar-free diet, feel free to replace the monk fruit sweetener with regular sugar (white or brown sugar, both will work great).
- One large egg, that'll help hold the cookies together.
- Lemon zest: While this is an optional ingredient that can sometimes be skipped, it adds an incredible touch to the overall flavor of the cookies and we always recommend to add it. A little bit of lemon zest is what takes good cookies to great.
- Baking powder for the right texture.
- Sunflower seeds: You'll need peeled sunflower seeds for this recipe. Feel free to add other seeds of your choice, be it pumpkin, sesame seeds or a seeds mix.
- Raisins: Look for unsweetened raisins to avoid added sugar.
Directions
1. Prepare the oatmeal: Melt half the butter in a small skillet. Combine oatmeal with unsalted sunflower seeds and roast in half the melted butter.
2. Mix the butter: Mix the remaining butter with monk fruit sweetener.
3. Take a large bowl and add lemon zest and one egg (at room temperature). Stir or mix using a hand mixer to combine.
4. Mix flour with baking powder: Combine the flour and baking powder in a separate bowl and stir well to combine. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture.
5. Finally, add the roasted oatmeal and raisins and stir well.
6. Shape the cookies: Preheat the oven to 355℉ (180℃). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and start shaping your cookies. Use approximately 1 teaspoon of the cookie dough for each cookie. Feel free to use a cookie scoop, if you have one, to ensure an even distribution of the cookie dough amount all pieces. It's up to you to decide on the shape and size of your cookies. However, the estimated cooking time correspond to 1 tsp-large cookies. If you increase their size, you might need to increase the baking time unless you make them very flat.
7. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Be careful not to burn the raisins. They're best when hidden inside the cookie, not sticking out, or they may burn quickly.
Once you've tamed the original recipe, you can start experimenting by adding some peanut butter, sugar-free dark chocolate chips, dried fruits, or nuts to the cookie dough. This is a base recipe that can be further adjusted and upgraded to suit your needs and taste.
Healthy Sugar-Free Oatmeal Cookies with Raisins
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups oatmeal (150 g)
- 2 tablespoon wheat flour
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter (80 g)
- 4 tablespoon monk fruit sweetener
- 1 egg
- ½ lemon (zest only)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ⅓ cup sunflower seeds (50 g)
- ½ cup raisins (75 g)
Instructions
- Combine oatmeal with unsalted sunflower seeds and roast in half the butter.
- Mix the remaining butter with monk fruit sweetener.
- Add lemon zest and one egg (at room temperature). Stir or mix using a hand mixer to combine.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour with baking powder and stir well to combine. Add to the egg mixture.
- Finally, add the roasted oatmeal and raisins, stir well.
- Preheat the oven to 355℉ (180℃). Line a baking pan with parchment paper and start shaping your cookies. Use approximately 1 teaspoon of the cookie dough for each cookie.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Video
Notes
- Be careful not to burn the raisins. It's best when raisins are hidden inside the cookie, not sticking out, or they may burn quickly.
- Feel free to replace the monk fruit sweetener with regular table sugar if your diet allows.
Frequently Asked Questions
It's best to keep the cookies in an airtight container when storing for longer than 2-3 days. However, they usually retain a good texture when kept on a plate for several days. It's unlikely, though, that you'll have any cookies left on the plate after a couple of days. When making larger batches for future use, throw the cookies into a freezer bag and keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, simply take the cookies out and leave them at room temperature to thaw.
Yes, of course! If you don't restrict yourself to a sugar-free diet, feel free to use white or brown sugar in equivalent quantities. Honey can also be used as a sweetener in this recipe.
You can use ripe bananas and/or dates to sweeten the cookies without any commercial sweeteners or sugar substitutes. Dried dates are our go-to sweetener for sugar-free cookies and homemade pies. Simply chop them or grind them finely using a food processor and add to the cookie dough.
Since monk-fruit sweetener is considered safe for people with diabetes and there's no sugar added in this recipe, these are diabetic-friendly cookies. However, you need to pay close attention to the raisins you choose because they can also contain sugar.
Give this simple cookie recipe a try the next time you'll be craving a snack for your sweet tooth. If you're looking for new recipes that contain no added sugar, consider also these cinnamon brioche rolls, sugar-free apple sheet cake, or homemade mini plum tarts. There are plenty of low-sugar and sugar-free dessert options in our dessert section, so dive right in!
Nutritional Information
Disclaimer: This nutrition label has been created using the calculator provided by www.verywellfit.com, and it may not be 100% accurate.
Carla
Very interesting topic, appreciate it for posting.