These banana cocoa cookies are perfect for those who love chocolate and bananas. They’re soft and chewy with a strong chocolate banana flavor. You can use all-purpose, whole wheat or gluten-free flour, and the cookies can easily be made vegan with the right chocolate chips.

How strong is the banana flavor?

It’s pretty strong. I wouldn’t make these unless you really want a strong banana and chocolate flavor.

And if you love that combination, you might want to check out these Banana Popsicles and these Banana Pops, which are great for summer.

And for those of you already enjoying cooler temperatures, these Chocolate Banana Muffins are super fudgy and still a favorite after 10 years.

Ingredients

Here’s everything you’ll need.

Flour – for the gluten-free version, you can use King Arthur Flour Gluten-free Measure for Measure Flour. The cookies came out just like the all-purpose flour version. I haven’t tried it in this recipe, but I’m pretty sure that Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-free Baking Flour would also work well.
Dutch-process cocoa powder – this provides a deep, rich chocolate flavor with less acidity than regular cocoa powder. If you’d like less chocolate flavor, then regular, natural cocoa powder like Hershey’s works great.
Refined coconut oil or (vegan) butter – I talk about possible subs below.
Brown and granulated sugar – you can sub both with coconut sugar but not with a liquid sweetener.
Ripe mashed banana – adds natural sweetness and moisture to the cookies. And lots of banana flavor! It is not subtle. ;)
Water – if you have milk you need to use up, you can use it in place of the water.
Chocolate chips – optional, but always good.
Baking soda, salt and vanilla

Why no eggs?

This recipe is based on another chocolate cookie recipe I’ll be posting soon which calls for 1 egg + 1 egg yolk.

I liked the base so much and wanted to adapt it to include banana, but the only liquid in the recipe was the egg.

Banana is a well-known egg sub, and it worked out very well. Instead of using eggs, you just use 1/3 cup of mashed bananas.

How ripe should the bananas be?

My bananas had a few dark spots on them but weren’t banana-bread-ripe. And the cookies still tasted strongly of banana.

I wouldn’t recommend mushy, almost black bananas. They should still be somewhat firm and not too brown.

Can I use pumpkin/applesauce/etc. in place of the banana?

I haven’t tried anything other than mashed banana. I have no idea if something else would work in its place.

I know pumpkin and applesauce are often listed as egg subs (which is what the banana is in this recipe), but I’ve had bad results every time I’ve used them to replace eggs.

Or maybe I should say the results haven’t been as good as the original.

For this recipe, I think a pumpkin version would end up funky tasting and that an applesauce version would be too soft and cakey. But it’s just a guess!

Can I use frozen bananas?

Yes! You can use frozen and defrosted mashed bananas for these cookies.

If your bananas are ready before you are, you can freeze them for later use. For simple freezing tips, check out my post on Frozen Bananas.

Can I use a different oil?

You could use 1/2 cup of regular or vegan butter in place of the 6 1/2 tablespoons of coconut oil. Vegetable or canola oil might work, or it might make the cookies too soft.

I used refined coconut oil. Keep in mind that using unrefined coconut oil will add coconut flavor to the cookies.

Why do you need more butter? Unlike oil, which is 100% fat, butter is only 80-82% fat, which would make the cookies drier and more crumbly. I tested this recipe with butter, and an extra 1 1/2 tablespoons was the perfect amount.

How to make banana cocoa cookies

Start by mixing the dry ingredients and setting this bowl aside.

In a larger bowl, use a sturdy spatula or a mixing spoon to stir the melted coconut oil, sugars, mashed banana, water, and vanilla extract until well combined.

Next, incorporate the dry mixture into the wet ingredients and mix just until combined to avoid overworking the dough.

Fold in three-quarters of the chocolate chips, then roll the dough into balls, pressing each one lightly to flatten. Add the remaining chocolate chips on top and bake.

If the dough seems too soft to shape into balls, place it in the fridge for 20-30 minutes. Don’t chill it too long because the dough can become too firm.

The edges should be set, but the centers might look slightly underdone. They’ll continue to cook as they cool on the baking sheet.

How to store and freeze

Store these chocolate banana cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

To keep them fresh for longer, you can freeze them for up to three months.

To freeze, place the baked cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet, freeze until solid, then transfer them to a Ziploc bag or container.

To thaw them, place them in the fridge for 1 to 4 hours, depending on the number and size of the cookies, or set them on the counter for an hour or so.

I don’t recommend thawing them in the microwave as they’ll have a soggy texture. But once thawed, you can reheat them in the oven or microwave for a few seconds at half power.

Gluten-free option

Like I said up top, I used King Arthur Flour Gluten-free Measure for Measure Flour, and I’m guessing that Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-free Baking Flour would also work just as well.

If you have a different brand of gluten-free flour, ensure it’s a 1:1 substitute for all-purpose flour. Substitutes like oat, coconut, or almond flour won’t work because they aren’t direct substitutes for all-purpose flour.

If you don’t need these cookies to be gluten-free, you can use all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour or white whole wheat flour.

Can I make these cookies vegan?

These cookies are already vegan as long as you use vegan chocolate chips. Check out this post,
Are Chocolate Chips Vegan?, to read more and get a list of brands to look for.

More chocolate banana treats

I hope you’ll enjoy these banana cocoa cookies! If you try them out, I’d love to hear your thoughts below in the comments. Thanks! :)

Categories:

Cookies, Dairy-free, Desserts, Gluten-free, Gluten-free Cookie Recipes, Gluten-free Desserts, Gluten-free Vegan Desserts, Gluten-free Vegan Recipes, Special Diets, Vegan, Vegan Cookies, Vegan Desserts, Whole Grain,

3 Comments

Deb says:

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Hi Erin,
These look Deeeeeee-lish. Trying to reduce amount of sugar I put into recipes these days. Of the two sugars, which would be the better to reduce without messing up the texture too much.
Deb

1. Erin says:
  
  at
  
  Hi! Thanks. :) Would it possible to reduce both? If not, how about reducing the brown sugar to 1/2? No matter what you do, it’s going to make the cookies less fudgy, but I’m hoping a reduction to 1/2 cup would still be okay. I hope you’ll enjoy them!
  
  1. Deb says:
    
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    Hi Erin,
    Sure, I am very okay with reducing both…so by how much could I reduce each one?
    Deb