3-Ingredient Protein Cookies  (with optional add-ins)

By Ann Fulton

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An ideal way to use overripe bananas, these wholesome cookies mix up in a minute or two in a single bowl, and a variety of optional add-ins allows them to be customized according to personal preference.

 

 

 

When the clock ran out and the ref blew his whistle in Rachel Dawson’s final Olympic game, she was at peace. After 12 years and three attempts at Olympic gold as a part of the United States women’s field hockey team, the loss against Germany was devastating, but Rachel knew it was time to move on. And she had a plan.

I met Rachel a couple of years ago through our mutual involvement with Girls on the Run. There’s something larger-than-life about an Olympian, but what struck me immediately about Rachel was how approachable and positive she was. Given my interest in food, one of the first things I asked her was what she eats to fuel all those grueling workouts.

 

 

Over time, I learned more about Rachel than her penchant for peanut butter and coffee. Rachel was the fifth of eight children and grew up in a very sports-oriented family. She was a natural in every sport she played, and though she truly loved the sport to which she ultimately dedicated every last ounce of her energy, this upbeat, determined player said she threatened to quit every team she was ever on.

Though she was one of the best, she never felt good enough. That feeling gave her an edge, but her love and joy for the game were often clouded. Rachel’s raw passion for the sport and her team combined with the external results—major playing time, winning records, national championships, and the Olympics—provided compelling reasons to stay the course, but this success came with a cost. In Rachel’s words, “A thriving performer isn’t necessarily thriving in all aspects of life and as a total person. And they aren’t always aware of it.”

 

Rachel–fourth from the left with the red headband–with her 2016 U.S. Women’s Olympic Field Hockey Team.

 

While competing at the collegiate level for the University of North Carolina and later for the national team, Rachel’s training occasionally included social, emotional, and habitual guidance that ultimately helped her to refocus and rekindle her early love for the game. Wishing that she’d received this type of coaching from an earlier age, Rachel began working with Alli Tanner, one of her North Carolina teammates, on a business aimed at teaching those developmental pieces to athletes at a much younger age.

After three years of training at Spooky Nook Sports, Rachel said she began to miss Lancaster when she traveled and decided to make it her post-Olympic home. In response to what Rachel personally experienced and sees as an obstacle for so many young athletes, she and Alli recently launched Praxis Athlete Development. Their mission is to teach critical developmental skills (which she learned piecemeal over the years) through a single integrated platform.

Part of that platform, which begins with a self-assessment and is being offered to school and club teams, focuses on habitual behaviors. Fueling falls under that umbrella. One of the questions Rachel asks young athletes is how the food they eat—their “input”—affects their output. Rachel firmly believes that there’s a direct correlation, physically and emotionally. And on some level, it applies to all of us, athlete or not.

So many of us spend a lot of time on the road, whether commuting to work, driving carpools, or traveling to and from sports practices and games. Hunger always seems to hit when we’re far from home but really near a drive-thru. To resist the temptation of processed, quick fix foods, Rachel learned to always pack some form of healthy carbohydrate, protein, and water. Her standbys: crunchy apples, juicy oranges, and protein-rich beef jerky.

Recently, Rachel and I were sharing our favorite quick meal and snack ideas with each other, and I passed along a simple recipe that I often make for my family. She loved the portability and sheer ease of the recipe. Plus it contains complex carbs, protein, and great flavor without added sweeteners. Like many of my recipes, it can also be customized according to preference through the use of various options and add-ins. While these are not the equivalent of a jumbo bakery cookie, they’re rather satisfying and can be eaten as a grab-and-go breakfast, post-workout snack, or healthy dessert. And they have an Olympian’s stamp of approval!

 

For more information about the Praxis program, visit www.praxisathlete.com. Rachel also welcomes questions at rachel@praxisathlete.com.

An ideal way to use overripe bananas, these wholesome cookies mix up in a minute or two in a single bowl, and a variety of optional add-ins allows them to be customized according to personal preference.

A variation on my original recipe, which uses just oats and bananas, the recipe below includes protein powder for added flavor and staying power. It’s a recipe you can memorize and whip up in minutes.  

 

Why I love these cookies:

 

They mix up in one bowl

are a perfect way to use overripe bananas

have no added sugar

are healthy, quick and easy

and have an Olympic stamp of approval!!

 

3-Ingredient Protein Cookies (with optional add-ins)
Yield: 8 cookies or 4 jumbo cookies (recipe doubles easily)
An ideal way to use overripe bananas, these wholesome cookies mix up in a minute or two in a single bowl. A variety of optional add-ins allows them to be customized according to personal preference.
Ingredients
  • 2 large (1 cup) overripe bananas (frozen and thawed is fine*)
  • 1 scoop protein powder, flavor of choice** (Optionally, 3 tablespoons of powdered peanut butter, like PB2, may be used. Add a pinch of salt if your brand is salt-free.)
  • 1 cup old-fashioned or quick oats (Either works—it’s really just a slight difference in texture and boils down to personal preference. Just don’t use instant oats.)
  • Optional add-ins: pinch or two of kosher or sea salt; raisins, dried cranberries or dried fruit of choice; shredded coconut; sprinkle of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice; chocolate chips; chopped nuts or seeds
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (or lightly grease it).
  2. In a mixing bowl, mash the bananas (peel first!) with a fork until mostly smooth.
  3. Mix in the protein powder until it’s fully combined and not clumpy. Stir in the oats. I like to add a pinch or two of salt and about 1/4 cup of dried fruit. Sometimes I make a smiley face on the top with chocolate chips because whose day doesn’t start off better when they see that on the plate!
  4. Spoon mounds of the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. (I use a large ice cream scoop and level it off for 8 evenly sized cookies.)
  5. Use the back of a spoon to shape them into nice circles if you aren’t using an ice cream scoop, and then flatten to desired thickness as the cookies will not spread during baking. Bake for approximately 12 minutes, give or take a few minutes, depending on thickness of cookie and individual oven. (Jumbo cookies take 15-16 minutes in my oven.) The cookies should be just cooked through the middle.
  6. Remove from the oven and cool. Once cool, transfer to an airtight container and store at room temperature for several days or refrigerate for extended freshness. These cookies freeze well, too.
Notes
  • *If you find yourself with bananas that are too ripe to eat but you don’t have time to bake with them, peel and freeze them in a zip-top bag for future use. Frozen bananas thaw quickly at room temperature, but the process can be expedited by microwaving them in 10-15 second increments until the bananas are thawed just enough to thoroughly mash them with a fork.
  • **You can use whey or vegan protein powder. Vanilla is a good basic flavor. For these cookies, pumpkin or chai spice is also delicious. Just make sure you have a quality powder with no unwanted extra ingredients. (Bob’s Red Mill and The Healthy Skoop offer good options that I have used often. Also, SaveMart sells a wide variety of protein powders, and I have found the employees there to be very knowledgeable and helpful with suggestions.)
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Nutrition Information (with Bob’s Red Mill protein powder): Makes 8 Cookies. Calories Per Cookie 85, Total Fat 1.2 gm, Saturated Fat 0 gm, Cholesterol 8 gm, Sodium 7 mg, Total Carbohydrate 15 gm, Dietary Fiber 2 gm, Protein 4.5 gm
Nutrition Tips: Use powdered peanut butter for a vegan version of this cookie and a boost of healthy monounsaturated fat. Calories Per Cookie 75, Total Fat 1 gm, Saturated Fat 0 gm, Cholesterol 0 mg, Sodium 18 mg, Total Carbohydrate 15 gm, Dietary Fiber 2 gm, Protein 3 gm.

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Comments

  1. Erin
    (5/5)

    I did one leg banana, one scoop of vanilla flavored protein, and half a cup of old fashioned oats. Four delicious cookies! Great simple recipe

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hi Danielle, I’ve gone as fine as instant oats, although I do like the texture with the coarse oats better. So, my concern is that you may not love the texture as much. That said, it would definitely be worth trying. With some crunchy add-ins, oat flour may end up working well.

      Reply
  2. LIsa Post author

    We made your three ingredient protein cookies yesterday. What a great way to use up frozen bananas and whip up something easy to make. We added raisins, shredded coconut and almonds to our mix. Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply
  3. Keri

    Very good! I used peanut butter flour, added a dropper of vanilla stevia and a few Lily’s chocolate chips…endless possibilities. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
  4. Andrew

    Are the bananas necessary? Trying to make a protein cookie with just oatmeal, powder, vanilla, cinnamon, and nut milk only.

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hi Andrew, You need something to bind the cookie, and the banana serves that purpose. That said, I’ve tried other fruit purees and nut butters in its place. (You can see a photo illustration and a few more details here: https://fountainavenuekitchen.com/2-ingredient-breakfast-cookies/.) There’s actually a lot of flexibility - it ultimately comes down to personal preference in terms of what you want the ingredients to be and if you’re willing to possibly accept a slightly less ideal texture as a tradeoff. Would you consider nut butter or perhaps egg white? They could both help to hold the cookie together. I hope this is somewhat helpful. If you have additional questions or hit on something that works for you, let me know!

      Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hi Jody, I’ve made a version of this recipe using nut butter, but it has been a while. You should be pretty safe if you start by replacing a small amount of the banana with your nut butter of choice. I’d limit the amount to 1/4 cup the first time around, and then you can add more the next time if you like the outcome. Also, I do really enjoy the version noted in the recipe that uses powdered peanut butter in place of protein powder if that appeals to you.

      Reply
  5. Rachel

    I can’t wait to try these for my son! He’s taken up lacrosse, and finding a good recipe for a protein-rich snack that doesn’t use nut butter has been a challenge! Your fellow Lancastrian thanks you!

    Reply
  6. Rebecca Glasser

    Awesomeness, is one way to describe theses cookies. I love how it can be a simple basic 3 ingredients to adding what your heart wants (within reason). Lol. Thank you for sharing

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Don’t you love it when simple is so good? I’m so happy you liked these, Rebecca. Thanks for your comment!

      Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hi Gerda, If you scroll down from the top of the page you will see a printable version of the recipe. Hope you enjoy!

      Reply
  7. Nigel

    I can’t thank you enough when i found your recipe for these protein cookies. I absolutely love them so much and fits right in for snacking through the day and added carbs and protein for my day. I doubled up after trying these and baked for 16mins which gave a slight crisp for them which is amazing.

    Reply
  8. Heather Post author

    I am now buying extra bananas just so they can get too ripe to eat and I can make a steady supply of these cookies! Everyone loves them as a healthy but great tasting snack or quick breakfast.

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      I’m glad I’m not the only one who does that! I do so many things with bananas — I joke that I have to do “banana management” to ensure everyone has enough to eat as is and plenty to bake with or freeze for smoothies. 🙂

      Reply
  9. Debbie Ronning

    Hi– This recipe looks so good & healthy! Do you have information on the calorie & protein content?
    Thanks –

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hi Debbie, The numbers will fluctuate based on add-ins and the specific brand of protein or peanut butter powder used, but I ran the numbers with the three basic ingredients and got 62 calories and 3 grams of protein for one cookie (based on a batch of 8). I would consider 2 cookies (or 1 jumbo) to be a filling serving size, so that would come in at roughly 124 calories and 6 grams of protein. Hope you enjoy!

      Reply
      1. debra ronning

        Thanks – I really enjoy your column. I’m always looking for healthy recipes – furry/veggies/protein!!

        Reply
  10. Dianne Hackman

    Don’t protein powders usually use sucralose or other types of sweetness. I cannot have artificial sweeteners and Found d only raw sugar is ok for my digestion. Add to that a peanut allergy and I’m on a fodmaps diet. It’s hard to find DELICIOUS snacks that fill that void

    Reply