It’s nearing the end of the holiday season and I have a ton of leftover chocolate chips on hand. When the New Year is knocking and diets are front and center in your mind, having leftover chocolate, or any goodies, on hand is not a good idea – that means you get baking and start using up what you have on hand so you don’t have to carry it into diet-crazy January. This dessert recipe is all the good stuff and the betterish sugar – I hope you enjoy these vegan and gluten-free Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies.

Since it’s the end of the year I wanted to use up whatever I could that I had bought for holiday baking that didn’t get used. Sinfully delicious dark chocolate chips being the main thing to use up and try not to take into the new year with me. Dieting and New Years go hand in hand, so anything that I deem sinfully delicious will not be diet food. Baking some yum oatmeal cookies with my new found love – peanut powder – adds that amazing peanut butter flavor without all the fat and calories that go along with the PB. I’ve used the peanut powder in a few different recipes and in my nightly protein shakes, and yum. It’s so worth the money to buy that powder! These cookies use the same recipe as a lot of my oatmeal cookies but with a little different twist. Oatmeal cookies are also a great vessel for trying different recipes – pumpkin oatmeal cookies, Chinese 5 spice oatmeal cookies, pecan butter oatmeal cookies. Anything tastes good in oatmeal cookies!

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In a medium-size mixing bowl dump in the oatmeal, coconut flour, baking soda and powder, and the cinnamon and mix then set aside. In a smaller bowl dump the vanilla and the banana and mash with a fork. If your banana is too firm pop the bowl in the microwave in 20 second intervals until it’s soft enough to mash. Add in the peanut powder and mix together then add in the milk, applesauce, and sugar and mix really well. Dump the mixture into the dry and mix until just combined. Dump in the chocolate chips and mix and mash together until just combined. Line baking sheets with parchment paper then use your normal small spoon and portion dough out with the spoon and squish together then slide gently onto the paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 13 minutes. Enjoy!

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Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies, 45 cookies

1 1/2 C Oats
3/4 C Coconut Flour
1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
2 Tsp Baking Powder
2 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Banana, mashed
1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
1/4 C Applesauce
1/2 C Almond Breeze Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk
1/3 C Jif Peanut Powder
1 C Coconut Sugar
1 Bag Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Morsels

1. Set oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl add flour, oats, baking soda and powder, and cinnamon and mix.
3. In a small bowl mash banana with vanilla – microwave in 20 second intervals to help soften the banana if needed.
4. Add the peanut powder and mix then dump in the milk, applesauce, and sugar and mix well.
5. Dump wet mixture into dry and mix until just combined. Dump in the chocolate chips and mix and mash until just combined.
6. Spoon small amounts of dough onto a cookie sheet and flatten with the back on the spoon.
7. Bake 13 minutes.
8. Enjoy!