Yes, you can easily bake these granola cookies with protein powder yourself. You’ll need rolled oats, nuts, seeds and dried fruit, plus a neutral-tasting protein powder to act as a binding agent. Below you’ll find exactly which ingredients to use, how to make the cookies and how long to bake them for. They’re handy as a quick, high-protein breakfast or snack on the go, and you can decide for yourself what to include and what to leave out.
The recipe is deliberately flexible: the banana and protein powder provide the binding, and you can fill in the rest with whatever you’ve got at home. Below are the basic quantities, a brief overview of the preparation and answers to the most frequently asked questions.
What do you need for protein granola cookies?
For a basic batch of around ten cookies, you’ll need rolled oats, nuts and seeds, dried fruit, a ripe banana as a binding agent, and a neutral-tasting protein powder. The banana and the powder hold the dough together, so you don’t need any eggs or flour. The quantities are a guide: choose your favourite nuts and seeds and adjust to taste.
- 150 g rolled oats
- a handful of nuts and seeds of your choice (walnuts, pecans, almonds, sunflower seeds)
- a handful of dried fruit (dried apricots, dates or cranberries)
- 2 tablespoons of desiccated coconut
- 1 ripe banana
- 1 tablespoon of honey (or maple syrup for a vegan version)
- 2 tablespoons of coconut oil or olive oil
- 2 scoops (approx. 60 g) neutral protein powder (whey or vegan)
- optional: a handful of dark chocolate
It’s best to choose a neutral, unflavoured powder. That way, the flavour of the nuts and fruit will come through, and you can decide for yourself how sweet the cookies will be.
Which protein powder is best to use?
A neutral, unflavoured protein powder works best in this recipe. Both whey and vegan powders (such as those made from peas or fava beans) bind the dough and leave the flavour of the nuts and fruit intact. A flavoured variety, such as vanilla, is also an option, but it imparts a more distinct flavour of its own, so bear this in mind when measuring out the honey and fruit.
When choosing a protein powder, look for one with a short list of ingredients, free from unnecessary sweeteners or fillers. When it comes to baking, it makes little difference whether you choose whey or a vegan powder: both retain their structure at around 160°C, provided the banana and oil provide sufficient moisture. If you want the cookies to be a bit firmer, use slightly more powder; if you want them softer, use slightly less.
How do you make protein granola cookies?
First, combine the ingredients into a cohesive dough, shape into flat cookies and bake for about 20 minutes at 160°C. Allow about ten minutes for preparation.
- Preheat the oven to 160°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Mash the banana in a large bowl.
- Add the protein powder, rolled oats, nuts, seeds, dried fruit and desiccated coconut, and mix well.
- Stir in the coconut oil or olive oil and the honey until you have a cohesive dough. Add the dark chocolate if desired.
- Spoon small mounds onto the baking tray and flatten them into cookies with the palm of your hand.
- Bake the cookies for about 20 minutes until golden brown. Leave them to cool on the tray; this will make them firmer.
Are protein granola cookies healthy?
That depends mainly on the amount of sugar. These cookies are a homemade snack where you decide what goes into them, but honey, banana, dried fruit and chocolate all contain free sugars. The NHS and the WHO advise limiting free sugars.
If you want to keep the sugar content lower, use less honey, leave out the chocolate and go easy on the dried fruit. The rolled oats, nuts and seeds provide fibre and unsaturated fats. By baking them yourself, you can see exactly what goes into them, and that’s the biggest difference compared to many ready-made bars.
Variations
These combinations work just as well with a scoop of neutral protein powder added to the dough:
- Rolled oats and banana: stick to the basic recipe, using mainly rolled oats and banana as a binder, and press the cookies a little flatter for a firm bite.
- Peanut butter and dark chocolate (no-bake): stir a generous spoonful of peanut butter into the mixture, press it into muffin cases and leave the cups to set in the fridge instead of baking them.
- Granola bars: press the same mixture into a baking tin lined with baking paper and, once baked and cooled, cut it into bars instead of individual cookies.
- Date and walnut: replace some of the dried fruit with finely chopped dates and add coarsely chopped walnuts for extra crunch.
- Apricot and almond: use dried apricots with coarsely chopped almonds for a fresher, slightly sweeter cookie.
- Cranberry and pecan: combine dried cranberries with pecans and use less honey, so that the fruit provides the sweetness.
- Coconut and dark chocolate: double the amount of desiccated coconut and mix in a handful of dark chocolate for a cookie with a bit more body.
- Apple and cinnamon: add a spoonful of grated apple and a pinch of cinnamon, and use slightly less banana so that the dough doesn’t become too wet.
Frequently asked questions about protein granola cookies
How do you store protein granola cookies?
Store the cookies in an airtight tin. They’ll keep for about three to four days at room temperature, and slightly longer in the fridge. You can also freeze them and defrost them one at a time, so you’ll always have a portion ready.
Can you make vegan protein granola cookies?
Yes. Replace the honey with maple syrup or date syrup and choose a vegan protein powder instead of whey. Here too, a neutral, unflavoured powder works best. If you’re unsure which powder to use, read our guide on what to look for when choosing a protein shake.
How much protein is there in one cookie?
That depends on your protein powder and the number of cookies. Two scoops divided between ten cookies provide roughly three to five grams of protein per cookie, plus the protein from the nuts and rolled oats. How much protein you personally need each day depends on your weight and how much you exercise: you can work this out in our article on how much protein you need each day.
Can you make protein granola cookies without protein powder?
Yes, you can. Simply leave out the powder and use a little more rolled oats plus an extra half a banana, so that the dough holds together. The cookies will then contain less protein, but will still be lovely granola cookies. A handful of extra nuts or seeds will give them a bit more texture and bite. If, on the other hand, you want to add more protein, a scoop of neutral protein powder is a simple addition.
For this recipe, a neutral, unflavoured powder works best, as it doesn’t overpower the flavour of the nuts and fruit. In our protein powder range, you’ll find both whey and vegan varieties, each with a short list of ingredients and no unnecessary additives. Fancy more? Take a look at our protein-rich smoothie recipes too.
