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Making Friday even sweeter with these Healthier Dark Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookie Bars. These one-bowl homemade oatmeal cookie bars with dark chocolate chunks and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt are the perfect way to end the week. They’re super easy and made a touch healthier with a mix of whole grain oats, whole wheat flour, coconut or olive oil, and a reduced amount of sugar. But most importantly, everyone LOVES these bars! Plus, they’re pretty difficult to mess up…they always turn out GREAT.
Going back to my childhood roots with these oatmeal cookie bars. For any of you that know anything about my mom, you know that when my brothers and I were growing up, she’d have dessert on the table before dinner was even a thought. Her staples were chocolate chip cookies, special K-bars, chocolate cake, and her famous oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that she’s been making ever since her friend Lora gave her the recipe (before I was even born).
Oh her cookies. My memories of them are so fond and perfect. We’d always eat them a little warm and gooey right after baking and always with a cold glass of milk. Very classic, right? To this day, these are some of my favorite memories. Baking in the kitchen with mom and zero brothers around.
Fun fact? My purpose in life as a kid was to figure out a way to get mom all to myself without any of my five brothers. It was tricky, but when I made it happen I loved every minute of our one-on-one time.
Anyway, when my mom wasn’t feeling like baking her round chocolate cookies, she’d make oatmeal cookie bars. Her recipe is EASY and it’s the BEST. You simply cannot beat a one bowl, ten-minute prep, and pantry staple cookie bar.
Mom would make her oatmeal cookie bars once a week. And there were definitely many weeks she’d make them twice. When a recipe is as easy and as delicious as her bars, it becomes a staple in the kitchen. But here’s the truth. Over the years I’ve adapted her recipe, making small tweaks here and there to adjust them to be a little bit healthier and maybe even better?
Maybe…
It’s hard to beat an oatmeal cookie bar baked by my mom, but these healthier dark chocolate chunk oatmeal cookie bars come very, very close.
This recipe requires just one bowl and a spoon…no mixer. It’s completely no-fuss, and takes ten minutes to toss together. You can’t mess these bars up. They are practically foolproof.
In your mixing bowl combine all of the dry ingredients. Now, add all of the wet ingredients. Mix away until you have a crumbly dough. Stir in plenty fo dark chocolate chunks, then press the dough into a baking dish. Bake twenty minutes and sprinkle with flaky sea salt once you remove them from the oven.
Smell the wonderfulness? Do you see the melty chocolate?
I don’t love the word perfect, but these oatmeal cookies are pretty close to it.
Normally I’m all for butter, but with this cookie recipe there is no sub…oil is what works best, and is a bit healthier too. Over the years I’ve discovered that you can use melted coconut (which I prefer) or extra virgin olive oil (which is also delicious but adds a little flavor to the cookie).
To make these a heartier cookie, I replaced half of the white flour with whole wheat flour and reduced the sugar by half. And of course, was sure to stir in plenty of antioxidant-rich dark chocolate.
Oh, and you can’t forget a nice dusting of flaky sea salt. You don’t have to, but it sure is good…
One thing I do want to note is that these cookie bars are crumbly. It’s just the way they are, and it’s apart of what makes them delicious. So embrace the crumbly cookie bar. Promise you, it’s so good.
What I love about these cookies is that they’re so easy to make. They require no chilling and truly take just thirty minutes from start to finish. I almost always have these ingredients on hand. So when it’s Friday night and the urge for a delicious yet slightly healthier chocolatey cookie comes on? These cookies are always what I bake. Always.
They’re just perfectly crisp on the edges but soft and gooey in the middle. The best kind of cookie.
Bake these tonight, or sometime this weekend. Then make them again whenever you’re craving something sweet. Perfect for any time of the year bar, and such a great staple recipe. Hope you ENJOY!
Looking for other healthier desserts for the weekend? Some favorites…
Healthy…ish Homemade Samoas Cookies
Fudgy Avocado Brownies with Chocolate Fudge Frosting
Lastly, if you make these healthier dark chocolate chunk oatmeal cookie bars, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
I love the ease of this recipe but the olive oil flavor is quite strong. Is butter a no-no or would canola oil have less flavor? Not too crumbly but very olive oily. Any advice is welcomed.
Hey Leigh,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! You could definitely use another neutral oil or butter, coconut oil would be a great option! I hope this helps! xx
I was excited to make these as a healthier treat. The flavor and crunch was good, but they turned out to crumbly.Works well over ice cream or yogurt!
Hey Fran,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! These are definitely crumbly, sorry about that!! xx
was hesitant to make these due to the comments about them being dry .. but i followed the recipe exactly as written and mine are delicious and perfectly gooey. so delicious!!
Hey Bailey,
Happy Wednesday!! ❄️ I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xT
Made as indicated but did not have coconut oil on hand, so subbed half cup canola oil and half cup melted butter. Our daughter asked for a couple scoops of peanut butter at the last minute so threw that in. Love that these are lower in sugar!
Hey Lisa,
Happy Monday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx
Could the chocolate be omitted to make plain oatmeal cookie bars without compromising the structure of the recipe?
Hi there,
Yes, that would be just fine for you to do! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
Hello,
Is there a way to omit the 2 eggs, do you know of any alternatives for them? Thanks
Hi there,
So sorry, I have not tested this recipe without the eggs, you could try a chia or flax egg! Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xT
Thanks so much for posting this recipe! I just made it with a few changes: cacao nibs instead of chocolate, about 1/2c finely chopped walnuts added, 1/2c chickpea flour subbed for 1/2c of ap flour, and to cut a little fat and avoid crumbliness (that’s a word, right? Lol), reduced coconut oil to 3/4c and added 1/2c applesauce. I formed them into balls and smashed them a little because I wanted cookies instead of bars, and they came out nicely! The applesauce made them a little cakey, but I prefer that to crumbles. Thanks again!
Hey Amanda,
Happy Sunday! 🎃 So glad to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks a lot for making it and sharing your feedback! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you! xx
I just wanted to hop on to say:
I always have a batch of these in the freezer, and it’s a snack I have almost daily…when I start to run low, I make more.
They’re also so darn adaptable.
My version:
-Swap 1/4c of the flour with mesquite flour (love what this does to the flavor/texture)
-swap half the oil with tahini (a flavor win)
-for the other half of the oil, I just use whatever fat I have that’s convenient (coconut oil, olive oil, vegetable oil, butter..)
-I use a total of 2/3 cup sugar (flavor preference)
-add cinnamon
-Ghirardelli’s dark chocolate chips
-with my swaps the better can be a bit dry, so I’ll add a bit extra liquid (water, milk, or extra tahini) till it comes together.
It’s perfect for me! ❤️
Hi Natalie!!
Awesome! I am so glad you have been enjoying this recipe and keep them stashed in the freezer:) Thanks for sharing your adjustments and what works well for you! xTieghan
I LOVE these. They are so quick and delicious!
Hi Jess,
Wonderful!! Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe out, I am so glad to hear that it was enjoyed!! ?xxT
so good but extremely dry!
Hey Kiara,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try!! These should definitely be crumbly but not super dry. Was there anything you may have adjusted? xT
I had this problem too. Followed recipe exactly. Tastes good. But completely dries mouth out. I cannot figure out why
Hi Bri,
Sorry to hear this!! Is there anything you are adjusting in the recipe?
I almost never leave comments, but for these, I had to. They were amazing! Much easier than traditional oatmeal cookies, and I loved the fact that this recipe uses oil instead of butter. I mixed these up with my son earlier this morning, and I’d bet money the whole pan will be gone by tonight, they are THAT good!
Hey Jackie,
Wonderful!! Thank you so much for trying this recipe out, I am so glad to hear that it was a winner! xxT
I made these last night. They were exactly as promised, easy and delicious. I loved the wholesome texture and the fact that they were lightly to moderately sweet. I did add a teaspoon of maple extract, I find that it deepens chocolate and coffee flavors. This recipe is absolutely staying in my recipe collection!
Thank you for such a useful delicious and easy recipe!
Hey Jill,
Awesome!! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Have the best weekend:) xx
I’ve made these a bunch of times and always add a dash of cinnamon. They’re SO good and I love that you make healthy-ish desserts that don’t skimp on the taste.
Hi there,
Awesome!! Thanks for your feedback, glad the recipe was enjoyed! xx
Love these! Made them to help me boost my breast milk supply because oatmeal cookies do the trick for me! But these are not only going to boost my supply, but THEY’RE DELICIOUS. I used olive oil because I didn’t have coconut oil on hand, and I can taste a slight olive oil taste, but they’re so yummy! Looking forward to making more deliciousness!
They are good but a bit dry. Any advice? More coconut oil? One more egg?
Hey there!
Do you think this could be made egg-less? With applesauce, yogurt, or another egg alternative??
Thank you in advance!
I made mine with egg replacer and they came out great!
Curious do these freeze well?
Hey there,
Yes, these are totally fine to freeze! Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
Love these oatmeal bars! I go lighter on the sugar and add a few hemp seeds in and eat these for breakfast. I’ve made them a few times and this recipe is fool proof!
Hi Faith,
Fantastic!! So great to hear that you enjoyed this recipe and thanks a lot for making it. Have a great week!? xTieghan