Welcome to unofficial AK Zucchini Week 2025! I have SO many great zucchini recipes on my site that are perfect for cooking and baking up while this gorgeous vegetable is at its peak. You can check them all out here.
We’re starting off with these BIG healthy VEGAN zucchini breakfast cookies studded with ooey-gooey chocolate chips, whole grains & banana. I first shared this recipe back in 2016 (omg, vintage AK), and almost forgot just how much readers loved it. I know you’re all huge fans of breakfast cookies, too, so I knew I wanted to give this post a little refresh to remind you to bake these ASAP.
Great for getting veggies into your kiddos right away in the morning, and they’re perfect with a side of eggs or my famous breakfast meatballs. Nourish the whole family before school, or send them with your little ones for a wonderful snack!
FREE Zucchini Recipe E-Book
Sign up below and get a FREE downloadable, printable e-book with my best zucchini recipes (sweet and savory!)
Fall in love with zucchini cookies
You likely already know that I LOVE baking with zucchini. It’s such a great way to sneak veggies into your favorite treats and get your kiddos (and yourself) to enjoy them. These zucchini breakfast cookies are:
- Soft & chewy. The combination of oats, zucchini, and banana give them the perfect texture that still holds together well.
- Naturally sweetened. You’ll get natural sweetness from the ripe banana and little maple syrup. Yes chocolate chips that are added; however, the cookies themselves aren’t overly sweet.
- Easily vegan. That’s right, there aren’t any eggs in this recipe! You can also opt for vegan chocolate chips if you’d like.
Ingredients in this zucchini breakfast cookies
These cuties couldn’t be easier to make and use super simple ingredients that you likely have on hand. Here’s what you’ll need to make them:
- Flour: feel free to use whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour to get a boost of whole grains.
- Oats: we’re using old-fashioned rolled oats for that perfect chewy texture.
- Banana: mashed, ripe banana adds the perfect amount of sweetness to the cookies.
- Zucchini: boost of veggies? Check. Extra moisture? Check! Shredded zucchini does it all.
- Coconut oil: a little melted and cooled coconut oil also keeps the cookies moist and chewy. Nut allergy? Feel free to use butter or vegan butter.
- Maple syrup: you’ll just need a couple tablespoons of pure maple syrup for sweetness.
- Baking staples: don’t forget the baking soda, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt!
Can I make them gluten-free?
I think you could replace the whole wheat flour with gluten free oat flour and get great results. I would probably use 1 cup oat flour. An all-purpose gluten free flour would also work well.
Our favorite mix-ins
These are optional, but I love changing it up when I make these zucchini banana cookies by adding:
- Chocolate chips (okay, I always add these)
- Chopped walnuts
- Chia seeds or flaxseed meal for extra fiber and protein
A sprinkle of sea salt on top of the cookies makes them extra special!
Tips for baking with zucchini
- Use the small side of your grater so that you get perfect shreds of zucchini. That way no one will be able to tell there’s a veggie in these cookies! A simple cheese grater will also work well.
- Shred the zucchini first, measure it out, then squeeze off excess moisture and continue with the recipe.
- Squeeze out your zucchini shreds as much as possible using a cheesecloth, clean dish towel or paper towel to get all of the excess liquid out. This is VERY important so that the cookies aren’t too moist.
- Feel free to shred a bunch of zucchini and freeze it for later! Follow my tips and tricks here.
Choose your cookie thickness
If you want large puffy, thick cookies, do not flatten and bake immediately. Otherwise you can very slightly flatten each dough ball with the palm of your hand. Up to you!
Storing & freezing tips
- To store: feel free to keep these zucchini cookies at room temperature for the first day or two, then store them in an airtight container in the fridge to preserve freshness.
- To freeze: make sure the cookies are completely cooled, and then transfer them to an airtight container lined with wax or parchment paper or freezer-safe bag before storing them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Once ready to eat, simply thaw out at room temperature and enjoy! Get all of our tips & tricks for freezing cookies here.
More breakfast recipes you’ll love
- Peanut Butter Zucchini Bread Baked Oatmeal
- Kid-Friendly 4-Ingredient Banana Pancakes
- Coconut Chocolate Zucchini Smoothie (with sneaky veggies)
- Blender Banana Spinach Muffins (kid-friendly!)
- Summer Garden Crustless Zucchini Pie
Get all of my breakfast recipes here!
I hope you love these zucchini breakfast cookies! If you make them be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked them. Enjoy, xo!
Vegan Banana Zucchini Breakfast Cookies
Ingredients
- Dry ingredients:
- ¾ cup (85g) whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour
- 1 cup (95g) old-fashioned rolled oats
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Wet ingredients:
- 1 cup mashed ripe banana (from about 2 medium bananas)
- 1 cup shredded zucchini, squeezed of excess moisture with a paper towel*
- 1 to 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (can also use honey if not vegan)
- ¼ cup (56g) melted and cooled coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup (90g) chocolate chips, vegan if desired
- Optional mix-ins & toppings:
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds or flaxseed meal
- Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Prep your pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk the dry ingredients. In a large bowl whisk together flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
- Before you mix your wet ingredients, make sure you have squeezed your shredded zucchini of excess moisture with a paper towel or cheesecloth. THIS IS IMPORTANT!
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate large bowl, mix together mashed banana, shredded zucchini, maple syrup, coconut oil and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Make the dough. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips. The dough will seem wet and sticky, but that's okay -- don't worry!
- Scoop the dough & bake. Use ¼ cup to measure out dough and drop on baking sheet, placing cookie dough 2 inches apart from one another. If you want large puffy, thick cookies, do not flatten and bake immediately. Otherwise you can very slightly flatten each dough ball with the palm of your hand. Bake for 13-16 minutes or until cookies are golden brown on the edges. Remove from oven and sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if desired.
- Allow to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 11 to 14 cookies.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This post was originally published on August 23rd, 2016, and republished with new photos on August 16th, 2025.
I needed to use up bananas and zucchini. These were so good. I could not stop eating them. I filled the directions exactly. Will make again. Kids and hubby both liked them.
Perfect! Such a great breakfast or snack 🙂
My daughter and I love these! I used oat flour in place of any other flour and add some chopped pecans or almonds for added texture. Great for breakfast or an afternoon snack for anyone, but especially great for those on a dairy and gluten free diet.
Yum!!!!
Perfect! I’m glad they’re a favorite!
Delicious. Soft and just the amount of sweetness. Perfect to eat alongside my protein shake for a satisfying breakfast.
So happy you enjoyed these! They’re one of my favorites 🙂
Deeelish!!!! Thank you for sharing. The only change I made was substituting gluten free flour (1:1) and added a tad bit of hemp seeds. So good… we will make them again and again. 🥰
Perfect! So glad you enjoyed!
Can you use regular all purpose flour instead of the whole wheat pastry flour?
That should work fine!
Due to a job change and a long commute, grabbing breakfast has been a challenge & I’ve been skipping it entirely. I’m also not much of a baker, but I took a chance on these and WOW!!!!! SO SO good!!! And easy to chomp en route ! So moist & gooey that a napkin is necessary, & that’s not a bad thing. Thanks again for a healthy yummy option! AK has become my GO-TO for tasty, easy-ish recipes. Thank you SOOOOOO much!!!
I’m so glad you found these! The perfect on-the-go breakfast 🙂
Ive tried this and LOVED! But im starting my sourdough journey and wondered how or if i could incorporate discard in this. Anyone tried that before?
So glad you love them! I’ve never tried using sourdough discard in here!
SOOOOOOOOO good and easy to eat en route to work, or as a snack on the way home lol. Looking forward to adding all kinds of different goodies, like dried blueberries and hemp seeds and more! Prep time was longer for me cuz, well, it usually is, but that’s ok. I’m no chef. Will be meal prepping these and freezing for dang sure. Thanks again!
Absolutely! So glad you loved these!
My daughter made these when I was visiting, I didn’t expect to like them but loved them and have made a batch myself now I’m home. I added the chia seeds as an extra, they are so tasty. I think they would be nice to swap the chocolate out for blueberries too.
Amazing! Perfect breakfast or snack 🙂 Try out my blueberry breakfast cookies, too!
I was searching for a breakfast cookie recipe during my first trimester and came upon these, and WOW! I didn’t have zucchini but substituted dates and they worked fantastically. This is going to be a repeat for me from now on, thank you!
Perfect! So glad you found these ones!
These were absolutely delicious! I used butter as I didn’t have coconut oil, and added the tablespoon of chia seeds, along with using mini choc chips (probably could use less than 1/2 cup with the minis!) I’d like to try using applesauce instead of the oil or butter next time because there absolutely will be a next time! I appreciated that these did not have a nut butter in them, as it kept them a bit lighter and just what I was looking for. If you are debating making these, you definitely should, you won’t regret it! Simple ingredients, quick to make and absolutely delicious!
So happy you loved these! Let me know if you give it a try with applesauce and how it turns out 🙂
If I don’t have white whole wheat or pastry flour can I do half all purpose, half Whole wheat?
Also, can the banana be replaced with applesauce?
Yes that flour swap will work! I haven’t tested these with applesauce, so I’m not sure how it will change the texture.
I made these with one cup of oat flour, and added one TBSP of flax meal. They were fantastic! I love how big and thicky and fluffy they were! I really hate dealing with squeezing out the zucchini, but trust me, this recipe is worth it!
Definitely worth it! Glad you loved them!
There appears to be a discrepancy between the cup and weight measurements given for the flour. 38g would be about 1/4 cup, but the recipe calls for 3/4 cups?
Thank you for the catch! It is 85g – I’ve updated the recipe.
I strongly dislike bananas, but these sound so good! Is there anything I could replace the banana with?
I’ve only made them as is, sorry! I’m not sure what I would replace the banana with.
I made these cookies tonight and they are delicious! I don’t bake with refined sugars so these cookies are perfect. I only used 1 tablespoon of maple syrup and no chocolate chips. I like hiding vegetables in cookies because they’re that much more healthy . I will make these again. Thank you.
So perfect! So good! Everyone loves these!..small and big children, toddlers and grown alike..and the husband.
I have only been able to get 11 cookies out of these both times i have made it…even with all the add-ins listed and everything measured correctly. Who knows why!..but they are delicious all the same.
Ahh yay! I am so glad these are a hit for the whole family, Tara. I am not sure why you only got 11 cookies? What size did you make them?
Hi! Do you think I can add a scoop of protein powder without affecting texture? (Nuzest)
It might cause it to be a bit dense, but it all depends on the protein powder. Let me know how it turns out and enjoy!
Such delicious biscuits! Have the most amazing texture and taste, can’t stop eating them!
Soft goey oatmeal cookies! These are sooo good! I made mine a bit thicker (so without pressing down the dome) and it makes it even yummier 🙂
Nice! I’m so happy they turned out well!
These have quickly become one of my new favorite cookies. They’re super easy to make, delicious, and healthy. I often add one to my savory breakfasts. I also use the new Trader Joe’s 1:1 GF flour and they come out perfectly. Highly recommend!