These chewy oatmeal cookies are loaded with lots of chocolate chips and grated chocolate and are topped with flaky sea salt. A delicious take oatmeal cookies – and they are nut-free!
Of all the cookies, chocolate chip is my favorite. And really, if I’m being honest, I prefer chocolate chip oatmeal over plain chocolate chip cookies. My favorite chocolate chip oatmeal cookies back in the day had lots of chocolate chips and lots of nuts. Since we can’t have nuts now, I was trying to figure out a way to still get a little bit of a nutty flavor in these cookies without adding any nuts.
I discovered that a tablespoon of sunbutter in the batter lends a bit of nutty flavor without truly tasting of sunflower seeds. It’s just enough of an extra savory taste to give your taste buds the impression of nuts.
These cookies are my very favorite cookies right now. So much so, that I need to not bake them for a little while if I want to still fit into my clothing. ;) They are yummy – chewy, crispy, salty, delicious, chocolatey. Everything a cookie should be.
The other thing that makes these cookies extra special is some grated chocolate. I took three squares from an Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Bar and finely grated them into the batter. My mom used to make those famous Neiman Marcus cookies – (you know, the ones from the urban legend?) and I loved those cookies. The grated chocolate adds a really nice richness and flavor to this batter.
Can I use nut butter instead of sunbutter in this recipe?
Yes, you can use peanut butter or any nut butter that works for your diet if you are able to eat nuts.
The finishing touch on these chewy, crispy, chocolatey cookies is a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. If sweet and salty isn’t your thing, you can leave them off, but I think the large flakes of salt pair perfectly with the dark chocolate and make these irresistible.
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Dark Chocolate Salted Sunbutter Oatmeal Cookies.
Ingredients
- ½ cup vegan buttery spread
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup organic cane sugar
- 3 Tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
- 1 Tablespoon sunbutter
- 1 cup gluten free flour blend Namaste Perfect Flour Blend works well
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1½ cups certified gluten free old fashioned oats
- 3 squares of Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Bar grated
- 1 cup dairy free dark chocolate chips
- large sea salt flakes
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
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Cream together the vegan buttery spread, organic cane sugar, and light brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the applesauce and sunbutter and mix until smooth.
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Add the gluten free flour blend, baking soda, and sea salt, and mix until combined.
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Stop the mixer and add the gluten free oats and stir by hand. Add the grated dark chocolate and dark chocolate chips and stir by hand until combined.
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Scoop the batter onto the prepared cookie sheet using a cookie scoop (the scoops should be about two tablespoons). Sprinkle the cookies with large flake sea salt (I used the Maldon brand).
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Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes. Let cookies cool on the pan for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Repeat with remaining dough.
Recipe Notes
Store cookies in an airtight container. They should stay fresh for 4-5 days.
Follow along:
Just made these cookies, and they automatically became a family favourite!!! Absolutely delicious, and very easy to make!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for letting me know!
These look absolutely divine, Kelly! I’v never tried sunflower seed butter, but I’m very keen to now. I’m curious to see what kind of flavour it would contribute to these cookies – a delicious one, without a doubt!
Thank you, Lisa! It’s a small amount, so it just adds a little nuttiness.
I love using sun butter in cookies! Yours look wonderful! :D Happy Friday Kelly!
Thanks, Lauren!
Doesn’t sunflower seed butter taste AMAZING in cookies? I just absolutely love it. I bet these are pretty darn delicious!
Yes, sunbutter is the best!