2-Ingredient Banana Coconut Cookies
The two-ingredient cookie is one of those recipes that sounds too good to be true until you taste it: mashed ripe banana and shredded coconut come together into a cookie that's chewy, sweet, and genuinely satisfying without any flour, eggs, or added sugar. The ripe banana is what does all the work here — its natural sugars sweeten and its moisture binds the coconut into a dough you can shape. The one non-negotiable is banana ripeness: you want them heavily speckled or even brown, because an underripe banana won't be sweet or moist enough and the cookies will bake up bland and dry. These are soft and cookie-like straight from the oven and firm up as they cool at room temperature. If you like this energy, try our Peanut Butter Banana Roll-Ups or Banana Bread for more ways to use up ripe bananas.
Dessert · 2-Ingredient, No-Bake, Gluten-free, Vegan • 25 min
Nutrition (per serving)120Calories·8gFat·13gCarbs·1gProtein
Per serving. Values are approximate and calculated from USDA FoodData Central.
Ingredients
- 2 very ripe bananas (heavily speckled or brown), about 1 cup mashed
- 1¾ cups unsweetened shredded coconut
- Optional add-ins (pick one or two):
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of flaky sea salt, for finishing
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Steps
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Peel the bananas into a medium bowl and mash them with a fork until smooth with a few small lumps remaining. You should have about 1 cup of mashed banana.
- Add the shredded coconut (and any optional add-ins you're using) and stir with a rubber spatula until the mixture comes together into a thick, sticky dough that holds its shape when pressed.
- Scoop about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie and roll into balls, then place them on the prepared baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Gently press each ball into a thick disc with your fingers or the back of a spoon.
- Bake for 13 to 16 minutes, until the edges are golden and the cookies are set but still soft in the center. Watch closely in the last few minutes — coconut browns quickly.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. They'll firm up as they cool. Finish with a pinch of flaky sea salt if you like.
Tips & Variations
Make Ahead
The dough can be mixed and shaped up to a day ahead; cover and refrigerate the dough balls, then bake straight from the fridge, adding 1 to 2 minutes to the bake time.
Storage
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. For a softer cookie, add a slice of bread or a folded paper towel to the container to absorb excess moisture.
Substitutions
Use sweetened shredded coconut for a sweeter cookie (reduce or skip any added chocolate), or pulse large coconut flakes in a food processor to a finer shred. For a nuttier cookie, swap in a tablespoon of almond butter or peanut butter — it adds richness but pushes you past two ingredients. Add the cinnamon or vanilla to deepen flavor without extra structure changes.
Nutrition
Per serving: 1 cookie
Reviews
Reviews coming soon! In the meantime, let us know what you think of this recipe.
