These Lemon Oatmeal Cookies are simple 4-ingredient cookies made with no gluten, no refined sugar, no oil, no eggs, and no dairy, but full of taste, fiber, and healthy fats!
While the whole recipe is just below, don’t miss all my tips further down, including ingredient swaps, my cooking tips, and step-by-step shots!
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Lemon Oatmeal Cookies
These Lemon Oatmeal Cookies are simple 4-ingredient cookies made with no gluten, no refined sugar, no oil, no eggs, and no dairy, but full of taste, fiber, and healthy fats!
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Servings: 6 cookies
Calories: 140 kcal
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats - (note 1)
- 1 cup Almond Flour - (note 2)
- 2 tablespoons Lemon Juice - juice from 1 lemon + 2 tsp zest if you like
- ⅓ cup Maple Syrup
Optional for extra falvors
- 2 teaspoon Lemon Zest - from previous lemon
- ¼ teaspoon Almond Extract - optional
Lemon Glaze
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- ½ cup Powdered Sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Lightly oil the paper with cooking oil spray. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, add rolled oats, almond flour, maple syrup, lemon juice, almond extract, and lemon zest if used.
- Stir with a rubber spatula at first, then lightly oil your hands and squeeze the dough to bring everything nicely together into a sticky cookie dough.
- Scoop out some batter with a cookie dough scoop, press firmly in the scoop to pack the cookie dough, then release it on the baking sheet and flatten the top of the cookies with the palm of your hand. If the sides crack, wet your fingers to pat and reform the cookie.
- Repeat until no more cookie dough is left – I made 6 large cookies with the batter.
- Bake them for 14-16 minutes at 350°F (180°C) until nicely golden brown.
- Let them cool down for 15 minutes at room temperature on the baking sheet. Do not touch them. They firm up as they cool down.
- Transfer them to a cooling rack for another 1 hour before serving.
Lemon Glazed cookies
- If you like sweet lemon cookies, prepare the lemon glaze by stirring powdered sugar and lemon juice in a small mixing bowl. It should form a thick and creamy paste.
- Dip the cooled cookies upside down and twist in the glaze to ice the lemon cookies, then flip and place on a rack to let the excess glaze run down.
- Sprinkle extra lemon zest on top if you like its tangy flavor and cool the cookies in the fridge an hour to set the icing.
Notes
Note 1: You can use quick oats, gluten-free certified oats if needed, or swap for quinoa flakes for a fully gluten-free option
Note 2: Use ultra-fine almond flour, not almond meal, as this would make dry, fragile cookies. I haven’t tried another flour, and I can’t guarantee oat flour or regular flour works the same. The closest flour to almond flour is sunflower seed flour, so if you want a nut-free version, you should try that!
Note 3: I am using lemon juice from one fresh lemon and grating its zest to add a tangy flavor to the cookie dough. You can use store-bought bought freshly pressed lemon juice if preferred.
Note 4: Any liquid sweetener, like agave syrup or coconut nectar, works.
Storage: Store the cookies in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Freeze up to 1 month in Ziploc bags and thaw at room temperature the day before.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 140kcal | Carbohydrates: 13.9g | Protein: 3.2g | Fat: 8.7g | Saturated Fat: 2.8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Sodium: 1.4mg | Potassium: 47.2mg | Fiber: 1.9g | Sugar: 6.9g | Vitamin A: 0.3IU | Vitamin C: 0.004mg | Calcium: 39.5mg | Iron: 0.7mg | Magnesium: 10.8mg | Phosphorus: 25mg | Zinc: 0.3mg
Ingredients and Substitutions
This paragraph gives you all my tips about picking the right ingredients. For the full recipe with measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post!Go to Full Recipe
You only need 4 ingredients to make the cookies. Here’s how to pick them.
- Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats – These provide texture and fiber to the cookies. Quick oats or certified gluten-free oats are also fine. For a completely gluten-free option, you can use quinoa flakes.
- Almond Flour – This gluten-free flour acts as a base for the cookies. Ensure you use ultra-fine almond flour, not almond meal, to avoid dry and fragile cookies. Sunflower seed flour is a potential nut-free alternative.
- Lemon Juice – This adds a tangy lemon flavor. Freshly squeezed or store-bought freshly pressed lemon juice will work.
- Maple Syrup – This liquid sweetener provides sweetness. Agave syrup or coconut nectar can also be used.
You can also add the following:
- Lemon Zest – This enhances the lemon flavor with its aromatic oils.
- Almond Extract – This optional ingredient adds a subtle nutty flavor that works very well with the lemon.
- Powdered Sugar – This is used to make the lemon glaze, adding sweetness and a smooth texture. Powdered allulose can be used as a refined sugar-free alternative.
- Lemon Juice – To make the glaze taste lemony.
How to Make Lemon Oatmeal Cookies
These cookies are really easy to whip up. Here’s how in pictures.
Pour the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and grate the lemon zest.
Stir the mixture with a spatula until well combined.
Use an ice cream scoop to scoop out the batter and form 6 cookies on a baking sheet.
Flatten the cookies and bake them for 14-16 minutes at 350°F (180°C).
Carine’s Baking Tips
Let me share a few more tips for perfect cookies.
- Quinoa Flake Substitute – If you don’t tolerate oats, you can replace them with quinoa flakes.
- Citrus Flavor Variations – Feel free to swap the lemon juice and zest for lime or orange juice and zest to create different citrus-flavored cookies.
- Sweet Glaze Option – Add the lemon glaze to increase the sweetness of the cookies. You can use powdered allulose in the glaze if you prefer a refined sugar-free option.
hey there dear I want to ask you how does all of your lovely cakes and cookies hold together wthout the eggs? worthy not come appart and also crumble? please reply to me soon.thankyou
It’s all about the ratio of wet to dry ingredients. You don’t need eggs to bind ingredient in cakes, cookies. The starch in flour bind very well with the wet ingredient, any light oil add the same moisture as eggs, the fluffy texture is about adding the right amount of baking powder. Try my recipes, you will be impressed by how things work so well without eggs!
Absolutely wonderful! Thank you for the recipe and the inspiration to try other flavor combinations.
My pleasure, I am so happy you like the cookies too.
sounds DELICIOUS! I LOVE Lemon.
wondering if I can use stevia powder instead of the sweeteners you suggested, thinking maple syrup may be too,,,, mapley flavor?
Thanks you two cuties for what I’m sure will be a delicious treat!
Unfortunately, you can’t swap a liquid sweetener for a crystal sweetener. The ingredients will not stick together and hold. If you don’t like maple syrup, you can use hoiney, agave, coconut nectar or any other liquid sweetener you love
this recipe looks simple and delicious!!! Wondering if you think it might work with strawberry puree and make a strawberry lemon cookie or just strawberry oatmeal cookies? I have so many overripe strawberries I need to do something with!
Thanks so much for your guidance!
Thank you! That’s a great idea, however strawberry puree is going to add a lot of moisture to the cookies and I am worried they fall apart. If you have lots of strawberries, I would rather make my healthy strawberry banana bread, or strawberry scones.