Need a healthy cookie recipe that’s as chewy and delicious? This sweet potato cookies recipe with chocolate and oats has you covered! It’s packed with healthy rolled oats and sweet potato (plus decadent chocolate chips). With dozens of five-star reviews, it’s a winning recipe every time!
Step aside, pumpkin. There’s a new healthy orange veggie in town. She’s sweet, easy to find, easy to cook, and SO GOOD in cookies.
Sweet potato cookies, friends. They’re happening! Rich, chewy, and actually a little healthy, this sweet potato cookies recipe is one of my favorites to bake in the fall.
I’ve been making these cookies for my family every fall for years. And I’m not alone. This healthy cookie recipe has dozens of five-star reviews from bakers all over the world. So, let’s bake!
Reader rating
Sarah’s Cookie Hacks
I’ve been making this sweet potato cookie recipe for years, and these are my top tips for perfect cookies every time!
- No Mixer Needed: I don’t beat the butter and sugars for this recipe, just stir or whisk them together by hand! I prefer a more dense and chewy cookie, and whipping the butter makes them too cakey.
- Squish ’em! After baking while the cookies are still warm, I gently squish each cookie with a spatula. This makes for a chewier cookie that. adore!
- Pizza Stone: If you have one, I love baking cookies on a pizza stone. I find the texture is always better!
How To Make These Cookies
Making these healthy cookies follows the same process as any good cookie recipe:
- Mash the sweet potatoes
- Mix the dry ingredients
- Mix the wet ingredients
- Combine the dry and wet ingredients
- Bake!
FAVORITE SHEET PAN
This large nonstick sheet pan is one of my everyday favorites!
Sweet Potato Cookies Ingredients
This Sweet Potato Cookie recipe has the usual cookie ingredients (you know, the flour and baking soda and all that jazz), but there are a few ingredients that make them so delicious!
- Sweet Potatoes: We’ll boil or microwave the sweet potato until soft, then mash and mix into our cookie dough! You could also use butternut squash here.
- All-Purpose Flour: It forms the structural base of the cookies, ensuring they hold their shape while baking. Opt for good-quality flour for the best results.
- Rolled Oats: These add a pleasant chewiness and heartiness to the cookies. They also bring a subtle nutty flavor and extra fiber to the mix.
- Baking Soda & Salt: Two musts in a good cookie recipe.
- Spices: Any good sweet potato cookie should also have a heavy handed spoonful of seasonal spices, like cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ground ginger!
- Unsalted Butter: Softened butter provides moisture, richness, and a smooth texture to the cookie dough. It also contributes to the cookies’ buttery, nutty undertones.
- Brown and White Sugar: These sugars add a deep, caramel-like sweetness and moisture to the cookies, complementing the natural sweetness of the sweet potatoes.
- Large Egg: This acts as a binding agent, holding the cookie dough together and providing structure.
- Vanilla Extract: It enhances the overall flavor profile, adding a fragrant, aromatic note that complements the spices and sweet potatoes.
- Chocolate Chips or Chunks: These decadent morsels bring a delightful contrast of creamy, melty chocolate against the hearty cookie base. They’re the crowning touch of indulgence.
Common Cookie Questions
Can I use margarine instead of butter for a dairy-free version?
Yes, you can use a dairy-free margarine as a substitute for butter. Make sure it’s softened for easy mixing.
Can I freeze the cookie dough for later use?
Yes, you can. Portion the dough into cookie-sized rounds and freeze on a baking sheet. Once frozen, transfer to a sealed container or zip-top bag. When ready to bake, you can place them directly on the baking sheet from frozen, just add a few extra minutes to the baking time.
Can I use different add-ins instead of chocolate chips?
Absolutely! Chopped nuts, raisins, or dried cranberries can be wonderful alternatives to chocolate chips.
Reader rating
“This recipe is absolutely scrumptious! I never altered it at all & Sarahs blend of nutritious ingredients was wow & wowed by my family. Thanks for this recipe, great baking!” —Helen
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes you'll need 2 cups mashed
- 2 cups all-purpose flour 240 g
- 1 ½ cups rolled oats 130 g
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp each ground nutmeg, ground cloves, and ground ginger
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened in the microwave for 20 seconds, 1 stick, 112 g
- ½ cup brown sugar 110 g
- ½ cup white sugar 110 g
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract 5 mL
- 1 ½ cups chocolate chips or chunks 250 g
Instructions
- Mash Potatoes: Peel and chop sweet potatoes into chunks. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add sweet potatoes, cooking for about 15 minutes, until fork tender. Drain water and mash potatoes, then set aside to cool a little. You'll need a total of 2 cups of mashed sweet potato.2 medium sweet potatoes
- Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl combine flour, oats, baking soda, salt, and spices. Set aside.2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 ½ cups rolled oats, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp each ground nutmeg, ground cloves, and ground ginger
- Wet Ingredients: Combine butter and sugars until smooth, then add egg and vanilla. Once sweet potato has cooled off a bit (should be warm, not hot) add it to the sugar mixture.½ cup unsalted butter, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ cup white sugar, 1 large egg, 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Dries + Wets: Stir flour mix into sweet potato mix, then fold in chocolate chips.1 ½ cups chocolate chips or chunks
- Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Scoop dough onto a greased or parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until slightly crisp on the outside (do not over bake! They may look soft in the center – that’s perfect!)
- Cool: Let cool on the pan for 20 minutes before transferring to a container. For best results, gently squish each cookie with a spatula while they're still warm.
Pat Vaughn says
Can you help me. About how much should the potatoes weigh or how many cups of mashed sweet potatoes should there be. I realize it’s not exact but medium sweet potatoes really tells me nothing. Thanks so much for your help. I can’t wait to try these.
Sarah says
It should be about 2 cups worth when mashed. Great questions!
Helen says
Absolutely delicious cookies! It makes a lot of dough though! Can the raw dough be frozen?
Sarah says
Hi Helen! I haven’t tried this before, but I think it would work. Would love to hear how it goes if you give it a shot 😀
Julia says
I made these and they turned out delicious! I only had one cup of flour left so I replaced the rest with more oats and it worked just fine. Switching the egg for applesauce and replacing the butter with margarine or any nut butter turned those into great vegan cookies.
The oats made them a bit thicker than they should be, so they didn’t spread out at all but it was fine since I flattened them before putting them in the oven.
Sarah says
I’m loving all of these ingredient substitutions! Thanks so much for letting us know how it went 😀
Xena says
I should have read the comments about 2 cups mashed. I ended up with a large amount of dough. Made some cookies with it, which were delicious. Put the rest in a loaf pan and it became super tasty sweet potato bread.
Sarah says
Yummm that bread sounds delish as well! 😀
Andra says
Thanks for the recipe and for the calorie count. Wonder how you did it. BC when I did it, the calorie total was som much higher. I did it with kostbevakningen.se which is a swedish site based on their “national food administration”. Almost a 100 kcal more per cookie. Hope U R right! 🙂
Andra says
U were RIGHT. I should have divided my count by 24 and not by 12. U rule!
Sarah says
Glad you worked it out! Enjoy! 😀
N says
Would roasting the sweet potato in the oven instead of boiling be better for flavour?
Sarah says
It would certainly make these cookies a bit more sweet! 😀
Clarissa says
I loved these. I used leftover roasted sweet potato that I had after making a sweet potatoe pie. They tasted delicious but they didn’t melt, just stayed in their original scoop shape. But they have a great texture and taste wonderful.
Maheshika Rathnayake says
Hello, I was very happy to see this recipe for sweet potato cookies! Thank you so much! Can I know if I can substitute squash or butter pumpkin as we call it here in Sri Lanka, instead of the sweet potato?
I am asking this since most of the sweet potato varieties we get in Sri Lanka is not as sweet and starchy as what’s found in other countries.
Thank you!
Sarah says
Yes! Pumpkin and other similar squash would be delish! 😀
Mary says
tried this recipe last week and my family absolutely loves it! I’m just wondering what’s the shelf life for these cookies?
Sarah says
About a week! 😀
Michelle says
My cookies turned green overnight. Does that mean they were undercooked? Good, but not trying to get sick.
Sarah says
So strange! It could mean they were undercooked yes. You might just try storing them in the fridge next time to keep them extra food safe.
Joyce DeWitt says
Love this recipe 2 bake!
First time made as directed,
This time I added raisins & haft bag of dark chocolate chips added zest of orange lemon 1 teaspoon to sweet potato boil
Aldo added zest from blood orange to cookie mix 1 teaspoon
Satwinder says
4 star loved it instead of sugar I put raisins my grandkids loved them.
Bobby says
I actually made this with 4 sweet potatoes, about 5 plus cups worth (I didn’t do an exact measurement). kept the rest of the recipe measurements the same. It made quite a few more cookies and they turned out nice and soft.
Devona Karena White says
I love this recipe
Dasha says
I rarely give ratings to recipes but these are incredible! I recommend 😁 also with my oven I have to cook it for 20 mins😁
Niki says
Soooo good
Kari says
This is a great recipe. I baked it for 13 mins and had to flatten the 2nd batch before baking. Super yummy I added a handful of crushed pecans in.
Dale says
I have rarely been so excited to try a recipe. Sweet potatoes vary so much in size, do you have an estimate of expected volume of mashed potato?
Sarah Bond says
About 2 cups of mash!
Bernadine says
I had to bake each batch for 16-18 minutes to get them done. The cookies tasted good but I thought the instructions were hard to follow. I’m not much of a cookie baker but was confused.
Luchia says
I always like to add a new cookie to the traditional Family faves every year for Christmas dinner.I decided to try this one.Tonight was a test run. I can say that those wonderful inviting aromas from the spices are wafting through my kitchen. I opted for dark chocolate chunks. I found these cookies to have a nice soft chew but not gummy.They will proudly take their place nestled among the festive cut outs & old school peanut butter. I’m thinking of adding some toasted walnuts the next time. Has anyone tried swapping out the sugar for Stevia or a substitute?
Sarah Bond says
I haven’t tried the swap but I think it would work well here! So happy you liked them, Luchia! 😀
Kat says
Loved this! Added some dried fruit and nuts and subbed coconut oil for butter. We have them as breakfast cookies. So good, thanks for sharing.😋
Helen Clark says
This recipe is absolutely scrumptious! I never altered it at all & Sarahs blend of nutritious ingredients was wow & wowed by my family. Thanks for this recipe, great baking!
Judy says
I certainly plan to make this cookies and had a question about cooking the sweet potato. I normally microwave them then scoop out the insides after they’re fully cooked. I find that much easier to do then trying to peel and chop raw sweet potato. Is that okay?
Sarah Bond says
Totally okay! Good idea! 😀
Anita says
Hi Sarah
I had so many sweet potato’s at home and googled for recipes. Your popped up and I tried it. Absolutely delicious even without the chocolate. Well done
Megan says
Ok, so first, I never leave comments on recipes – even on the ones I’ve been making forever. But if there is anyone reading this and debating whether or not to make them… these are incredible! AND can be made GF/DF!
Here are the substitutions I made… palm shortening instead of butter, 1:1 GF flour instead of all purpose, all coconut sugar instead of white and brown, and DF choc chips instead of regular. Also yes, 2c of sweet potato was perfect. Be sure to flatten just a touch. They do not spread.
These are amazing! Wonderful recipe. Thank you so much!
Sarah Bond says
This is so awesome, thank you so much for dropping in to share, Megan!! 😀
R clark says
These cookies are a keeper! They’re sweet but not too sweet with great flavor and are nutritious. We will be making them again!
Sarah Bond says
So happy to hear it! 😀
Christelle says
Could you comment on quantity of sweet potatoes to use? I have some organic canned SP to use and not sure of amount to use for this amazing sounding recipe.
Thank you
Sarah Bond says
Hi Christelle! I just retested this recipe yesterday actually! Use 2 cups of mashed sweet potatoes, which is about 2 medium sweet potatoes.
Stephanie says
Hi. Looks great. We are vegan. Have you tried this with a flax egg? Thanks for the great recipes.
Sarah Bond says
I haven’t tried this one with flax eggs so I can’t say for sure – sorry about that!
Russell says
These are perfect fall cookies! My wife doesn’t do well with chocolate, so I substituted chopped candied ginger to half of the dough and it worked well. I also left the skins on the yams for the extra nutrients and that worked well,too.
Sarah Bond says
Oh yum I’mm have to try these with ginger! Thanks for letting us know how it went, Russell! 😀