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These Trail Mix Cookies are a great little treat for you and your family. Filled with ingredients that you normally put in trail mix like sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, pecans, and of course, some chocolate!
To me, it is not a good trail mix without some chocolate. I happen to be a chocolate lover! So I always add some chocolate chips and mini M&M’s.
This recipe originates from one of my new cookbooks I recently got for Christmas, The Perfect Cookie: Your Ultimate Guide to Foolproof Cookies, Brownies & Bars cookbook. The book is filled with amazing cookie recipes and has baking tips in there as well. This is a variation of the first recipe I tried from the cookbook. I liked this recipe because it is a great cookie that is a bit healthier, a little chewy, and has a great taste to it.
Ingredients
- Old-Fashioned Oats
- Whole Wheat Flour
- All-Purpose Flour
- Salt
- Ground Cinnamon
- Baking Soda
- Butter, melted and cooled
- Egg
- Vanilla Extract
- Brown Sugar – Light or dark brown sugar will be fine for this cookie recipe. To keep your brown sugar soft, keep one of the Brown Sugar Bears in your airtight container.*
- Dried Cranberries or Raisins
- Unsalted Sunflower Seeds
- Finely Chopped Pecans
(We like to use pecans and sunflower seeds, but you can use any combination of nuts and seeds that your family enjoys – peanuts, pumpkin seeds, chopped walnuts, golden raisins – whatever you know your family likes.)
- Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (You can also use white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, or even yogurt chips!)
- Mini M&M’s
*When measuring your brown sugar, make sure you pack it into your measuring cup so you get the right measurement. I usually scoop it into my measuring cup with a smaller measuring cup and then press down with the bottom of the smaller cup to pack it in there well.
Pin this now to find it later
Pin ItHow to Make Trail Mix Cookies
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and adjust your oven rack to the middle of your oven.
- Cover your baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper, then set them aside.
- Now, to make these delicious cookies, whisk together the oats, flours, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda in a medium bowl and set that aside.
- Then whisk the melted butter, egg, and vanilla in a large bowl.
- Add in the brown sugar and mix until it is smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl to make sure you have all the sugar mixed in well.
- Stir the oat mixture into the butter and mix just until all the ingredients are combined.
- Then add the trail mix goodies (dried fruit, nuts, and chocolate) and stir just until they are mixed in well.
- Use a medium cookie scoop to get a heaping tablespoon of cookie dough to make each cookie, then roll the dough in your hands to make a ball and place it on the covered baking sheet. If you want, you can add a few chocolate chips or mini M&M’s to the top of the cookie balls to make them look a little prettier. Place them about 2” apart on your baking sheet.
- Bake one sheet at a time in your preheated oven for 12-14 minutes until the edges are slightly brown, rotating the baking sheet halfway through. When the cookies are done, the middle of the cookies might look a little soft and underdone, but that is okay.
- Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and leave the cookies on the cookie sheet for ten minutes to cool.
- Enjoy them warm with milk or allow the cookies to cool completely before storing them.
Storage
Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days or freeze them for later!
Recipe Tip
Have you ever baked your cookies just a little too long and your cookies are a bit overdone and hard? Or they got a little stale? You know…the kind you have to eat with a glass of milk because they need to be dunked in the milk? I know I have! I have a great trick for you…I learned it from my neighbor Dorothy when I was a kid. And I still use it because it really is such a great trick.
Place your cookies in an airtight container and add a slice of bread in there. Give it a few hours and check the cookies to see if they have softened up. If not, give it a little longer. The bread will become harder and the cookies softer. It is like magic! I love this trick.
Homemade Trail Mix
Looking for a great trail mix recipe? Check out my Homemade Trail Mix Recipe… it’s so easy and is such a great snack. It is great to have while out for a hike and is also a great school snack.
Happy trails and happy baking!
Did you make this recipe? If so, please leave a comment and rating below. I love hearing from you.
Chewy Trail Mix Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ½ cup whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup unsalted sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup finely chopped pecans
- ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ¼ cup mini M&M’s
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Adjust your oven rack to the middle of your oven.
- Cover your baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper and set aside.
- In a bowl, whisk together the oats, whole wheat and all-purpose flours, salt, cinnamon and baking soda. Set aside.1 cup old fashioned oats, ½ cup whole wheat flour, ¼ cup all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- In a large bowl, whisk the melted butter, egg, vanilla, and sugar until combined. Add in the sugar and stir until the mixture is smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure you have all the sugar mixed in.5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, 1 large egg, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, 1 cup brown sugar
- Stir in the oat mixture until just combined.
- Add in the cranberries, sunflower seeds, pecans, chocolate chips, and M&M’s and stir just until they are all mixed in well.½ cup dried cranberries, ¼ cup unsalted sunflower seeds, ¼ cup finely chopped pecans, ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, ¼ cup mini M&M’s
- Make your cookie dough balls a heaping tablespoon in size. Roll them into balls and place them on the covered baking sheet two inches apart.
- Bake one sheet at a time, rotating it half way through, for 12-14 minutes. Cookies are done when the edges are slightly brown.
- Remove from oven and let them cool on the cookie sheet for ten minutes.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container.
Nutrition information is approximate and is automatically calculated, so should only be used as a guide.
These cookies look so delicious and perfect for kids!
Thanks so much Natalie!