Easy Monster Cookies - Top 8 Allergen Free

These Hearty and Chewy Monster Cookies are packed with seed butter, oats, M&M’s and chocolate chips. Easy Top-8 allergen-free Monster cookies are customizable for anyone with food allergies, and they’re sure to be a huge hit with family and friends. These are a little like our popular Raisin-Sweetened Oatmeal Cookies - Gluten-Free. You can make them gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free and more.

I LOVE making cookies, partly because everyone I know appreciates gluten-free baked goods. These Monster cookies are especially great, because by simply changing the ingredients a little, I can make them into Halloween cookies (like these) or Christmas cookies (by using lots of red and green M&M's).

Want other cookie inspiration? Try these Dark Chocolate-Dipped Paleo Matcha Shortbread Cookies, Almond Flour-Carob Pinwheel Cookies or Almond Flour Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies – GF!

Ingredients for Monster Cookies

• All-purpose GF flour blend (I used Bob’s Red Mill GF)

• Rolled oats. Old-fashioned rolled oats give a pleasant texture to these cookies. Not all oats are gluten-free; check the label. 

• Butter. The butter allows the cookies to spread out evenly. As alternatives, choose ghee, coconut oil or other solid cooking fat. 

• Seed or nut butter. In case of a nut allergy, sunbutter is great in these cookies. If nuts are safe for you, almond butter works great. If you eat peanuts, use peanut butter. 
• Sugar. Use a mixture of white, brown or coconut sugar. Reduce the amount of sugar for a less-sweet cookie or if your mix-ins are mostly sweet.

• Milk. Choose whatever non-dairy milk or dairy milk is safe for you. We most often use almond milk or coconut milk in baking. Oat milk is a nut-free option. GF flour absorbs more liquid than wheat flour. 

• Add-ins of your choice. In these cookies I used M&M’s for their bright colors, chocolate chips and candy eyes. Other options for add-ins include raisins, coconut, or pretzels. It may seem as though the add-ins won’t all stay in the cookies, so you may need to tuck them into the cookies as you form them.

Steps in making these cookies

1. Preheat your oven to 350 F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine all your dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. In another bowl, beat all the wet ingredients until smooth. 
3. Add the dry mixture to the wet and mix on low speed until it al resembles coarse crumbs.
4. Add the milk and vanilla and mix until the dough makes a ball. 
5. Gently fold in the mix-ins. For M&M's you might have to tuck them into the cookie so they won't fall out.
6. Shape the mixture into cookies and bake about 10-12 minutes. 
7. Let the cookies cool for 2 minutes, remove to a rack and place candy eyes on them, if using.

 🌰 Recipe Variations

Almost any one of the ingredients can be varied depending on the eating needs and preferences of your family. Here are some ideas:

Mix-ins: For a lower sugar recipe, use more seeds or nuts and stay away from those cute M&M's. Cacao nibs add a lot of flavor and that chocolaty aroma without adding sugar.

Sweeteners: Coconut sugar has a slightly lower glycemic index (54) than white or brown sugars (65) but that's still high. Lately we are trying Just Like ... which is inulin, derived from chicory root, with a glycemic index of 0.

Oats: Quinoa flakes are the best gluten-free substitute for oats.

See more alternatives in the ingredients section above.

I shared this monster cookie recipe with Tiffany at the Chef Free Club. If you haven’t come across this great resource yet, let me tell you: run, don’t walk to her website! And consider subscribing to the monthly Chef Free Club with its kits designed for children, with three themed recipes in each kit, fun seasonal activities and important tips about food allergies and substitutions.

All of the recipes featured on the Chef Free Club are vegan and top-8 allergen-free.

I also shared this recipe on Fiesta Friday #416, co-hosted by Angie at Fiesta Friday and Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook.

If you make and love this recipe, please leave a ★★★★★ review! It means so much to me when you try my recipes, and I'd love to know how it goes. Please leave a comment below if you have any questions.

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5 from 3 votes

Monster Cookies - GF

These Hearty and Chewy Monster Cookies are packed with seed or nut butter, oats, M&M’s and chocolate chips. Easy Monster cookies are customizable for anyone with food allergies, and they’re sure to be a huge hit with family and friends.

Course Baked Good, Snack, Dessert

Cuisine American, Gluten-free

Keyword Gluten-free cookie, Monster Cookie, Low allergen cookie, Vegan cookies, top 8 allergen-free, nut-free option

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes minutes

Servings 32 cookies

Author Beth

Equipment

• Stand Mixer
• Stainless Steel baking sheets
• Parchment paper
• Cookie Scoop

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups safe-for-you all-purpose flour blend I used Bob’s Red Mill GF
• 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder aluminum-free
• ½ teaspoon salt pink sea salt
• 1 cup safe-for-you butter at room temperature
• 1 cup brown or coconut sugar or less if mix-ins are sweet
• ¼ cup sugar or less if mix-ins are sweet
• ¼ cup seed or nut butter alternative like sunbutter
• 4-5 tablespoons safe-for-you milk may need more for GF flour
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 ½ cups add-ins of your choice chocolate candies, chocolate chips, raisins, coconut, pretzels, etc,

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350º F (180º C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
• Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat the butter for about 30 seconds. Add the sugars and beat for another 30-40 seconds until creamy. Then beat in the nut butter until incorporated.
• Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture; mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add the milk and vanilla, and mix until the dough comes together into a big ball.
• Gently fold the M&M’s and other add-ins (except for the candy eyes) into the cookie dough.
• Use a small cookie scoop (1.5 tablespoons) to measure out the dough. Roll each into a ball and place about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Gently flatten the balls lightly with your hand.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges but still soft in the middle.
• If you are adding candy eyes, do so now, right after baking.
• Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Notes

This customizable recipe is designed to be top-8 allergen-free. This refers to eight foods that the FDA identifies as major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybean. 

When I use the phrase "safe-for-you" in this recipe, I mean that you should choose the flour, milk and butter that won't cause an allergic reaction when you eat it. Links will lead you to Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Flour, Oat Milk and Butter. 

About Beth

From learning to cook at the age of 13 to teaching food chemistry to high school students, I love preparing and sharing new and familiar dishes.  Whether it’s baking, sauteing or making a salad from farmer's market finds, food gets my creativity going. Enjoy my recipes on A Meal In Mind!