I think I’m hooked on the idea of healthy cookies. I loved last week’s vegan carrot-oatmeal cookies, so this past weekend, I tried out another healthy cookie recipe from Heidi Swanson. This one is a lot heavier on the oatmeal, so it seems more like a granola masterpiece to me than a cookie. I’ve taken the liberty of replacing a few of the original ingredients with some of my own choices, and I’ve given them a bit more descriptive name—banana-oatmeal granola bites.

The basic dry ingredients for the granola haystacks are 2 cups oatmeal, 2/3 cup flax meal or almond meal, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, 1/2-3/4 cup mini chocolate chips, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.

If you haven’t heard of flaxseed meal or almond meal, don’t worry about it—they’re a both standard health-junkie replacements for flour (or for part of the flour) that can be used in a variety of recipes.

So, why flaxseed meal or almond meal?

Flaxseed meal is rich in fiber, protein, and omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3’s are all over the pages of fitness magazines, and they’re the hip “superfood” among diet gurus, but make no mistake, their health benefits are no myth, and quite a few research studies have confirmed this. I found a good amount of useful information about Omega-3’s on the American Heart Association’s website. Almond meal or almond flour consists of ground almonds and is high in protein, fiber, vitamin E and magnesium. As you can see, there are more than enough health benefits to warrant trying out these simple substitutions.

There are only a few wet ingredients for this recipe—3 mashed bananas (the browner the better), 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, a few tablespoons honey, and 1/4 cup coconut milk, warmed just until melted. Mix the wet and dry ingredients together in a large bowl—the dough will be soft and a bit loose but will bake together just fine.

Portion out heaping tablespoons of the dough onto a greased cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 10-14 minutes, or until they are golden on top.