Kids Kitchen: No-Sugar Animal Cookies (with Video)

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A healthy sugar-free cookie recipe kids will love, this Sugar-free Animal Cookie recipe is super simple to make with the kids and is a healthy alternative to store-bought animal cookies.

A super simple and sugar-free animal cookies recipe perfect for having the kids help! These fun homemade graham cracker cookies are a great alternative to store-bought animal crackers with their fun animal shapes and naturally-sweetened cookie dough.

Sugar-free Animal Cookies Recipe

Recently, my daycare kids and I decided we need to have a Lion King Unit Study, and naturally I thought that the perfect baking activity to accompany our wild theme would be making some animal cookies.

Animal crackers or animal cookies are one of those innocent childhood snacks that you don’t really think twice about… until you actually read the ingredients on the back of the package and realize that icing sugar is the second ingredient.

As much as the kids would have loved that, I felt compelled to try to develop a sugar-free version of the childhood classic. Personally, I don’t think that these cookies taste like store-bought animal crackers, but the kids did love them and they were super easy to make!

I would say they taste more similar to a graham cracker –  the coconut and honey make them sweet enough that my kids loved them and the fun animal shapes definitely helped earn their seals of approval for this recipe.

Kids can make this sugar-free animal cookies recipe completely independently - building confidence in kids kitchen skills!

These cookies will last for about a week in an airtight container at room temperature.

Since this recipe has become so popular over the years, I’ve made a step-by-step video.

Check out our quick video on how to make sugar-free animal cookies – and then don’t forget to scroll down to grab your free printable recipe card:

composite image of a bowl of animal cookies and three images showing the process of how to make them

Sugar Free Animal Cookie Ingredients

Scroll down to the printable recipe card for full measurements.

Tip: some readers have had success using flax eggs, whole wheat flour and old-fashioned oats in this recipe. Read the comment section for tips on these substitutions.

Kitchen Tools You May Find Helpful

  • Animal Cookie Cutters
  • Measuring Cups and Spoons
  • Whisk
  • Wooden Spoon or Spatula <– I like these spatulas because they are one solid piece and don’t have removable heads for bacteria to get trapped underneath. Plus they are heat-resistant and have a lifetime warranty
  • Parchment Paper or Silicone Baking Mats
  • Cookie Sheet
close-up image of a panda-shaped animal cookie in a glass bowl filled with more cookies

How to Make Sugar-free Animal Cookies

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients.

in-process image of how to make animal cookies

In a large mixing bowl, combine all wet ingredients.

in-process image of how to make animal cookies

Slowly stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.

in-process image of how to make animal cookies

If needed, knead the dough together until not sticky.

Refrigerate for one hour or overnight.

in-process image of how to make animal cookies

Place the dough on a clean, floured surface or a piece of parchment paper and roll out to 1/2″ thickness.

Use a bit of flour to prevent your rolling pin from sticking to the dough.

in-process image of how to make animal cookies

Use your favorite animal-themed cookie cutters to cut cookies out of the dough, re-rolling as necessary.

Place the cut-out cookie shapes on lined cookie sheets.

in-process image of how to make animal cookies

Bake at 350ºF for 12-15 minutes.

Pin this Easy Sugar-free Cookie recipe for your next baking session with the kids:

How to make sugar-free Animal Cookies, a delicious homemade graham cracker that you can make in any shape your kids like! A fun and healthy treat perfect for afterschool snacks or a healthy lunch box treat

Grab your free printable recipe card for our sugar-free animal cookie recipe:

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Yield: 32 cookies

Kids Kitchen: No-Sugar Animal Cookies

Kids Kitchen: No-Sugar Animal Cookies

A super simple and sugar-free animal cookies recipe perfect for having the kids help! These fun homemade graham cracker cookies are a great alternative to store-bought animal crackers with their fun animal shapes and naturally-sweetened cookie dough.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 32 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cup quick oats
  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut flakes
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 Tablespoon honey or molasses, optional

Instructions

  1. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, combine all wet ingredients.
  3. Slowly stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
  4. If needed, knead the dough together until not sticky.
  5. Refrigerate for one hour or overnight.
  6. Place the dough on a clean, floured surface or a piece of parchment paper and roll out to 1/2" thickness.
  7. Use a bit of flour to prevent your rolling pin from sticking to the dough.
  8. Use your favorite animal-themed cookie cutters to cut cookies out of the dough, re-rolling as necessary.
  9. Place the cut-out cookie shapes on lined cookie sheets.
  10. Bake at 350ºF for 12-15 minutes.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

32

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 87Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 62mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 1g

Sugar, Spice and Glitter uses an auto-generate nutrition calculator. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate unless analyzed in a scientific lab, so these should be considered more of a guideline than medical information.

Pin this Recipe for Later

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

close-up image of a panda-shaped animal cookie in a glass bowl filled with more cookies

Make sure to pin this sugar-free animal cookies recipe for later!

Check out the rest of our 31 Days of Kids Kitchen Series here.

31 days of kids kitchen activities - everything from kid-friendly recipes to kitchen science experiments, this series has it all!

Check out our other delicious Cookie Recipes:

Cookie Recipes

For more recipes kids can make, check out our full kid-made recipe collection here:

Or for more decadent desserts, check out our full dessert recipe collection here:

Original image from 2015:

Kids Kitchen: Sugar-free Animal Cookies recipe made by kids. An easy healthy recipe for cookies that kids will love!

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11 Comments

  1. I made these subbing oat flour, flax egg and coconut milk and they were delicious! How long will they stay good? Should I store in refrigerator or just sealed container at room temp? Thanks!

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