B A N A N A S

Am I the only one who has black bananas attacking me when I open the freezer door? Well, considering I already have my maximum allowance of frozen bananas (3 - just enough to make banana bread) I had to figure something else out for the tired ones on my kitchen counter.  These dreaded bananas were destined for something much sweeter than banana bread: Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. Wow, that's a mouthful to say!

Several years ago, a colleague of mine at Barbara's Bakery, Rebecca, gave me a "calorie-bomb" of a recipe for Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.  Those are actually her words to describe the recipe.  As I do many recipes, I altered this one to make it less damaging and it turned out great. Even my picky eater 15 month old loved them. This is the kid who won't even eat ice cream or cake! What kid doesn't eat cake or ice cream?!

The cookies didn't spread at all during baking, which meant nice thick cookies. However, rather than a typical gooey cookie texture, the inside was more like a moist muffin. Fine by me!  I'll just call these my muffin-top cookies.....and if I don't eat too many I won't get a muffin-top either!

By the next morning these muffin top cookies made a great snack to go with my coffee. Yum, yum!

Note: If you are expecting super sweet & sinful cookies, these aren't the cookies for you.


Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (Meghalicious modified)

1/2 cup Crisco shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup ripe bananas, mashed (blacker the better)
1/4 cup applesauce
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 3/4 cups quick oats
3/4 cup wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
9 oz (3/4 pkg) semi-sweet chocolate chips


Cream the shortening and sugar in a mixer. Add the egg, mix well. Add the bananas, applesauce, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon; mix well. Add the oats, flour and baking soda. Mix just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.


Drop cookies on an un-greased cookie sheet. Bake @ 375 F for 12-15 minutes or until the peaks on the cookies are golden.
Makes about 3 dozen cookies.