8.28.2010

Peanut Butter Cup Banana Cookie



Finally, the first time I have been in town for a weekend and can write about the one time I have baked in the past two weeks. But I’m not complaining, the lack of baking and blogging is because I have been going to the lake every weekend, though I am still better at baking than wakeboarding ;)

This tiny bout of baking came on because our friends at the lake said they had never had any of my baked goods. Thursday night, after a grocery trip to Berkeley Bowl where I picked up a bag of about 10 over-ripe bananas for $1, I got to work with two loaves of banana bread, one plain and one with walnuts and dark chocolate chips-It's so easy and always pleases.

That didn't cure my baking itch though, so once the bread was in the oven I got to work on my own recipe that I have been wanting to give a whirl. The idea came to mind after a lot of thinking about my failed attempt at this Banana Peanut Butter Cup cookie recipe. Look at the cookies in her blog, they're beautiful, and now check out what happened when I made them…


After random contemplations since then, I think this happened because I pureed the bananas rather than mashed them and it needed more flour. I was skeptical before trying this recipe anyway because it had no butter- I mean really a cookie with no butter?

So here’s my spin on it— less healthy but more delicious?

PB Cup Banana Cookies

Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup mashed over-ripe banana (about 1 banana) 
  • 1/2 stick unsalted butter (2 oz)
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar (2.3oz)
  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar (I used turbinado brown sugar aka sugar in the raw) (2.5oz)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • 3/4 cup peanut butter (12oz)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (2.5oz)
  • 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp white flour (4.5oz)
  • ~10 peanut butter cups chopped into quarters 
  • 1/2 cup walnut pieces

Have all ingredients at room temperature and preheat the oven to 350.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda and salt and set aside.

In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and the sugars until light and fluffy (4-5 minutes.) Mix in the egg and vanilla. Mix for 2 minutes, then the peanut butter until combined, then the banana until combined. Once combined, slowly add in the dry ingredients and mix until blended, but don’t over-mix. Add in Reese's and walnut pieces.

Let the cookie dough sit in fridge over-night (or at least a couple of hours).

Remove from fridge, create golfball-size dough balls. Place on an ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle a tiny pinch of coarse salt over the tops (you can sprinkle some sugar over too make it prettier). Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet for a couple of minutes then transfer to a cooling rack. Success!