Peanut Butter Banana Cookies

After moving in to our apartment style dorm Monday night and living in the space for a few days, Mary and I now feel like we are settled in. We are really enjoying our new space, especially the "state-of-the-art" kitchen complete with trendy avocado colored laminate countertops– who needs granite! Mostly, we are so glad that we came equipped with all the kitchen supplies we could possibly need (and some extras!), as we have already begun making some delicious meals and trying some of our favorite recipes. It is so exciting to think of how many wonderful meals we will have cooked in our tiny kitchen by the end of the school year!

With our sophomore year classes starting up on Monday, I wanted to make a homemade treat to include in our lunches. Not being on the college meal plan this year means packing lunches to eat between classes, so I love sprucing up packed lunches with a homemade treat. I wanted to try a new recipe using simple ingredients we had on hand, and was intrigued by this recipe for Peanut Butter Banana cookies– how could you go wrong with the peanut butter banana combination! 

These cookies were so easy to whip up, and don't call for much sweetener as most of the sweetness comes from the bananas. They have a very interesting and tasty flavor combination– almost like combining the flavor of banana bread with a peanut butter cookie! While I love my classic chocolate chip cookies, I also really enjoy trying new cookie varieties and this is a new favorite to add to my list. The sweet and salty combination is definitely a winner, and the recipe is fairly healthy and can easily be made healthier with some simple ingredient swaps (like wheat flour in place of white flour and honey instead of sugar!). 

We are so excited for the "college chapter" of Two Spoonfuls and will definitely miss our readers at home while we are here at school! In the meantime, if you're looking for a new cookie recipe, try this one! It won't disappoint. 

Here's a picture of our "beautiful" dorm kitchen, just for kicks! (Notice the spice jars) 

Peanut Butter Banana Cookies

Recipe by Gimme Some Oven

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup creamy natural peanut butter
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup mashed banana (about 1 medium banana)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cooking Directions

1. Heat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, cornstarch, salt, baking soda and cinnamon until combined. Set aside.
3. In the (separate) bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Add peanut butter, egg, banana, and vanilla, and continue mixing on medium speed until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl once if needed. Fold in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
4. Measure out a rounded tablespoon-full of dough, roll it into a ball, then place on the baking sheet. Use a fork to press down the top of the ball and make a criss-cross pattern. Sprinkle with a pinch of cane sugar, if desired. Repeat with remaining dough.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden around the edges. Cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Serve immediately or store in a sealed container for up to 1 week.

Enjoy!