When I started graduate school to study organic chemistry, the department required all first year students to attend three seminars each week during the fall quarter. Using these weekly sessions, the faculty intended to introduce us to different areas within the field, help us narrow down our chemistry interests, and give us an idea of which professors we’d consider working for.
In the one held on Fridays, an older professor invited fellow friends and past students with careers in various chemistry fields to share what they did at work and the path that they took to get there. For our Wednesday evening seminar, we sat in a small classroom while each chemistry professor presented their research interests and recent published projects, hoping to persuade a few students to join their group. (We jokingly referred to that as “Speed Dating the Professors!”)
Both first and second year graduate students were required to attend the final set of seminars, which were held late on Tuesday afternoons in a stadium seating-style lecture hall, throughout the entire year. For these, each professor in the department invited another professor at a different university to give a talk about their research, intending to teach us new concepts and facilitate networking across the nation.
Partially out of generosity—and partially as a bribe to get us to both go and stay awake for the full 1½ hours of those seminars—the department always supplied snacks. In a smaller classroom directly across from the lecture hall, some of the faculty set up two large metal dispensers: one with coffee, the other with hot water with a basket of tea bags beside it. With how little sleep we got in graduate school, the caffeine always helped!
Next to the drinks, a pile of napkins and multiple packages of cookies always sat, ready to be devoured. The flavors varied between weeks, ranging from Oreos and Keebler Elves to Fig Newtons and knock-off Girl Scout Cookies to Nutter Butters and super soft Chewy Chips Ahoy!, but they were always store-bought… And there were never enough to go around, so we knew to get there early if we wanted any treats!
Although I’ll almost never turn down free cookies, it would’ve been even better if those seminar treats had been homemade, like these Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Banana Cookies. But with more than 200 students, we probably would’ve fought over every last crumb of these chewy cookies… They’re just that good!
These healthier cookies start with white whole wheat flour. Unlike regular whole wheat flour, white whole wheat flour is made from a special variety of white wheat that gives it a lighter taste and texture. It still has the same health benefits, but with a texture closer to that of all-purpose, white whole wheat flour is perfect for soft and tender baked goodies—like these cookies! You can find it on the baking aisle of many grocery stores.
Note: Whole wheat pastry flour would be a great substitute if you can’t find white whole wheat flour, and regular whole wheat flour would still work in a pinch.
Next comes the mashed banana. You’ll use mashed banana instead of eggs to bind these cookies together, and it gives the cookies a sweet fruit flavor, too. Coupled with the strong flavors of peanut butter and chocolate, the banana taste isn’t overwhelming, just prominent enough to notice. Use the spottiest bananas you can find!
And now for the most important part… The peanut butter! I highly recommend using homemade, like my easy blender peanut butter. It’s ready in just 5 minutes and tastes a million times better than store-bought! Its flavor is purer, and it lacks any of the preservatives or artificial ingredients that many store-bought brands contain. I always keep a jar of that homemade PB in my fridge!
My other favorite part? The chocolate chips, of course! I’m a huge chocoholic… That’s why I wrote a chocolate cookbook! I use both regular-sized and mini chips to ensure that every bite contains at least a morsel of chocolate. If you can find them, try these dark chocolate chips in these cookies. They melt really well and give the treats an extra rich flavor!
These cookies do not spread while baking, so you must flatten the cookie dough to your desired thickness and width before popping the tray in the oven. I use my adorable mini spatulas to do that so my hands won’t become covered in sticky cookie dough. (Although there are worse things in life than licking off the extras from my fingers…)
And after a brief stint in the oven, these soft and chewy cookies will be begging you to eat them!
| Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Banana Cookies | | Print |
- 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat flour (measured correctly)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 6 tbsp (94g) mashed banana (about 1 small)
- ½ cup (128g) easy blender peanut butter
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp (30mL) unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 1 cup (192g) coconut sugar
- ¼ cup (56g) dark chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp (28g) miniature chocolate chips, divided
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, stir together the mashed banana, peanut butter, vanilla, and milk. Stir in the sugar. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the dark chocolate chips and 1 tablespoon of miniature chocolate chips.
- Drop the cookie dough into 24 rounded scoops on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten to the desired thickness and width using a spatula, and gently press the remaining miniature chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. Cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
Store-bought natural creamy peanut butter may be used. For best results, the only ingredients should be peanuts and salt.
Any milk may be substituted for the almond milk.
Light brown sugar may be substituted for the coconut sugar.
{vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
You can never go wrong with peanut butter, banana and chocolate in my book! Quick question, Could I sub oat flour for the white flour?
I haven’t tried it Bethany, so I’m not entirely sure. Since oat flour tends to absorb a tiny bit more moisture than white whole wheat flour, I’d suggest starting with a tablespoon or two less, and add the rest if needed. I’d love to hear how the cookies turn out if you try that substitution!
That cookie DOUGH! I want to just dive into it.
Why bake cookies when you can eat the raw dough, right Brittany?? 😉
I’m confident saying that chocolate, PB, and banana is my favorite flavor combination! These look delicious. I won’t be able to make them until I have somewhere or someone to share them with or else I’ll eat every single one myself!
Thanks Melissa! That’s why I have to give away nearly everything I bake… I’d eat it all by myself otherwise!
I made these cookies over the weekend, on whim. They are absolutely irresistible, and I don’t like peanut butter that much. Making another batch this week! Chewy, chocolatey, and so GOOD!!! Thak you!!
That’s a huge compliment if you’re making another batch and don’t like PB too much — thank you for sharing Colleen! 🙂 I’m so glad you’re enjoying the cookies!
i made these this past weekend, and didn’t have brown sugar, so subbed white sugar, but added 1T of molasses as well, and it was divine! my kids gobbled them up!
I’m so glad you and your kids enjoyed the cookies Chrissy! That’s such a smart substitution. My dad has done that before when making cookies while I was a little girl, and I remember loving the flavor of those! 🙂
Made these today and they were ok. Flavor wise they were good. Texture wise, well, they were too gummy so I had to bake them an extra 15 minutes. Only thing I can think of to cause that gumminess, was when I mixed the liquids. Is there such a thing as over mixing that part? Lol. It just looked so strange.
Yikes! The cookies should be chewy, definitely not gummy. Did you make any substitutions, and did you measure by weight or using cups? I’d like to work together to figure out what happened so your next batch turns out much better Sherlock! 🙂
Hi! These cookies seem sooooo good and I would love to try them!! But, since I don’t have coconut nor brown sugar, can honey work instead?
Thank you for everything!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Inesse! Honey won’t work because it’ll add too much liquid to the cookie dough. Regular granulated sugar will work though, and add an extra tablespoon of milk to the cookie dough to compensate. (Coconut and brown sugar have just a touch more moisture to them!) I’d love to hear what you think if you try the cookies!
Hi there! Is there any way to substitute coconut sugar for a sweetener e.g. liquid stevia?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Weronika! It actually depends on the sweetener. What’s the exact sweetener that you wish to use in place of the coconut sugar? 🙂