So this was the first recipe in out of grandma's recipe boxes. I had some bananas about to go funky, so I figured they would be perfect all mashed up into a cookie. The recipes seemed simple enough and I figured that with the spices and maybe some pecans or chocolate it would be a perfectly delectable cookies.I did however discover something that would hinder me. Grandma's knowledge of the recipe. The card had no indication of the heat or time for baking. "Well... fuck." That being the first thought to enter my head, I figured to just wing it, as what other choice did I have? I decided on 350F (everything bakes at that temp. it seems) and would watch them like a hawk for the baking time.
I also split the batch into three mixtures - plain, with pecans, with chocolate. All three were fantastic, though I think I prefer them with the pecans for no other reason then I like the crunch they give. The cookies themselves were nice, soft, and a bit cakey. I expected them to taste like banana bread or muffins, but to my surprise they tasted nothing like them; just a delicious spiced cookie flavored with fresh banana.
All and all, delicious and a cookie recipe that's sure to be a steadfast favorite in this house.
Grandma Capune's Banana CookiesMakes about 30 cookies / 350F
What You'll Need...
1/2 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup of sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 cup of mashed bananas
1 teaspoon of baking soda
2 cups of flour
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground mace or nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
(optional) 1 cup of pecans or walnuts or chocolate chips (or mix and match)
What You'll Do...
1) Preheat the oven to 350F. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and continue to beat until well mixed.
2) Mix the mashed bananas and baking soda in a bowl and let sit for 2 minutes to froth a bit, this will give the cookies their rise.
3) Mix the banana mixture into the butter mixture. Combine the flour, salt, and spices and mix into the butter and banana mixture until just combined.
4) Fold in the pecans. Drop into dollops onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until nicely golden brown. Let cool on wire racks.
I love finding old recipes that you know must've been good. All you have to do is wipe the dust off of them. I will definitely be trying these in the future.
ReplyDeleteOooh, thanks for posting this. I need a new cookie in my arsenal and I have bananas going south (and I can only eat so much banana bread!).
ReplyDeleteI have the same problem with some of my grandmothers' and great-grandmothers' recipes. Some were concocted before ovens had even temperatures. Others show measurements in price! (use 3 cents worth of sugar) They're fun to read but I can't think of any way to accurately figure out how much that is. :(
Happy new year!
Oh wow, do you know how long I've been looking for a banana cookie recipe?? I have tried converting banana bread in the past to cookies and it was a horrible mess! Thank you for sharing this with us!
ReplyDeleteI can so relate to having Grandma recipes lacking in the specifics that many of us have come to depend on. I really don't think my grandmother even used recipes -- a list of ingredients was about all she needed. When I would ask her about amounts, her response was along the lines of "Oh, a little bit of this or that, you know, as much as is needed." She cooked entirely by feel, but mere mortals like myself need the boring details, so thanks for including them here. I can't wait to try these cookies!
ReplyDeleteScouring the 'net for a good ripe banana recipe....and FOUND IT!
ReplyDeletewill make these tomorrow with the kids.
xo, jaden
so looking forward to hearing about all these grandma recipes!
ReplyDeleteHmmmm...I have some bananas that are about to turn to mush as well. And I love, love, love that you're going through your grandmother's recipe box--how cool is that? There's nothing like an old recipe card to make you feel close to the ones you love.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first started dating my husband he made me banana cookies.
ReplyDeleteI love figuring out old recipes. My mom has a habit of making just a list of ingredients. So most of my recipes I have to wing the mixing as well as the cooking.
The part of the recipe you can see says shortening, not butter.
ReplyDeleteAre you changing these family recipes?
Old recipes are a treasure! Happy New Year Garret!
ReplyDeleteDonna - In this case yes. I never have shortening on hand.
ReplyDeletebanana cookies, devoured.
ReplyDeletewe loved them!
Those look good. I've got about a dozen bananas going bad. I may have to try those.
ReplyDeleteThank you for a wonderful recipe Garrett!! They were a big hit. I made the dough with pecans and half way through baking added chocolate chips. We are hard pressed to choose which we liked better.
ReplyDeleteI love old recipes, if I can actually recreate them that is :). I have a collection of my late Grandmother's that an Aunt had made into a little book. I was so excited to have her wonderful Bread Pudding recipe I had always adored. When I looked it up, this is what I found. "Break up bread. Beat up an egg, add vanilla, salt, sugar and cinnamon, some raisins. Pour warm milk. Bake for about an hour in a 325 oven" I guess this will be one for memory only. But every time I see it I can't help but smile :)
I have a bunch of bananas happily getting incredibly overripe on the kitchen counter. I'd planned to finally make some Yip Yap Banana Snaps for the dogs (how can you not want to make something called Yip Yap Banana Snaps?), but I've just rethought that decision. This recipe sounds wonderful, and, well, sometimes cookies for people just have to come first! ; )
ReplyDeleteYum. Rosie's Bakery Chocolate-Packed Jam-Filled Butter-Rich No-Holds-Barred Cookie Book has a very similar recipe except that it tops each cookie with cream cheese frosting. I made them for the holidays and they were delectable.
ReplyDeleteMmmm...banana anything...love vintage recipes!
ReplyDeleteThese cookies are absolutely incredible. I made a triple batch last night and guarantee that my 6 daughters and hubby will make them only a memory by the end of today.
ReplyDeleteI now have two wonderful ways to use up old bananas - that don't involve banana bread. In addition to this one, Heidi's (101cookbooks.com) banana espresso muffins are to die for!
Thanks for the great recipe!
-Jenni
just made them for a party tomorrow--and they came out deliciously. Unique and sure to be a great hit. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThat looks fantastic. Awesome! I'm going to have to try this!
ReplyDeleteDear Vanilla Garlic
ReplyDeleteNew to your blog. A nice recipe worth trying.
I have always wanted a good recipe for cookies made with banana and these look too good to miss - I'll try them soon!
ReplyDeleteThese were deLISH! : )
ReplyDeleteJust made a batch of these lovely cookies. Half of which had chocolate chips and the other just plain banana-ey goodness!
ReplyDeleteWill definitely make these again! Thanks for the recipe!
Going to try these today :D I have some perfect bananas and am ready to go, I will be posting pics and all on my blog later and of course will mention your blog, Carm
ReplyDeleteI love good old family recipes! (the reason I started food blogging myself)
ReplyDeleteThese were wonderful cookies, I added in some chocolate chips. Even the Husband ate some! (that means the recipe's a keeper!)Thanks!
After an extreme hankering for something banana, I remembered your grandma's cookie recipe. My first batch is done and my question is, are these suppossed to be cookie-like or muffin top like. I'm not sure if I did something wrong....or RIGHT! They're totally hitting the spot, but I was thinking cookie..any suggestions?
ReplyDeleteI tried these yesterday and they came very well. for the flour - I used part whole spelt and part WW pastry flout 1:1 ratio and they were very soft!! DH and DD have been eating these cookies for breakfast!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting this recipe! It was a hit at home.
Really great cookies - almost cake-like and a great change from banana bread. Added rum and vanilla extract but probably didn't make enough difference that I can tell.
ReplyDeleteI just tried these. Yummy. I'm going to try a coconut variation next time.
ReplyDeleteExciting new flavor to try on! I have never tried of banana chocolates before, my Mom will love these!
ReplyDeleteI have hijacked this recipe and we love it so much we let bananas get old and soft on purpose so we can make more. Mods - add chocolate chips and nuts, 3/4 cup each; double the cinnamon and add 2 tsp vanilla extract to the batter. Holy Moly! I posted it on Facebook and my friends are raving.
ReplyDeleteJust made these!! Delicious and fluffy. My husband loves them. Thanks for posting!
ReplyDeleteToday I ended up with some slightly smashed bananas because of my roommate's unorthodox style of grocery bag packing in his trunk. Your recipe looked so yummy and I figured it would be the best way to salvage them. Besides, already had the ingredients in the cupboard...haha!
ReplyDeleteThese are soooooooo good! They taste like banana-nut bread in cookie for. So weird and delicious. Thanks for sharing such a yummy recipe!
Wondering if you might edit the editorial, remove the cussing. I myself will not use this recipe, be back to this site, or say anything good about Vanilla Garlic. Would your Grandma have appreciated your vocabulary?
ReplyDeleteYou are not invited to comment upon the writers lifestyle..
DeleteI have only had the most wonderful time eating this recipe and my family as well for the past 2 years. You may cuss as much as you like and I may join you- Thank you Debbie
DeleteYes. She would. Don't presume to know her. ;)
DeleteAnonymous: First, the cussing doesn't affect the recipe, so I am not sure I follow there. Second, I rarely do cuss on this blog, but it is my blog. You came to me. If you don't like the rare swear feel free to go somewhere else. Plus, my Grandmother cussed like a sailor and could kick my ass while doing it. ;)
ReplyDeleteIf you do visit again, please sign your name to your comment and own it. Kthanksbye.
I just started my first food blog a couple days ago and I just a little too excited about it. So when I woke up to over ripe bananas this morning I decided to search for a cookie recipe and scrolled past all the usual food websites to find a recipe that someone has blogged about. I can see already that this could turn a to an addiction (the whole blog thing...not the cookies, although they look fab!). Anyway, can't wait to try the recipe with my boys today. Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteThere were two things that led me to your recipe..over ripe bananas and a upcoming bake sale. Your grandma's recipe is similiar to another I found, but I think this is the one I'm going to try. Also....I find it humurous that you left in the f-bomb...I drop them all the time when I'm baking!!
ReplyDeleteAgree to all those who welcome this as a relief to banana bread!!
ReplyDeleteThat being said, thank you for posting this recipe! I am so delighted with the outcome. I will say I was ready to use butter/margarine (I use 50/50 of each usually...for frugality's sake), but I noticed someone mentioned you "changed the recipe" a bit and you said it's because you never have shortening on hand. Well, I made it with the shortening, and say what one may about the decline in quality or whatever for that choice, but shortening is much cheaper for me, and the results were delightful...which (the latter part) is what it's all about, imo!! So thanks thanks thanks again!
What I really came to say though: is that upon seeing your description of these as "cakey" I wondered if I might be able to finagle things so that I could replicate these soft top cookies the Kroger (Mid-west grocery chain) Bakery makes. So I first used an ice cream scooper to dollop the dough, and they weren't big enough, but they were just as thick. Then I used a 1/3 cup measuring cup to make the dollops which ended up being bigger than I wanted. The baking times needed to be increased, so I just added 2 or 3 minutes at a time until they were the right color. Then I was about out of dough.
I also noticed that the cookies don't really spread, although they do rise, so I did just a little bit of spreading by hand (this dough can be handled a *little* bit by hand (or else it just turns into a mess...for me anyway) before baking).
This recipe produces EXACTLY the soft top cookie I was looking to replicate--perhaps better due to fresher ingredients and ingredients closer to their natural state. Next time (!!!) I'll go with the 1/4 cup measuring cup with a little bit of hand shaping, and I'll probably get a dozen or more--which is just what I'm going for. The cookies I'm trying to replicate are about 3-3 1/2 inches across and about 1-1 1/4 inches thick at their thickest.
I'm also going to try this with pumpkin by simply replacing the banana with pumpkin and probably adjusting the quantities of flavor/spices :)
thanks again!
--jenny
Absolutely divine!!! Just made these. Tossed in dark chocolate chips and some walnuts. Yuuummmmmm.
ReplyDelete