Triple Chocolate Banana Cookies

Love chocolate? Want to make a tasty chocolate treat out of those over ripe bananas on the counter? Try this easy recipe so sinful you will find it hard to resist. A rich chocolate treat which is also sort of healthy too? You betcha!! Make them today!

Triple Chocolate Banana Cookies

Yield: 30 – 36 cookies

Ingredients:

1 1/2 all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup butter or shortening, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup bananas, over ripe or frozen (~2 – 3 bananas)
3/4 cup chocolate chips
Optional: 1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped

Glaze:

3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons low fat milk
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Equipment needed:

Dry measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Small mixing bowl
Wire whisk
Stand up mixer
Rubber spatula
Two half sheet pans
Parchment paper
Bent edged spatula
Small sauce pan
Cooling racks
Spoon or small whisk for drizzling

I sometimes crave chocolate and these cookies definitely fit the bill! This recipe started as a plain banana cookie recipe my friend Ruth gave me years ago! I used to make them when the kids were little as they were relatively inexpensive, as it used up leftover or frozen bananas and ingredients I always had stocked in my kitchen. (My girlfriend also used shortening… to save extra cash when she was a stay at home mom too!) One day I was craving chocolate and thought this recipe would be awesome with a bit of chocolate… so I started experimenting with adding cocoa powder to replace a bit of the flour… these cookies were the result! The original recipe had a vanilla glaze, so I changed it to chocolate too of course. Boosted the yumminess factor off the charts! You gotta try them… so grab your stuff and let’s bake!

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

This recipe is basic baking… combine the dry ingredients and add them to the wet stuff. So, the first step is to sift the dry ingredients together into a small mixing bowl. Place the flour, cocoa, salt and the leavening agents into a sifter or strainer and sift to combine. This will help to distribute all the dry ingredients uniformly into the cookie mixture and take out the cocoa powder lumps too. Set the bowl aside for a few minutes.

Next for the wet stuff! Place the softened butter, granulated sugar, eggs and bananas into the bowl of your standup mixer. (Yes… sugar is a wet ingredient as it dissolves in the liquids.) If you don’t have a standup mixer, use a large mixing bowl and a hand mixer designed to mix cookie dough. This cookie dough is not as thick as some doughs, but a more heavy-duty hand mixer is recommended. Don’t want to burn up your mixer. Of course, you can make this recipe by hand, but just will take a bit more time and ‘people power’! Blend these ingredients well into a bright yellow cream, being sure the bananas are broken up and evenly distributed. Add the vanilla and mix in well.

Now for the dry stuff! Add the dry ingredients into the wet and blend well for about 2 minutes or until flour is no longer visible. Scrap the sides down as you go to ensure the dry isn’t sticking to the bottom of the bowl. Add the chocolate chips and mix them in using a rubber spatula. Scrap the sides down one more time. Now take a little time to smell the chocolate aroma… pure heaven!

Grab two half sheet pans and line them with parchment paper. These cookies are pretty soft and parchment helps them spread and come off the pan so much easier too. I use a small (~2 ounce) dipper to ensure even sized cookies that are uniform and round in shape after baking. Makes the cookie panning process pretty efficient and your cookies will bake evenly too. Bake the cookies in a preheated 350 F oven for 10 – 12 minutes. Cookies are ready when they are no longer shiny and when pressing on the surface of the cookie and it bounces back. I know … real scientific! Allow cookies to rest on the hot pan for 1 minute before sliding parchment and cookies carefully off. The cookies will stick to the paper, so no fear they will fall off.

To make the glaze, place a small saucepan over medium heat. Melt the butter without burning it. Add the milk and cocoa powder and blend using a wire whisk. This will break up any cocoa powder chunks too. Bring mixture to a low boil and add powdered sugar. Continue to whisk together until smooth. Bring again to a boil while stirring occasionally. Turn off heat and add vanilla. Glaze will be a thick, runny consistency. Allow to cool and thicken slightly. Glaze will drizzle better if still warm.

To set up your glazing station and reduce the mess, place cooling racks over a piece of parchment paper. I sometimes use one of the sheets from baking too, even though they will have a bit of cookie crumbs attached. Carefully peel the warm cookies off the parchment and lay on top of the cooling rack assembly. Pour the warm glaze into a small bowl if you wish. Using a regular flatware spoon or mini wire whisk, drizzle the glaze back and forth over each cookie surface. Allow to completely cool before stacking for storage.

Oh my... Don’t they look and smell amazing? Go ahead and take a bite… Enjoy!!