Monday, December 6, 2010

Annie's Banana Cookies

Instead of the same old cookies this holiday season, I am trying out new recipes. Since this particular recipe calls for toffee chips and roasted bananas, it is about as far away from the standard/traditional that you can get.

Monkeys would probably complain that they need more banana flavor, but it is just right for us humans. The addition of toffee chips brings the flavor to another "more human" and tastier level. The cookies are thin and chewy in texture. The recipe makes about 4 dozen cookies.

Annie's Banana Cookies
adapted from LA Times Cookie Contest 

Ingredients
sea salt (optional for sprinkling)
3 bananas
3 tbs butter melted
1/4 cup brown sugar (for sprinkling)
8 oz toffee chips
2 eggs 
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup butter or one stick
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/4 cup flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line one baking sheet with parchment paper.  Take each banana and slice lengthwise into two pieces.  Place on baking sheet skin side down.  Brush cut sides with butter and sprinkle tops with brown sugar using total of 1/4 of a cup.  Bake in oven 15-20 minutes.  Scoop out banana and place in large bowl and discard skins. Set bowl aside.

In a smaller bowl, sift together salt, flour and baking soda.  Then take your bowl with the bananas and add butter, both kinds of sugar, vanilla and eggs.  Beat with electric mixer until smooth.

With a wooden spoon, fold in flour mixture in two increments.  When no flour remains, mix in all the toffee bits.

Take two baking sheets and line with parchment paper.  Drop a tablespoon of batter onto the baking sheet. Continue with this process, spacing each drop of batter about 1 1/2 inches apart. At this time, you can opt to sprinkle sea salt on top of each.  Then bake in oven for about 9-11 minutes.

This cookie needs turn a little toasty on top, not just brown on the edges.  Remove pan from oven and leave on cookie sheet to cool for 5-10 minutes.  Then transfer to rack to finish cooling.