Chewy!PeanutButter-Banana-ChipOatmealCookies

One weekend, a month or two ago, I had overripe bananas on my hands and peanut butter craving. I thought about making the Peanut Butter Banana Bread from Hot Damn and Hell Yeah, but it wasn't really what I was in the mood for, not so much as cookies.

So I figured I'd try to come up with something on my own. I perused a few recipes, none of which were really what I wanted, and then got to work. I always sort of assumed that it would be difficult to achieve a non-cake-y banana cookie. But in fact, it was pretty easy. I wrote down the ingredients/amounts as I went, and had success on the first try.

I then proceeded to lose said recipe.

So a few weeks later, I tried making them again, and they came out even better than my first try. Here's the recipe.

Chewy Peanut Butter-Banana-Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Yield: approximately 20 cookies

In a medium mixing bowl, thoroughly mash one overripe banana. Add to it the following ingredients:

1 tbsp molasses

1/2 cup evaporated cane juice
1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup natural peanut butter (I used the crunchy kind)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup canola oil, scant

Stir together with a wooden spoon until well-combined.

Then add the following dry ingredients (sift them in, if needed):

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

Incorporate dry ingredients into wet. Then stir in the following:

1 cup rolled oats
3/4-1 cup vegan semisweet chocolate chips or vegan carob chips

Drop spoonfuls of batter onto a parchment- (or Silpat/baking mat-) lined cookie sheet. I did it up Martha Stewart-style and used the fancy ice cream scoop I'd gotten for Christmas.

Bake for about 10-12 minutes at 350 F, or the tops of the cookies are cracked and slightly golden, but they are still soft. (The Silpat baking mat worked really well. I've used this one for several years and it really helps with even baking.

Out of the oven, allow the cookies to cool for about 1 minute on the baking sheet. This helps them set up; otherwise, they will be kind of molten and will probably fall apart when you try to take them off the sheet. After they've cooled for a minute, transfer them to a wire rack to cool.

The first time I made them, I added carob chips, since that was all I had on hand. But what I'd really wanted was chocolate chips, so the second time I went with chocolate chips. I definitely prefer chocolate chips in them to carob, but do what you like. If you are one of those lucky people with access to vegan butterscotch chips, I think those would probably be awesome. If vegan peanut butter chips existed (if they do, please tell where?!), I would be all about using those.

Mmm. Coookies....