These banana bread cookies have all of the buttery, toasty, chunky banana flavor in a cookie with crisp edges and soft, chewy center. It uses two bananas for all of that banana flavor, and also includes walnuts toasted in browned butter and loads of gooey chocolate. I've tested this recipe so many times to ensure that the center stays soft and chewy (not cakey) and that the edges are ultra crisp. Plus, you don't need an electric mixer because it comes together with a wire handheld whisk.
My ideal banana bread slice includes chunky gooey banana pieces, loads of chocolate chips, and crunchy walnuts. So to bring out those flavors in this recipe, I browned butter and walnuts together for extra crunchy walnut pieces and a toasty nutty flavor throughout the cookie. And then after making the cookie dough, I fold in extra chunks of banana and dark chocolate.
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🍌 Why you'll LOVE this recipe
- Easy, one bowl, no mixer recipe: They're really so easy to mix up together and you don't need any special equipment.
- Banana flavor: Two whole chunky ripe bananas and a dash of cinnamon give these cookies loads of banana bread flavor. With gooey chunks of banana!
- Brown butter walnuts: browning butter with walnuts together adds so much toasty flavor to these cookies.
- Crisp edges, soft middles: These cookies aren't cakey at all and have crisp edges with soft, chewy centers.
📝 Key ingredients
Read through for all the tips you will need for success!
Full steps and ingredients in recipe card below.
Bananas: Use ripe, spotty bananas for the best banana bread flavor! Don't use frozen bananas because they are very watery once they thaw and your cookies might not turn out.
Walnuts: I love crunchy walnuts inside banana bread so I had to include them inside these cookies! Browning them with the butter makes them extra crunchy and toasty, and infuses the butter with walnut flavor.
Butter: Unsalted, real butter is the best for browning. Salted butter tends to have a metallic flavor when it's browned.
All purpose flour: Weigh the flour to get the most accurate results. If you don’t have a scale, measure properly by stirring the bag and spooning gently into a measuring cup. Scrape the excess off the top with the flat edge off a knife without packing it into the cup. You can also use whole wheat flour.
Egg yolk: I only used one egg yolk because egg whites have a lot of moisture and I already added bananas that also have a lot of moisture. The egg yolk helps the cookie dough bind together.
Chopped dark chocolate: You can use any chocolate or chocolate chip that you prefer. I love dark chocolate so that's what I used.
👩🍳 How to make banana bread cookies
Step 1: Combine the butter and walnuts in a medium saucepan. Heat to melt the butter and continue cooking as it bubbles, carefully stirring frequently to prevent it from burning. Remove it from the heat when the walnuts smell toasty and the white bits in the butter turn brown.
Step 2: Pour the browned butter and walnuts into a large heat safe bowl. Add cinnamon and whisk to combine. Let it cool for a few minutes.
Step 3: Add brown sugar and granulated sugar into the browned butter. Whisk to combine.
Step 4: Add the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and salt into the same bowl. Then, add one medium banana, breaking it into pieces.
Step 5: Whisk the wet ingredients by hand to combine.
Step 6: Add flour and baking soda into the wet ingredients. Stir until it forms a dough.
Then, add the chopped chocolate and break up the second medium banana into coarse pieces. Fold them into the cookie dough.
Refrigerate the cookie dough for 1 hour, until it firms up.
Step 7: Then, preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Use a two tablespoon scoop to scoop balls of cookie dough and bake them in batches, leaving a few inches in between the cookies for them to spread.
Step 8: Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes and let them cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes to firm up.
Sprinkle flaky salt over the cookies while they're still hot and enjoy.
✔️ Expert banana bread cookie tips
- Brown the butter and walnuts well: It will take longer than just browning butter on its own, and it will be very foamy for a while during browning which makes it difficult to check.
- Use ripe, spotty bananas: This gives the best banana bread flavor and adds gooey chunks of banana inside the cookies.
- Bake the cookies until golden brown: You don't need to under bake these cookies so that they remain soft. If you under bake them they will be soggy. Bake them for a little longer for those crisp edges.
- Enjoy these fresh out of the oven: They have the crispiest edges when they're freshly baked. As they sit, they get softer - still delicious but definitely better when freshly baked.
🥄 Make ahead and storage
These cookies taste best fresh because that's when the edges are the crispiest. They'll be softer as they sit the next day. You can store pre-portioned cookie dough in an airtight bag the freezer and bake it from frozen whenever you want a fresh cookie(s)! You may need to add an extra minute or two to the baking time.
Store baked cookies in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. You can also freeze baked cookies in an airtight bag or container for up to 2 months. Reheat the cookies in the oven before enjoying so that the edges become all crispy again.
🙅 How to make sure banana bread cookies aren't cakey
There are a few things that I did in this recipe to ensure that these banana bread cookies aren't cakey. Cakey cookies are caused by too much moisture and too little sugar. Since bananas have a lot of moisture, banana bread cookies can be cakey and more muffin like! But this recipe isn't. This is how:
- Brown the butter: browning the butter evaporates any excess moisture out of the butter.
- Keep the banana pieces chunky: This helps create chunks of moisture which is better than having all of that moisture in the dough. Also this makes gooey pieces of banana which is a win!
- Don't use frozen bananas: When bananas defrost they get really watery. I don't recommend using frozen bananas.
- Don't reduce the sugar: It might look like there's a lot of sugar but it's so important for the structure of the cookie. The sugar ensures that the cookies spread and remain soft and gooey in the center - without being cakey.
- Overbake the cookies for extra crisp edges: These cookies won't get hard as they bake and they actually taste better when they're baked a little longer than your average chocolate chip cookie. Get them extra brown and crispy in the oven.
📖 Recipe FAQs
Yes you can but it adds such a delicious crunch I highly recommend keeping them in unless you really don't like them or can't eat them.
Yes you can. I haven't tested it out but replacing the flour with 1:1 gluten free flour should work. If you try it let us know in the comments!
I don't recommend using frozen bananas because when they defrost they get really watery. You could try it but it can change the texture of the cookies.
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📖 Recipe
Banana Bread Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup raw walnuts chopped into coarse pieces
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon ground
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅔ cups banana 2 bananas, divided in half
- 2 cups all purpose flour 240g
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ cup chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chips
Instructions
- Combine the butter and walnuts in a medium saucepan. Heat to melt the butter and continue cooking as it bubbles, carefully stirring frequently to prevent it from burning. Remove it from the heat when the walnuts smell toasty and the white bits in the butter turn brown.1 cup unsalted butter, ½ cup raw walnuts
- Pour the browned butter and walnuts into a large heat safe bowl. Add cinnamon and whisk to combine. Let it cool for a few minutes.1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Add brown sugar and granulated sugar into the browned butter. Whisk to combine.1 cup brown sugar, ¼ cup granulated sugar
- Add the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and salt into the same bowl. Then, break one medium banana into pieces with your fingers and add it in - about ⅓ cup. Whisk to combine.1 large egg yolk, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, ⅔ cups banana, ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Add flour and baking soda into the wet ingredients. Stir until it forms a dough.2 cups all purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking soda
- Then, add the chopped chocolate and break up the second medium banana into coarse pieces. Fold them into the cookie dough.¾ cup chopped dark chocolate
- Refrigerate the cookie dough for 1 hour, until it firms up.
- Then, preheat the oven to 355°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Use a two tablespoon scoop to scoop balls of cookie dough and bake them in batches, leaving a few inches in between the cookies for them to spread. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes and let them cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes to firm up.
- Sprinkle flaky salt over the cookies while they're still hot and enjoy.
Notes
- Brown the butter and walnuts well, this takes a few minutes longer than making regular browned butter
- Use ripe, spotty bananas for the best banana flavor and texture
- Bake the cookies until golden brown, you don't want to under bake them
- Enjoy these fresh out of the oven for the crispiest edges.
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