Banana Cookies

While it's always fun to splurge, it's more fun to splurge without any guilt. These fun little banana "cookies" are a perfect way to do that. I came across this recipe while searching for a way to get rid of browning bananas, and I am so grateful that I did!

I have a serious love/hate relationship with the fruit of the monkeys. For one, I find that I go through them very quickly. If I want a long-lasting snack, I'll pick an apple because I find that they make me feel fuller afterwards. Secondly, they always go bad so quickly. Having a way to make them more substantial PLUS using them up at any time during their life-span made me a happy gal.

I started with the two simple base ingredients:
4 bananas
2 cups of quick oats

You just mash these two ingredients together and that makes the cookie. THAT'S IT!! So simple, right?! I put these into little cupcake papers because it helps them keep their shape, plus they come out easier. They def will stick to the bottom of the papers but it's not a big deal, you can just try to peel them out.

In addition to the regular bananas and oats, I also added a few extra ingredients to make my cookies a little bit more fun! I included craisins, chopped pecans, peanut butter, and even some dark chocolate!

This is my friend Becca spooning her cookies into the cupcake papers! There were four of us that made the cookies together, and so we each got our own column of them. Mine was definitely the best...It's kind of hard to look at yourself eating 6 of these and think that it's okay to do so, but think about it! There's only four bananas and two cups of oats that make all of these. That means that you're probably having a little bit of banana and oatmeal. They are SO healthy for you!

The fun thing about these cookies is the toppings you get to add!! I chose to put just about everything on mine, but I definitely enjoyed the pecans and dark chocolate the most. I'm a huge chocolate/nut fanatic, so this was super delicious and fun for me.

These are the creations RIGHT before they were put into the oven!! My column is the one second in from the left. Mine certainly looked the most scrumptious to me!

And this is the cookies right after they were taken out of the oven! The peanut butter melted beautifully with the chocolate and proved to be a delectable addition. I will definitely be making and eating these for many more times to come! Good luck making your own banana cookies.

--Lara