So my good friend Meg gifted me a batch of peanut butter banana cookies the other week. THEY WERE SOOOO GOOD! Between my roommate and I, we ate every last one of them. They tasted almost like a no-bake cookie with a whole lot of peanut butter. So I just had to figure these out and make another batch for myself.
The original recipe is from Erin Clarke's food blog Well Plated by Erin. I really enjoy her blog and her recipes. She cooks with whole foods in a healthy way. Some of my favorite recipes from her website include:
So in my attempt to recreate these Peanut Butter Banana Cookies, I realized that I did not have the proper cookie scooper to portion these cookies without a mess. The batter was so sticky and wet! So I thought, why not bake them in a brownie pan. They can almost be like a homemade version of a Clif Bar!!! I pulled out my best brownie pan and gave it a try!
So the first time, I used a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. They were tasty, but not quite the right thickness to be a bar that I dreamed of. The corner pieces were just a little too toasty, and the bar just flopped in my fingers. I altered the recipe and baked them again in a 9 x 9-inch pan instead. They turned out so much better! They were full of gooey goodness! Nom nom nom!
I also added some unsweetened coconut flakes to these bars for some texture and stability The coconut flakes are full of saturated fats. If you are not a coconut fan, omit these! In general, the Mediterranean diet advises people to eat more mono- and poly- unsaturated fats than saturated fats. However, my thoughts are that dessert is good for mental health rather than physical health. It is good to treat yourself every once in a while. Moderation is key.
I should also mention that these cookie bars are gluten-free! Plus, the whole cup of peanut butter in the recipe adds a nice amount of protein. Yes, a whole cup of peanut butter. Trust me on this one! And of course, what is a cookie without some sort of chocolate chip?!?
This recipe uses coconut sugar, which is a lot less sweet than other sugars. If you do not have coconut sugar, use light brown sugar instead! They taste very similar. However, the ripe banana and peanut butter add a lot of sweetness already. I prefer the coconut sugar, but you can use what you have in your pantry!
So what is the thing about coconut sugar? Coconut sugar is a light brown sugar made from processed and dehydrated coconut sap. It was named by CBS News as one of the "Trendiest Foods of 2015". It has a low glycemic index of 35. Glycemic Index (GI) is the measure of glucose response after consuming carbohydrates. Compared to cane and brown sugar, coconut sugar causes a lower rise in postprandial (period of time after a meal) glucose levels and insulin responses. The principle of GI has been shown beneficial for weight loss and the control of diabetes.
Many marketing campaigns for coconut sugar claim that it contains more vitamins and minerals than cane sugar. Which is technically true! Coconut sap contains higher amounts of vitamins (C, B1, B3, B4, and B10) compared to sugar palm and sugarcane juices (Muhammad et al., 2020). Additional research from the Philippines government’s Food and Nutrition Research Institute shows that coconut sugar has higher levels of iron and zinc than brown sugar and refined sugar. However many of these nutrients are present in such tiny amounts that they barely affect daily intake. Therefore, you would have to eat a lot of sugar (not advised) to obtain significant amounts of these nutrients. It is better to get these vitamins and minerals from whole foods, fruits, and vegetables.
There is still more research to be done on the health benefits of coconut sugar. The literature is scarce and contradictory in many cases. My current conclusion is that if you like the taste of coconut sugar and can put forth an extra few dollars on the cost, then use it! If you are using it to get extra nutritional benefits, you are probably not getting all of the vitamins and minerals that you think. And remember coconut sugar is still a sugar, so it is best used in moderation when cooking, baking, and flavoring beverages.
You can find the recipe below. I love these so much! Let me know if you try them out.
Peanut Butter Banana Bars
Ingredients:
1 large egg
3/4 cup coconut sugar (or light brown sugar)
1 large ripe banana
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk together egg and coconut sugar until combined.
Whisk in banana, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt.
Add peanut butter and continue to mix until the dough is smooth, wet, and sticky throughout.
Stir in chocolate chips and coconut flakes.
Pour into a 9 x 9 dark coated baking pan.
Bake for 25 minutes until the edges of the cookie are slightly golden brown. **
Let cool completely and cut into 12 pieces.
*There is enough peanut butter in the batter to keep the bars from sticking to the pan. There is no need to spray or line the pan.
**If you do not have a dark-coated pan, increase cook time by 5 minutes until the edges of the cookie are golden brown.
Muhammad, T. A., Yus, A. Y., Mohd, N. M., Mohammad, E. Y., Hasanah, M. G., Lee, S. C., & Yanty, N. M. (2020). Coconut (cocos nucifera l.) sap as a potential source of sugar: antioxidant and nutritional properties. Food Science & Nutrition, 8 (4), 1777–1787. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsn3.1191
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