My house is pretty empty as of late. We really only have some remnants of old meals, bread, cereal, drinks; nothing really that would be enough to make a dish. Or so I thought! I came across a recipe for cookies that included only bananas and dry oats, which were coincidentally two of the few edible products in the kitchen.
The Recipe: Banana Oatmeal Cookies - 2 large old bananas
- 1 cup dry oats
- 1 tbsp Wheat Germ (personal health addition)
- Preferred toppings/mix-ins (I tested toppings of chocolate chips, coconut, almond slices, and honey)
The Process:- Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees
- Mash the bananas into a medium sized bowl
- Mix in the oats and wheat germ using a spoon
- Mix in any other desired mix-ins (I didn't mix in anything this time, but I got some ideas for next time!)
- Use a spoon to make small cookies on a pan, spaced out enough to be separate, but they don't expand, so no worries on that one. (They could be made in a muffin tin, or as larger cookies as well. My batter made 20, 1.5-2 inch diameter cookies.)
- Apply toppings as desired
- Bake for 15 minutes
The Calories:
The two bananas were each about 105 calories, so 210 total. 1 cup of oats is 150 calories. 1 tbsp of wheat germ is 25 calories. The base mixture has a total of 385 calories. Divided by 20, that makes each cookie about 19 calories. The amount of each topping I added was trivial enough to not matter, such as a single chocolate chip, or a drop of honey.
What went right:
The cookies are really good, and very healthy. I can see this batter being a very useful base for even a type of cake, or muffins! My family enjoys them very much; even my brother ate two. Within minutes, they were all gone. The coconut and the chocolate chip went over best. From start to finish, the whole process took about 30 minutes. Well worth it!
What went wrong:
The honey isn't the most fulfilling topping. It tastes good, but only in the one small spot. Oh well! Other than that, the cookies are way too addicting!!
What I would try next time:
This base batter comes with a world of possibilities! I would like to do it with fruit, peanut butter, pecans mixed in, mini chocolate chips mixed in, cocoa powder mixed in, toasted coconut mixed in, granola mixed in, butterscotch chips, or even pretzel pieces. I might also try a variety of extracts. Other than toppings, I might try baking the cookies in muffin sleeves for slightly less time, or making larger cookies. I might even use it as a pie crust, or bake a thinly spread pan into chips. Another possibility would be to freeze it in small truffles, and dip it in chocolate, butterscotch, or anything really that would harden around the batter.
Would I do this in college?:
100% Yes. The batter is super easy, very healthy, and has a high potential for variety. I think it would freeze and keep well, so I could make a large batch, and only bake as needed. It also tastes amazing. This is being added to the top of my no-guilt snack list!
Overall, the recipe was a HUGE success! I'm making another batch after dinner tonight.
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