Banana Oatmeal Cookie Time!
These cookies are mom-sympathy cookies, a nom nom nosh that manifested out of my care for the mental status of our two children. You see, my kids are like other kids in that they do get excited for school to be done for the summer, however, when school gets out the fun really does begin. We live on a farm, so all sorts of projects are lined up to be completed.
So, while other kids are sleeping in, watching Markiplier on Youtube, or eating a mixing bowl full of marshmallow breakfast cereal, ours are out pounding t-posts or drilling post holes in the ground with the 3-point post hole digger. Summer chores also include 4-H animal training, and now, thanks to my crazy family's desire to acquire more animals, we have puppy training as well. It's like having two toddlers that you can put in a cage for a nap. Fun times...
Anyway, I was cleaning the house and mopping the floor, when I thought I would go out and check on the kids. My husband was sitting in his man room in the barn reloading all manner of ammo, his form on knowledge application standby for the two heathens, for my kids were hard at work building an outside pen for their two 4-H pigs.
Both of the pigs have a nice pen in the barn, a 12X30 concrete pigtopia of swine-happiness. They have a huge nest of straw, a heat lamp for cold nights, an on demand water nipple for fresh aqua, and all of the food they can eat. Now that they are big enough for a small pig roast it is time to let them out and about. Outside pig time requires an outside pen, and that was what my two kiddos spent all morning doing, driving t-posts, wiring panels, and installing electric fence for the piglets.
It was when I went out to check on them that I decided they needed an extra special treat. Their sweaty faces needed a smile put on them, and I had a bunch of these on the counter:
I also had just cracked open a 3 gallon bucket of quick oats a couple of days ago. It seemed only logical to concoct a pile of oatmeal banana cookies. I probably would have put chocolate chips in them too, but that would have required a trip to the store and I just wasn't feeling it. Probably because in a couple of hours I have to wander the countryside and pick up a herd of teens to take to a beef clinic this evening. Yep, that's most definitely why!
Anyway, I began my cookie making journey by skinning the overripe bananas alive. Poor things, they just didn't have a chance....
I then smashed the bananas and threw them into my Kitchen Aid stand mixer's mixing bowl with some creamed butter, sugar, almond extract, and an egg.
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Next I plunked some flour, baking soda, cornstarch, nutmeg, and cloves into the bowl. I even fresh ground the cloves because some thoughtful person left my tin of whole cloves on the counter, and by left, I mean didn't put away....GRRR!
You might notice that I added cornstarch to the cookie recipe. Here lately I have been adding cornstarch to my drop cookies, it gives cookies a nice chewy texture that I have been digging. You should try it, anywhere from 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons can be added to most cookie recipes and textural amazingness will occur!
After mixing in the dry ingredients I stirred in the oats. You could probably use old fashioned oats instead of quick oats, but I didn't feel like going to the larder and digging out those particular oats. In this cookie constructing instance they truly were the quick oats in more ways that one!
Since this cookie dough is a bit sticky, I decided to bake the cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet. I got out my restaurant sized cookie sheet and put some parchment paper on it. I'll have you all know that I truly do love ya'll, for I even got out my kitchen shears and trimmed up the parchment paper so it would look all pretty for the pictures. Not a step that I usually engage in, let me tell yah!
Then I dropped rounded Tablespoons of dough onto the paper and pressed each plopped bit of dough a bit with the back of the spoon I was using to disperse the dough. I popped the cookies into the oven for 12 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit and I must admit that the little bits of yum smelled divine as they cooked! After I took the cookies out and cooled them for a bit I took them to my quality control crew for assessment. By this time the kids had finished their pig pen construction and were in the middle of a Magic The Gathering game with the neighbor kids out in our school room. Judging by how the plate of cookies disappeared I have concluded two things: either the kids are learning actual magic or those cookies tasted pretty delectable.
A short while later my husband proclaimed that, "Those cookies are horrible, you shouldn't let anyone but me eat them." Now I know they are good.
Honestly, I wish I was on a sugar day, because they really do smell and look amazing. I'm just glad my what's in the kitchen cookies turned out so well and put smiles on the faces of my hardworking crew. Don't tell anyone, but they really did deserve them!😊
Banana Oatmeal Cookies
3/4 cup salted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon almond extract (or vanilla)
1 cup mashed bananas (about three large bananas)
1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups quick oatsMix butter, brown sugar, sugar, egg, almond extract, and mashed bananas together until well combined.
Add flour, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cornstarch, and baking soda. Mix until combined.
Stir in oats.
Place Tablespoons of dough on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Flatten dough rounds slightly with back of >spoon.
Bake for 10-12 minutes in a preheated 350 degree Fahrenheit oven
Remove from oven, cool for a few minutes, and ENJOY!
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