Vegan Banana Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Chips

While on the phone with my sister the other day, she told me about this wonderful concoction that she made for breakfast.  Into her regular oatmeal, she mixed some banana and chocolate chips.  I suddenly got very quiet on my end of the phone.  After a few seconds, I proclaimed, "I can make that into a cookie!"  

The recipe has very little sugar or fat.  It is mostly held together with the bananas which keep the cookies quite moist.

Ingredients

3 mashed bananas (approximately 1 ¼ cup)

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons water

1/4 cup shortening (Crisco)

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/2 cup rolled oats (old fashioned or quick oats)

1 cup vegan chocolate chips

 

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine the mashed bananas, vanilla, and water.  Incorporate the shortening to the banana mixture.
3. Slowly incorporate the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon until blended. 
4. Stir in the oats, followed by chocolate chips.
5. Rest the mixture for about 10 minutes to allow the rolled oats to soften.  If you are using quick oats, you can skip this step.
6. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto greased cookie sheets. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

 Makes approximately 18 medium-sized cookies.

Gluten-free, Vegan Strawberry Preserve Filled Banana Cupcake Recipe

My vegan strawberry preserve filled banana cupcake recipe was so popular that I decided to make a gluten-free version.  For a first attempt at gluten-free baking, this turned out splendidly. 

Ingredients

4 ripe bananas

1/3 cup coconut oil, warmed until liquid

3/4 cup demerara or raw sugar

1/4 cup rice milk

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cup quinoa flour*

Approximately 1/3 cup of strawberry preserves

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a muffin pan with 12 paper baking cups

Toss the bananas into a mixing bowl and mash them with a mixer.  Add the sugar and oil and mix well. Incorporate the rice milk, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract.

Add the baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Mix well.  Add flour, taking care not to overmix.

Portion out the batter into the pre-lined muffin pan, filling each cup only one-quarter of the way full.

Scoop a spoonful of strawberry preserves into the center of each cupcake and fill the cups with the remaining batter.

Bake for 22-24 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out (relatively) clean.

I topped these delicious cupcakes with my own peanut butter frosting.  The recipe can be found here.




*Quinoa flour is an interesting beast.  It has a distinctly grassy flavor.  I have read that baking it at a low temperature for a couple of hours will help to get rid of the grassy taste.  Since this was my first time using quinoa flour, I decided not to bake it so I could see what it tastes like.  The taste didn't bother me for this recipe, but I can see how it might be unpleasant in other recipes.  I'll continue to experiment and keep you updated.


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Vegan Strawberry Preserve Filled Banana Cupcake Recipe

The name says it all.  It's a bit like a peanut butter, banana, and jelly sandwich, but it's a cupcake!

Ingredients

4 ripe bananas

1/3 cup coconut oil, warmed until liquid

3/4 cup demerara or raw sugar

1/4 cup rice milk

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

Approximately 1/3 cup of strawberry preserves

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a muffin pan with 12 paper baking cups

Toss the bananas into a mixing bowl and mash them with a mixer.  Add the sugar and oil and mix well. Incorporate the rice milk, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract. 

Add the baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Mix well.  Add the flours, taking care not to overmix.

Portion out the batter into the pre-lined muffin pan, filling each cup only one-quarter of the way full.

Scoop a spoonful of strawberry preserves into the center of each cupcake and fill the cups with the remaining batter.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out (relatively) clean.

I topped these delicious cupcakes with my own peanut butter frosting.  The recipe can be found here.