Banana Oatmeal Cookies

submitted by Lisa

You know the over ripe banana's, sort of still hanging from the banana tree on the counter?  Well, mine were actually touching the counter, but their stems were still hangin'!  Time to use them.  I mashed them up, and was just about to turn them into bread....yet again....when I decided to search for a cookie recipe to use them in.

I found one I wanted to try at www.cookingchannel.com.  I added toasted coconut and butterscotch chips because that is what I had, and I think they might be one of my new favorite cookies!

Recipe slightly adjusted from the original : 

 Source: Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies www.cookingchannel.com 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup shortening
• 2 overripe bananas, mashed
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups rolled oats
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup toasted coconut 
• 1 cup butterscotch chips (about half a 12-ounce bag)

DIRECTIONS

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the sugar and shortening until light and fluffy. Mix in the bananas and egg and mix well, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Mix in the vanilla.

In a separate large mixing bowl, combine the rolled oats, flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg, and coconut. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. It will be a wet cookie dough. Stir in the butterscotch chips.

Using a 2 spoons or an ice cream scoop is a great way to portion cookies with wetter doughs like this one. Portion cookies out using overflowing tablespoonfuls on 2 ungreased cookie sheets, 12 cookies per sheet. Bake just until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. After 10 minutes, turn and swap the cookie sheets on each rack for even cooking. Cool on a wire rack.

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