whole wheat banana peanut butter bread

Fact: I love bananas.  Put that sucker on a piece of toast, in a protein shake, in candy...I'm happy.  Make bread out of it?  Make carbohydrates even more appealing?  Send it this way, please.

I may very well secretly hope that my bananas go bad so that I can turn them into banana bread.  Or at least, I wish this upon everyone else's.  Mine never make it that long in my house.  So when I found four overly-ripe bananas in my sister's house this week, I had a mission.  

I've been coveting certain recipes for a long time, and this was one.  Flour has some amazing recipes, and even though I hardly followed this, I definitely used it as a guide.  Of course I added a million more spices.  And of course I only used whole wheat flour.  But I also threw in some peanut butter.

What?  Peanut butter?

Come on, don't tell me you don't throw some of this on your banana slices and eat it standing up in your kitchen.

I think I've said too much.

Whole Wheat Banana Peanut Butter Bread

adapted slightly from Chef Joanne Chang of Flour Bakery

1 2/3 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2/3 cup canola oil
4 large very ripe bananas, mashed
2 tablespoons vanilla yogurt (I used Dannon Light & Fit)

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

for crumble:
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons whole wheat flour

1. Set oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two loaf pans and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, spices, and salt. 
3. In a large bowl, beat sugar and eggs with a whisk until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Gently pour in oil and mix until well combined. 
4. In a small bowl, mix together peanut butter, mashed bananas, yogurt, and vanilla and stir well to incorporate. Add to sugar and egg mixture.
5. Fold in dry ingredients, stirring in swift strokes ensuring not to overmix. Pour batter evenly among two pans.
6. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, flour, and oats. Slowly pour in butter and stir until mixture has the consistency of wet sand. Sprinkle evenly over two loaves.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour, until toothpick comes out clean from middle.

oatmeal chocolate chip cookies cups

I like following a schedule.  I am glued to my iPhone.  Google Calendar is like my right hand.  They even make refrigerators now with screens that have google in them so that you can keep your calendar, write notes, make grocery lists, and make your life infinitely better.  I don't know who makes it, but I will have this in my house.  Someday.

Sometimes routines are good.  Sometimes, you just cannot bake another. chocolate. chip. cookie.

So after my test batch of these oatmeal chocolate chip little fellas, I just couldn't do it.  I was bored.  So I whipped out my cupcake pan, filled them with fun little wrappers, and pressed that dough right in those things.  I wasn't sure they'd turn out well, but I was pleasantly surprised to yield this:

They're gooey, chewy, and the perfect portion.  Plus they're cute.  And that's all I ever want in my baked goods, anyways.  You know I love oatmeal, and these really aren't overly oat-y, but just add a nice chewy texture to an otherwise so-very-regular-it-makes-your-soul-die kind of cookie.

This is actually a recipe that I've been working on for a long time.  I saw shortening in a chocolate chip cookie recipe a while ago, (thanks, Chrissy!) and I was so intrigued.  I must have stared at this post for days before I tried it.  Shortening!  So bad it should be outlawed.  But it makes the softest, chewiest cookies.   My love for all things brown butter has found its match.  But I just can't choose.  Call me Sophie.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups

from yours truly

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, unsalted, softened

1/2 cup shortening

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for topping
1 cup old-fashioned oats
2 cups chocolate chips

1. Cream together butter, shortening, and sugars in large bowl until smooth.
2. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly between each addition.
3. Stir in vanilla.
4. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, and baking powder.  Add flour mixture to butter in three parts, mixing together until just incorporated each time.  Do not overmix.
5. Add oats and chocolate chips and mix to combine.
6. Let dough chill for about an hour (or up to 24) before preheating oven to 350 degrees.
7. Once chilled, line cupcake pans with liners and press about 1 1/2" ball of dough into cupcake mold, or enough to fill the entire cup. (Dough will not rise much.)  Lightly sprinkle tops of cookies with just a bit of kosher salt.
8. Bake for about 12-14 minutes until outer edges are golden brown and inside no longer looks shiny and doughy.