Banana Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
Hellooooo. How was the long weekend? Anyone else moving in slow motion this morning? 😉 How about a banana flour chocolate chip cookie to perk you up?
Behold, the latest and greatest on the gluten-free, dairy-free, Paleo-friendly front:
Banana Flour
. (<— got it for $13 on Amazon)
When I first heard about it, I was instantly intrigued since it’s fairly low in calories (100 per 1/4 cup compared to 160 in almond meal) and gives a hefty dose of potassium. And then I was like, “Ew. Bananas.”
Don’t get me wrong -I love bananas- but didn’t really want that flavor into everything I bake. The good news: there is no banana taste.
Pure magic, I tell you.
(Pretty carby and high in potassium. Not much else going on.)
More About Banana Flour
-You can use it for about 2/3 of what the recipe calls for in wheat flour recipes. From what I’ve read online, it’s best to mix it with other flours because of the high carb content and the fact that the recipe will yield and drier texture. The WEDO site has a lot of recipes if you’re looking for ideas. I figured I’d just play around with it a little and see what happens. It’s not like I haven’t had major flour disasters (ahem, coconut flour) in the past, so I had nothing to lose.
-There’s no need to add gums or additional ingredients to make it work. Just swap it out, and remember that less is more
-It’s a resistant starch, which can lower blood sugar levels, increase satiety and improve gut health
-There are over 5 lbs of dried green bananas in the 1 lb container.
-It’s made by peeling, drying and grinding green bananas into flour. The only ingredient is green bananas.
To put it to the test, I decided to make some chocolate chip cookies aka one of flour’s top jobs (at least in our house). If it works in chocolate chip cookies, it’s a baking friend of mine.
Banana Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
These gluten free chocolate chip cookies are super easy to make and a perfect use for banana flour. I’m always looking for new gluten-free flour options (bonus points if they have some nutrients) and can already tell that this will be a staple in our house.
I already have some ideas for how I could use it: pancakes, waffles, crepes, banana bread… the list goes on.
Banana Flour Verdict
-I really liked the taste. It has a nutty, buckwheat-ish flavor; it certainly tastes “healthy.” On the “super healthy” (aka things that taste like tree bark) scale I would rank it below hemp, but above almond meal. I also appreciated the fact that there was no banana flavor. Just a slightly earthy, neutral taste.
-The texture was a little dry, but that’s nothing some butter or coconut oil can’t fix.
Here’s the recipe if you’d like to give it a try!
Banana flour chocolate chip cookies
A grain-free recipe using banana flour, which is a resistant starch and packed with potassium. No banana taste!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 20
- Yield: 16 1x
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups banana flour
- 1/2 cup almond meal or oat flour (or any gluten free flour)
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 6 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar (you can also use brown sugar)
- 3/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a standard cookie sheet with nonstick spray or olive oil.
- 2. In a large bowl, whisk together banana flour, almond meal (or oat flour), salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Add the chocolate chips and whisk to combine.
- 3. In a separate small bowl, mix the butter, egg, coconut sugar and maple syrup.
- 4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to mix well.
- 5. Using a melon ball scooper, or a heaping spoonful, place the dough in round cookie shapes onto the baking sheet.
- 6. Bake for 10 minutes, and allow to remain on cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack to fully cool.
Have you tried banana flour?! What’s your favorite non-traditional baking ingredient? I really love almond meal, but this will be a fun way to switch things up. It’s also nut-free, for my friends with allergies out there.
Hope you have a wonderful morning!
xoxo
Gina
Workout of the day: This drop set circuit. It’s one of my favorite ways to change your strength training sets and fully fatigue the muscles for awesome results.
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I’ve been curious about this since I saw you posted it on Instagram! I’m not a big lover of bananas so it makes me happy it doesn’t have a banana-y flavor. Definitely will be ordering this for future recipe creating!
hope you love it, too!
Um, yum! I have never heard of banana flour before.
Sounds like my kind of flour to try! Especially with marathon training…my body wants all the carbs 🙂
How interesting! I’m going to try this.
I do have banana flour! I love using it to make protein pancakes but that’s the only thing I’ve tried. Excited to have another recipe to try! I think I’ll try adding a little coconut oil to the batter.
i think that’s a wise move. it’s a little drying 🙂
Banana flour?! This is the first time I’ve heard of it! I love experimenting with different types of flours- can’t wait to try this recipe!
Banana flour sounds like it would be amazing!
If I eat a lot of bread or other glutenous food I do feel a little bloated sometimes but I don’t feel ‘gluten sensitive’ enough to sub in almond flour or anything because of the high calories. The better solution for me is just to eat less bread, baked goods and pasta, not make them out of other stuff.
One odd ingredient I have is glucomannan powder which is from konjac root, the thing they make those calorie-free noodles from. I don’t want to eat any slimy noodles but I was intrigued by a very high fiber, low/no calorie supplement. I occasionally throw some in a smoothie or use it as a thickener. A little goes a lonnggg way.
i’ve always wondered about those noodles. interesting that you can buy the powder and add it to ingredients! i’ll be on the lookout for it 🙂 does it taste like anything?
This is pretty cheap, see link below. I think I paid $20 for this bottle a year or so ago. I don’t think it has flavor. I’ve mixed it with water and drank it, just as a fiber supplement. I’ve thickened pan sauces before with it. You can’t use much or it gets kind of gel-like. I have no idea how it’d do in baking but I bet someone in all those Amazon comments has said!
http://www.amazon.com/Foods-Glucomannan-100%25-Pure-Powder/dp/B005F9W9JQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1441750279&sr=8-1&keywords=glucomannan+powder
awesome. thank you!
I’m so gonna try this recipe! I haven’t had much success trying out new flour’s for the first time…so thanks for this post 🙂
hope you like it, too!
I’ve been using it for years now! It’s the best and always in my pantry!
what other recipes do you like? i’m excited to try it out in a few things!
PANCAKES! It’s essential to my weekend pancakes every Saturday and Sunday 😛 Also amazing in muffins! But always vegan for me. Vegan and gluten-free. I have a recipe for pancakes on my blog, but I have a new go-to with the flour that I’ll post soon 😉
k i will scour your blog for the pancake recipe 🙂
I’ve never heard of banana flour, but it sounds interesting! Almond flour is one of my faves 🙂
That actually looks delicious! I love “healthy” tasting chocolate chip cookies I think better than “sugary” real chocolate chip cookies–I don’t know–it gives it a more earthy/chocolately taste. I love it! I bet this recipe would be really good with peanut butter added or almond butter!
Ooh that looks fun! I’m celiac and I love to play around with different “flours.” I’ll have to give it a shot!
This sounds super interesting! Would it really be considered paleo though? I thought tropical fruits weren’t paleo?
i think it depends on your “paleo level.” a lot of my paleo friends still eat bananas and tropical fruit
That makes sense, I was just curious since I like definitions 😀
I can’t wait to try this! My son does not like baked goods with almond flour or coconut flour and he doesn’t like the taste a ripe banana gives baked goods. Hopefully I can make some good breakfast cookies or muffins with it. Thanks for the tips and recipe – and to introducing me to banana flour!
Love it!! Those cookies look delicious! Do you think I can try them with the almond meal from trader joes?
By the way, I’m REALLY enjoying your e-book, ‘Build Up Your Blog,’ it’s really helpful!
Cheers,
N
i’m not sure how it would work, since the banana flour is so drying. let me know if you try it!
so happy you’re enjoying the ebook too 🙂
xoxo
And I tried baking these, they turned out soft and crumbly. Its not bad at all and since I eat plantains (same family as bananas) regularly I could tell it has some of the flavor. But you are so right about it being below hemp and above almond meal on the super healthy tasting food scale.
I’m def going to try these. Not sure if there is a meijer near you, but I got my banana flour for 3$ there. Thanks again!
Any suggestions for an egg substitute? Looks great! It’s hard to find many recipes with banana flour.
what about a flax egg?
After posting my comment/ question, I noticed that you mentioned flax eggs just above my comment! Have you tried this recipe that way?
i haven’t in this recipe but have with other pancakes and it works very well!
These are right up there on my Top 10 most delicious recipes! I bake with almond flour a lot, often replacing real eggs with flax eggs – have you per chance tried this recipe with vegan egg replacement? Stuck to your recipe and used a real egg (changing sweetener to 1/2 cup maple syrup, 1/2 cup coconut sugar – and added some chopped pecans). CRAZY DELICIOUS! Have already shared the recipe, and plan to bake more to send to my daughter who is still largely in lockdown at college. Thanks a million for the recipe!
happy to hear you liked the recipe!
Thanks for sharing. Is there a problem making this recipe sugar free? One of these “healthy” cookies would send me into diabetic shock. 2 stars because you never promised me a sugar free recipe + 2 more for a good story.
Lauri
So I tried the recipe and actually really like it.
I will say the first batch was dry and crumbly so… I added some milk and the second batch was perfect.
I also added 1 Tablespoon of gelled psylium husk powder to act as a binding agent. I’ve been experimenting with non gluten bread recipes and I had some in a glass…. so what the heck. it seemed to help.
I love the flavor and the fact that when you eat these cookies you fill up fast. So they are a treat and not a temptation.
I used oat flour and ran short so I added a few Tablespoons of almond flour to make up for the recipe.
Thank you for posting.
Could monk fruit be substituted for maple syrup?
yes! you may just need to add a little more liquid, like almond milk to get the right texture