Besides banana bread, what do you do with the overripe bananas sitting on your counter? I’ve found the answer – banana cookies! These Soft Banana Cookies will quickly become one of your go-to ripe banana recipes.
What You’ll Need
Besides maybe the bananas, I’d be willing to bet you have most if not all of the ingredients needed to make these banana cookies. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Ripe – Overripe Banana- There is a tipping point at which brown bananas go from giving a good amount of natural sugar and banana flavor to going bad. You are looking for one that has some brown spots and is soft when pressed. If it is totally brown and mushy, it’s past its prime.
- All purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Fine sea salt
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground nutmeg
- Unsalted butter
- Sugar
- Light brown sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Cinnamon sugar
Make them Your Own
Making your own twists on these chewy banana cookies is easy. Here are a few ideas. We’ve love to hear what your did and how they turned out in the comments sections!
- Banana Nut Cookies– Like banana nut bread, add 2 tablespoons of chopped walnuts or pecans to the cookie dough.
- Peanut Butter Banana Cookies– Stir 1 tablespoon of peanut butter into the batter along with the butter and sugars or use a peanut butter frosting to top them off.
- Chocolate Banana Cookies– Stir in 1/2 cup of milk chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips to the cookie dough or top with a dollop of chocolate buttercream frosting.
- Swap the flavors– Try swapping vanilla extract for almond or rum extract for a fun, new flavor combo.
- Ice Cream Cookies Sandwiches– Sandwich two cookies together with vanilla, chocolate or peanut butter ice cream in the middle. Don’t store for too long in the fridge because the cookies will get too hard to bite.
How to Ripen Bananas Fast
If you don’t have bananas ripe enough to make these banana cookies, try these tips to ripen them quickly.
- Microwave– The quickest way, but least likely to produce super sweet results. Nuke it for 30 seconds to one minute. Basically, you are cooking it and allowing the sugars to release a little before you put it into the recipe.
- Oven- the same concept as the microwave. Heat to 350 degrees and bake for 5-30 minutes.
- Brown Paper Bag – My mother used this technique, but it still takes about a day. Place your bananas in a brown paper bag and roll it closed. Ethylene will build up and speed up the ripening process.
- Tropical Environment – Everything ages faster in the heat. Place your bananas someplace warm, like in a sunny window. It will still take up to a day, depending on how ripe the banana was to begin with.
- Single them out – lastly, pull your bananas apart. They ripen much faster separated than they do still hooked together.
Banana Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
Cookie Dough Recipe:
- 3 3/4 cups flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 cup unsalted butter , room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup ripe banana* , mashed
- 1 large egg , room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Sugar Cookie Topping:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the 3 3/4 cups flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the 1 cup unsalted butter, s1 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup light brown sugar. When blended, light and creamy, add the 1 large egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and mashed 1 cup ripe banana* .
- Gradually add the dry mixture to wet until fully combined.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.
- After the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a small bowl, stir together the 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon.
- With clean hands, roll the dough into 1 1/2 inch balls. Dough might be sticky and not roll well, have no fear, just plop it into the sugar and coat.
- Place onto a parchment paper or silicone mat lined cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes or until cookie tops start to crack. Do not wait until cookies brown, they will be overdone.
- Allow the cookies to cool on cookie sheet for at least 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a cooling rack using a spatula.
- If you've tried this recipe, please come back and leave a comment to let us know how it went and if you made any modifications!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Storage and Freezing
Cookies are great for making ahead and bringing to parties and potlucks, But just like any cookie, they are best enjoyed within 1-2 days of baking. Store at room temperature in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. To keep cookies super moist, place a slice or two of fresh bread in the bag.
You sure can! In fact, I suggest it. Store in an airtight container or freezer bag, and you can take just one out anytime you’d like!
Recipe FAQs
Bananas can vary greatly in size and volume, but in general, 2 medium bananas make up approximately 1 cup.
Soft cookies come from making the sure the cookie dough it the correct temperature specified and that they cook until just lightly browned, or even a hair before. Store in an airtight container to preserve the moisture.
There is a line between overly ripe bananas, which are browned, but allowed the natural sugars to develop and turn sweet, and just plain rotting fruit. Ripe bananas will be brown, but smell sweet, while rotting bananas will have a putrid scent.
More Delicious Banana Recipes
I love adding banana to recipes whether that be dessert or breakfast. Here are some of my favorites.
Excellent way to use up my banana supply. Thank you!
Love the texture and flavor of these! And very happy to have an alternative to banana bread for my over-ripe bananas!
These banana cookies turned out perfect! They were so soft and chewy and really easy to make. I always get tired of making banana bread so these cookies are definitely my new go-to for those old ripe bananas!
Easy to make, simple ingredients. Tastes so good
Thank you, Lydia!
Had soooooo many bananas in the freezer. Banana bread, muffins, and now cookies. These were amazing and everyone loved them. Will definitely use this recipe again.
Woohoo! Thanks for coming back to let us know!
This was a big hit in my household and i made it again using half baking flour & half coconut flour and an addition egg because of coconut flour. It was just as good, it is was fluffier and healthier. I will do with trivia next.
Yay! And thanks so much for coming back to let us know!
Very good but next time i will cut down on the sugar by 1/4c. We added 1/2c mini chocolate chips and 1/2c chopped pecans. Yum
Thanks for the feedback!
Great tasty cookies but very sweet, could use less sugar. I used coconut sugar to roll them. I will make again with less sugar. Oh I also made them gluten free.
Thanks for the feedback!
These were delicious and so addictive! Soft and fluffy on the inside with a nice crunch on the outside from the cinnamon sugar coating. A very tasty way to use overripe bananas! I added 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips to mine- so yummy!
Yay! So glad you loved them and thank you for coming back to let us know.
A very tasty alternative to making banana bread! I added chocolate chips to mine and they came out great! They were soft and puffy on the inside and crispy around the edges. The cinnamon sugar on top gave them a nice crunch!
Love the addition of chocolate chips!
These are delicious!!! Loved the flavor and texture, thick and chewy, awesome recipe that comes out perfectly each time!
Yay! That is what we like to hear. Thank you for taking the time to come let us know.