Banana Bread Cookie with Plantain Chips & Blonde Chocolate (My Two-Year Journey to Getting It Right)

claudine bonsu
2 days ago
3 min read

Now we are all impartial to a bit of banana bread, and it's been one of those flavours I’ve been trying to crack for almost two years. Every version I tested felt slightly off - either too dense, too cakey, and it was one of the few times I gave up on making a cookie.

Then a few weeks ago, I had a friend request to make a banana bread cookie. I was definitely hesitant, but it was the push I needed to revisit it properly. This time, I approached it differently, I researched, tested and eventually made something that i couldn't love more.

This cookie started with the goal of capturing the warmth of banana bread in a structured cookie format - so of course, we're starting off with brown butter for a deep, nutty base and we are using only an egg yolk, to make sure the cookie doesn't come out too soft or cakey. Blonde chocolate was added to bring caramelised sweetness and subtle cinnamon-like warmth, helping to round out the banana bread profile and tie everything together. As someone who does not believe nuts should be in any dessert (except peanut butter), I felt the cookie was missing a textural element, so I introduced plantain chips for contrast. They add a crisp, crunch that cuts through the sweetness, and brings texture to every bite, transforming the cookie into something more layered and unexpected. The finished cookie brings together all the elements of banana bread: the richness of brown butter, the caramel depth of blonde chocolate, and the crunch of plantain chips, the perfect twit on a fan favourite bake.

Recipe

Yields 6-7 120g cookies (adjust as needed)

Important Note: This recipe uses the pan-banging method, allowing for crisp edges but a softer centered cookie.

Ingredients

Cookie Dough

110g salted butter browned
70g light brown sugar
50g granulated sugar
1 tsp apple cider vinegar (ACV) or lemon juice
1 large egg yolk
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
80g of a very ripe banana ( well mashed)
200g plain/all-purpose flour
1 tsp vanilla bean extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
a bag of plantain chips
80g of blonde chocolate - I use caramilk

Instructions:

Melt the butter over medium heat until the milk solids turn gold brown and foamy. ( Once you hear the butter stop bubbling its time to take it off). Once off the heat, let it cool before popping into the freezer for 15-20 mins. When taken out, whisk the butter using a fork, to form a more firm butter mixture. ( this happens due to the coldness of the bowl from the freezer) Tip: check my recipe for Rich Tea & Earl Grey cookies for a more in depth browned butter tutorial
In a large bowl, cream together the brown butter with the sugars.
Add in the egg yolk, vanilla extract and ACV, until well combined.
Add your well mashed banana into the mixture and fold in until well combined.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and bicarbonate of soda, and your spices until fully incorporated, then add your chopped up blonde chocolate
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, stirring until just combined. Avoid over mixing to keep the cookies tender. ( hands are always the best for small batches!)
Scoop your cookie dough to 110g sized balls
In a bowl, crush your plantain chips crisps to medium- small crumbs, you want them big enough to still give some texture. Coat your cookie dough into crushed chips.
Chill the dough: Cover and refrigerate the dough minimum of 4 hours (this is a wetter dough mixture, so the longer chill time will help the flour absorb some of this and maximise flavours)

Baking

Oven temperature: Preheat your oven to 356°F (175°C)
Baking time: Place your cookie dough balls ( about 3-4 each tray) Bake for at a total of 18 minutes. At 6 minutes, take your cookies out and tap your baking tray a 3-4 times on a kitchen surface. Do this again at the 9th, 12th and 15th minute mark . The chip coating will golden and a little soft, with the edges crispy. (they will finish cooking on the baking sheet)
Let cookies cool completely on the baking sheet before transferring to a rack or an airtight container.