banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

these are some tasty cookies. and they’re healthy(er) too. double whammy!

cast of characters: dark brown sugar, flour (um, hard to see in a plastic container), cinnamon, vanilla extract, quick oats, banana, egg (white), butter, chocolate chips, baking soda, salt

let’s begin.

whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. mix in oats and chocolate chips.

(the ghiradelli chocolate chips i “splurged” on are delightful. larger than other brands.)

mix egg white, butter and sugar until smooth. add the banana and vanilla and mix until smooth (no need to mash the banana, just put it in the bowl in a couple chunks and the mixer will do the rest).

(the banana smell is amazing)

pour your wet mix into your dry and mix with a spatula/spoon until incorporated.

drop batter onto greased baking sheets, about the size of a walnut. flatten them slightly with the back of a wet spoon  to make 2-inch cookies (i’m not sure why. just do it).

bake until golden brown and almost firm in the center when pressed with a finger. transfer cookies to a baking rack and cool. dig in. eat two, or three, or four…because they’re healthy.

banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies
makes approx. 24

3/4 cup unbleached flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 large egg white
3 tablespoons butter, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 banana
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. set baking racks in top and lower thirds of the oven. preheat oven to 400 degrees. coat 2 cookie sheets with spray.

2.whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a mixing bowl. mix in oats and chocolate chips.

3. on medium speed, mix egg white, butter and sugar until smooth. blend in banana and vanilla until smooth.

4. pour banana mixture into bowl with dry ingredients, mixing with spatula until well combined.

5. drop batter by walnut-size spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets, spacing cookies at least 2 inches apart. flatten them slightly with the back of a wet spoon, wetting spoon frequently between cookies, to make 2-inch cookies.

6. bake 10 minutes. switch position of pans in oven. bake an additional 5 to 8 minutes or until cookies are golden brown and almost firm in the center when pressed with a finger. transfer cookies to a baking rack and cool.

you might want to make a double batch of these if you plan on sharing. that’s what i did, and they were enjoyed by all (with enough to go around!).

let me know if you enjoy these!

{justine}

weekend recap: egg-citement

i hope you had a great weekend. mine was quite busy – lots of egg-citement if i do say so (i’m really not that cheesy, but i had to. ok, maybe i am. sometimes). i took a lot of pics, so i’ll let them mainly speak for themselves…

we went out for dinner, drinks and some bowling friday night.

{holly didn’t have socks…so we made her some}

{old school score keeping}

{blurry but cute}

{i’m sure the scores are quite wrong…but i am proud of my two strikes}

saturday i finally bought myself some cake pans, and made a lovely cake for sunday – that i completely forgot in my fridge {insert near tears, some swears, and blaming ryan for rushing me while leaving}. fail. that night we celebrated brooke’s big birthday with a party and some comedy – we saw the cupid players at the io theater (highly recommend).

{smitten kitchen’s best birthday cake}

{homemade strawberry whipped cream filling}

(and then i frosted it with my favorite lemonade frosting, but neglected to take a photo of the finished product, since my topping decoration idea failed, and then i was going to pipe frosting decorations at my parent’s house on easter…and then, you know, i forgot the cake).

(topping idea? sugar bird’s nest, with my favorite cadbury mini eggs and a peep. cute, right? i tried twice, and then gave up.)

{fail}

(this? is not a birds nest}

i brought the cake to work on monday, so it wasn’t a total waste. i think they enjoyed it:

{the remains}

{fritz enjoyed the pbr pint jars at io}

and then it was easter. we went over to my parent’s house, feasted on great food and had a great time.

{zoe, beck’s sister}

{the grillmaster}

{aunt joann & uncle jim}

{uncle jim’s painted toes}

(so you can’t see it very well. but they were painted. and pink. and i said i would put his painted toes on the internets. so i did.)

(he indulges his granddaughter)

(and likes it)

{lemon bars i whipped up to replace my forgotten cake}

{mom’s delish caramel heath cake}

{post dinner walk}

whew. busy busy. and now i’m tired tired. how was your weekend?

{justine}

some friday nonsense

so it’s friday afternoon (good friday – wishing i had off) and i’ve needed a stiff drink for at least a couple hours now. it’s been quite the day week. since i’m still at work and can’t indulge just yet, i took a breather to find an infomercial i recently saw that is so ridiculous it eases my stress (a little) – and i just wanted to share.  because it’s friday. and in case you haven’t had the privilege of seeing what one of the great minds of this world invented.

because stirring is just. too. much.

i hope you have a wonderful weekend!

{justine}

for the love of chevron

chevron (aka zigzags) is hot. and i like love it. it’s been popping up everywhere, from rugs…

{via}

{via jonathan adler}

to couches…

{via houzz}

to furniture…

{via design*sponge}

to floors…

{via}

(do they even make floors like that anymore? i think not. the travesty!)

to walls…

to drapes…

{via}

to art…

{via}

to throws…

{via jonathan adler}

to pillows….

{via made}

and the list goes on and on and on as chevron is so versatile – it comes in many colors and forms, lends itself well to diy and it pairs well with other prints.

my chevron collection (as of now) is limited to a pillow i sewed using fabric ordered from tonic living. my favorite model likes to use the pillow as a headrest…or a bed, as the couch itself is just not enough for him (not to mention his own bed…or the floor).

do you like chevron? have any of it in your home? i’d love to see it!

{justine}