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OK, so if you've been following my blog, you know that I am absolutely bananas over bananas (pun intended), and that my mind is over ripe (again, pun intended) with ideas when it comes to baking. I could stand at the kitchen counter all day and imagine little bits of different recipes and how I could mash them (yeah.. I could keep going for ever) into one fantastic recipe. 

Peanuts and tree nuts have no place in our home. When I set out to make those banana chewies, my intention was to make a banana cookie that tasted like banana with a hint of peanut butter, kind of like a peanut butter and banana sandwich, only without peanuts or nuts of course. I use soynut butter in place of peanut butter for recipes that call for it. However, I had some Sunbutter (sunflower seed butter) samples lying around and I decided to give them a try. But I was slightly disappointed when the cookies came out of the oven. For starters, they looked uncooked even though they were in fact cooked all the way through. They just had this shiny doughy look. Also, they did not taste very banana-ey or peanutty for that matter. It just felt like a piece of under sweetened plain bread. I thought to myself, another flopper, but I resisted the urge to dump the entire batch in the garbage. I gave in to the little voice in my head that said "let's wait and see what they taste like the next day" (because sometimes - and it's that kind of wishful thinking that gets me in trouble often - that's what you do when you try a recipe that flops so hard it knocks your head sideways). In this case, however, I was glad I listened to the little voice, though I probably should not listen to it's other suggestions like shooting the neighbour's dog, who can't stop barking at her own tail day and night.

Moving on... those banana walnut chewies are incredible the next day. Seriously, I could not call them by any another name. In fact, I'm going to recommend that you don't even taste them the first day; just store them in a box and stash them for 24 hours. There is a complete turn around in flavour - absolute, other end of the scale, 180 degrees different, kind of turn around.  Those little darlings are completely dairy, egg and nut free. However, that nuttiness, especially walnuts, shines through in those gems. Today, I offered one to my little girl (who swiftly turned her nose at them yesterday) and she gobbled it up before I could blink, then asked for another. That prompted me to plop one in my mouth. Yes, I'm well aware that I'm supposed to be watching my weight and all, but hey, I had no choice. It is my obligation and duty to my fellow allergy moms to taste the evidence and analyze it... yes, I'm very giving that way. If I could afford it I would hire an entire forensic team but for now I'll settle for the neighbours and their families. Anyway, where was I... yes, so I plopped one in my mouth and oh my god, WHAT is that? Walnuts!? It must be the Sunbutter. Each cookie literally tastes like a bite of grandma's sweet banana bread, the kind filled with bits of chopped walnuts, only mine don't have any walnuts in them. Although they have a very unassuming look to them, I'm sure those cookies would be pure bliss to banana and walnut lovers everywhere. They are that good, people. In fact, upon tasting the first cookie, I grabbed the second one before I even downed the first bite. Then I had to close the box and quickly exit the premises before it was too late. It was the only way to prevent myself from wolfing down the entire container. The cookies have a cakey but chewy texture. Describing them doesn't do them justice. You really have to try those cookies for yourself, particularly if you are a banana bread lover like myself. In fact, I might just stop making banana bread altogether and stick with those little babies.

Oh and best of all, they are so low in sugar and fat that it's a sin NOT to eat one (though I'm sure eating 6 of them, as opposed to just one, cancels any low fat intentions I might have had).

Dairy, Egg, & Nut Free Banana "Walnut" Chewies
Yields 3 and a half dozen cookies

2 Tbsp canola oil
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar firmly packed
2 Tbsp soy milk or rice milk
1/2 sunbutter (or any sunflower seed butter)
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 ripe bananas, mashed
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup pastry flour or whole wheat flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

In a large bowl, combine oil and sugars. Beat until smooth. Add soy milk and mix until combined. Add sunbutter, honey and vanilla. Beat until well combined. Add the mashed bananas and mix until creamy.

In a separate bowl, combine the flours, wheat germ, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix gently until well blended, but do not over mix. Chill dough for 20 minutes.

Using a small cookie scooper, drop mounds of dough onto prepared pans. Wet fingers and flatten them slightly. Bake for about 5-8 minutes, until bottoms are golden brown. Remove and let cool on a wire rack. Store in tightly sealed container and serve the next day.

Note: In this recipe I specify sunbutter because it really helps give it that distinctive "walnut" nutty flavour. Soy nut butter will work too and the texture will not change but the flavour may be altered slightly.

Nutritional Info (per cookie)
Calories 77.31, Total Fat 2g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 33.83mg, Potassium 45.23mg, Total Carbohydrates 13.15g, Fiber 0.84g, Sugar 5.27g, Protein 1.88g

Nutrition analysis is approximate and will vary depending on exact ingredients used. Calculations are based on the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for a 2000 calorie diet. Nutritional Facts are obtained from Radium Technologies' Living Cookbook. However, Allergymom.ca has no affiliation with Radium Technologies and does not guarantee the accuracy of this information.
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