Recipe Makeover Part 2

Last night I posted about how I was working on giving Martha's Banana-Walnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies a healthy makeover. I am happy to report that the makeover was a success and the healthier version is absolutely delicious, so I am back to share the adapted recipe. As I mentioned in my last post, the biggest changes I made to the recipe were to replace all the butter in the recipe for unsweetened applesauce, up the amount of whole wheat flour, and add a heaping teaspoon of cinnamon for more flavor. Texturally the resulting cookie was much softer and more cake-like than the original cookie. I actually found the new texture extremely satisfying and a perfect change as I was aiming to create a treat ideal for breakfast.

I am interested in trying a few more changes with these cookies. Next time I think I will reduce the amount of chocolate chips in the recipe and replace them with more walnuts for added texture. For those who enjoy raisins (I am not among the raisin fans of the world), you could also replace the chocolate chips with raisins for an even healthier cookie. I'm also curious about possibly adding some whole or ground flax seeds to the cookie for some omega-3 goodness. Cookies are very forgiving, so I'm sure you could play around with additions or replacements to your heart's content.

I wrapped my cookies tightly, 2 at a time, in plastic wrap and placed them inside a Rubbermaid container to store in the freezer. Portioning them and freezing them makes for a quick breakfast or snack. Simply grab a few cookies from the freezer and let them defrost at room temperature or warm them in the microwave for 10-20 seconds, until warm and the chocolate chips are nice and gooey. Yum!

Banana-Walnut Oatmeal Chip Breakfast Cookies
adapted from Martha Stewart
makes about 30 cookies

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 heaping teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce (2 individual Mott's applesauce containers)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup (1 large) mashed ripe banana
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375 degree. Whisk together flours, salt, baking soda and cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside. Put applesauce and sugars into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until fully combined. Reduce speed to low. Add egg and vanilla, mix until incorporated. Thoroughly mix in mashed banana. Add flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Stir in oats, chocolate chips, and walnuts.

Using a 1 1/2-inch cookie scoop (I used this scoop), drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, rotating the sheets halfway through, until golden brown and just set, 12 to 14 minutes (mine took 14). Let cool on sheets 5 minutes then transfer them to wire racks to finish cooling. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container up to 2 days or can be tightly wrapped and frozen for up to 2 weeks.


I thought I'd share a few new (old) additions to my kitchen. I found two darling vintage daisy canisters and a set of eight fantastic mugs while doing some thrift shopping this past weekend with a friend. I also picked up a set of three white lotus bowls which I have been dying to have! You can see a peak of one of them next to the daisy canister.

As you can see, I am currently using the smaller canister to hold packets of sweetener. The larger is being used as a vase. They will probably end up in my studio holding thread or other sewing snippets.

I am crazy about the colors in these printed mugs. The set of eight had two different prints in these same colors, the bird print you see here and a cute print with little houses. I'll share a photo of the other print soon.

I've been keeping fresh flowers around the house frequently since Christmas. I bought these flowers on Sunday to brighten up the kitchen. The bouquet is such a springy color palette, soft purples and greens with a hint of yellow and pink.