CHUNKY MONKEY COOKIES
It's always nice to have a little treat every so often, even when you are trying to be healthy.
These cookies are the perfect healthy treat as they are packed full of healthy whole-foods. Although they are not calorie free, so don't eat a whole plate at once, as tempting as that may be!
These cookies were inspired by a chunky dark chocolate cantuccini that I always ordered at my favourite deli back in Glasgow.
If you don't know what cantuccini are, they are an Italian almond biscotti. They are extra crunchy biscuits that are made by double baking. Firstly you bake the dough in a log shape, then you take them out the oven, leave them cool a little. Then you slice the log and re-bake them until super crunchy.
I think they are designed to have with coffee as they are very crunchy you need to dip them into your coffee to soften them a little.
For my cookie recipe, you don't need to bake them twice but I bake them longer than a traditional chewy cookie to make them extra crunchy.
For now though, here is the recipe for my chunky monkey cookies. You might be wondering why I they are called chunky MONKEY cookies..... because the sweetness of these cookies mainly comes from banana.
INGREDIENTS
(makes approx. 16 small cookies)
1 banana (mashed)
1 tbsp almond butter (or other nut butter)
1 tbsp honey
1 cup oats
1 cup of a mix of chopped nuts, dark chocolate & dried figs. (you can use whatever your favourite dry ingredients here. Get creative!)
50g flour (I used wholemeal)
pinch of himalayan pink salt
METHOD
(Preheat oven to 180˙C)
1. MASH the banana into a large mixing bowl.
2. MIX in the almond butter and honey until well combined.
3. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix until a chunky dough forms. The nuts and dried fruits etc. that you have added might not stick right into the dough but thats fine. You can stick them on top of your cookie dough before you bake them.
4. Take small handfuls of dough and roll into balls.
5. Place each ball onto a lined baking tray and then squish down with your hands or with the back of a fork.
6. Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden brown on top.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! Leave a comment if you try it out!
Lots of love,
Reenie xo