A fantastic 1940s recipe to use up extra bananas

Bananas are a fantastic fruit. Not only do they contain various important vitamins and nutrients (potassium, magnesium, B6, vitamin C, etc) and boast an universally appealing sweet taste, but they can be put to use in a myriad of different recipes.

Sometimes however - especially if, like at our house, you routinely find yourself with several bananas that are threatening to turn overly mushy at any moment - you may find yourself wanting to take a break from the standard banana bread, muffin, smoothie, and cream pie repertoire. When such a mood strikes, one of my favourite ways to use up an abundance of this delicious yellow fruit is to make banana cookies.

A hit with crowds of all ages, banana cookies are (generally) soft, flavourful, and a snap to toss together. They freeze (and defrost) well, in my experience, and can also be a great alternative to chocolate and nut based cookies, if you're cooking for someone with food allergies to such ingredients.

Today's vintage Banana Drop Cookie recipe hails 1941 and employees a handful of fridge and store cupboard staples that most of us have at the ready (much like bananas themselves) all the time. Not only is the recipe itself terrific, but the charmingly adorable illustrations make this page one to print out and smile over time and time again.

 

{Tasty, speedy, and economical, this vintage banana cookie recipe is fun classic that will never go out of style. Image via curly-wurly on Flickr.}

These drop cookies are terrific as is, however you can also jazz them up further by including ingredients such as coconut (which with the banana backdrop instantly gives them a terrific tropical vibe), dried cranberries, blueberries, cherries, mango, or raisins; chocolate chips, banana chips (double banana cookies!), crushed pretzels, or butterscotch chips. You could also drizzle a little vanilla frosting, melted chocolate, or caramel over them once they've cooked and cooled.

So the next time you're wondering what to do with those soon-to-expire bananas and want a change of pace, take a page from the 1940s and whip up a batch of these thoroughly yummy drop cookies.