Brown Sugar Banana Cookies with Rye

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Thin and chewy brown sugar cookies filled with sweet banana and nutty rye flour and rolled in crunchy sugar.

I realize, as I am writing this blog post, that the past few new recipes over here have been very banana-centric. This was not planned, so I apologize for the banana overload, but when you’ve got good recipes, you share them regardless of the ingredient overlap. If you’re like me, you always have ripe bananas hanging out so you can never have too many banana baking options.

I started brainstorming this recipe a couple of weeks ago with a very specific cookie in mind. My favorite part of any loaf of banana bread is the sticky, caramelized top layer created after a loaf of banana bread hangs out for a day or so, but if you’re looking for a banana cookie recipe, most of them are very fluffy and cakey. I wanted a banana cookie that mimicked that dense, sticky banana bread vibe—thin, with crispy edges and a chewy middle, and friends, we got it.

how to make brown sugar banana cookies

I started this recipe by riffing on a Sarah Kieffer sugar cookie recipe. Sarah is the queen of “pan-banging cookies”, with their thin, ripply edges so of course I used one of her recipes as my base.

I added in banana (obviously) and went for 100% brown sugar for extra caramelization, plus I added some rye flour to add a nutty depth. (If you don’t have rye flour, you could sub in any whole grain flour you’d like—spelt, whole wheat, buckwheat, etc—or you could just replace the rye flour with more all purpose flour). The recipe also includes fresh vanilla bean flakes, and an egg yolk and molasses for added moisture. The results are perfect—crispy, crackly, sugar-flecked edges with gooey, brown sugar banana centers.

Brown Sugar Banana Cookies
Yield 12 large cookies
Author Anna Ramiz
Prep time
20 Min
Cook time
15 Min
Total time
35 Min

Brown Sugar Banana Cookies

With crispy edges and chewy middles, these brown sugar cookies are specked with nutty rye flour and sweet banana.

Ingredients

  • 2 3/4 cups (350 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup (30g) rye flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup [2 sticks | 227 g] unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 1 3/4 cup [350 g] dark brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoon molasses
  • 1 medium ripe banana, mashed (100 g)
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 vanilla bean, scraped
  • 1/2 cup [100 g] granulated sugar, for rolling

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325° F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together all purpose flour, rye flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine softened butter and brown sugar. Cream on medium speed for 2-3 minutes, until mixture is light and fluffy.
  4. Add the molasses, ripe banana, egg yolk, and scraped vanilla bean and continue mixing for 1-2 minutes more, until mixture is well combined.
  5. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until dough is smooth and no clumps remain. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
  6. Scoop the cookie dough into 2 oz balls and roll each ball in granulated sugar. Arrange on the prepared cookie sheets, leaving lots of space between each cookie.
  7. Bake for 8 minutes and then remove the cookie sheets from the oven and bang them on the counter 2-3 times to settle them down. Return the cookies to the oven and bake for another 3-5 minutes, until the edges are golden and the centers are dry. Let the cookies cool completely on the pan.

Notes

If you'd like to chill the cookie dough, simply scoop the dough and arrange them on a parchment-lined sheet tray. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for up to 24 hours. Wait and roll the cookies in the sugar until just before baking. Keep an eye on them while baking, you may need to add an extra minute or two to the baking time for cold dough.

Similar Recipes

Chai Snickerdoodles

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Levain Bakery Copycat Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Thick and gooey, Levain Bakery- style chocolate chip cookies stuffed with toasted pecans, hazelnuts, pumpkin, and cozy fall spices.

In my book, Levain Bakery cookies are the perfect cookie. I remember a handful of years ago when Levain Bakery cookies began to take-over the internet—cute images of their tiny, blue and white bakeshops started popping up on Instagram along with pictures of giant, ooey gooey chocolate chip cookies. I didn’t live anywhere close to NYC, but I was sold.

Around the same time, Martin went on a work trip to New York, walked 40 something blocks, and stood in a 2 hour line to bring me back a few of those prized cookies. I don’t know if it was the cookie itself, the way I had hyped it up in my head, but even 2 days later, they were the best cookies I’d ever eaten. In June of this year, we went to NYC for our anniversary and ran through the rain to get my Levain Bakery cookies—still as perfect as I remember them.

Some people like their cookies thin and chewy. Some like them thin and crispy, or with ridged edges. I like my cookies Levain Bakery Style—thick and fat, a little crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. I like them to weigh almost half a pound. For me, that’s the perfect cookie.

So for this recipe, I channeled my inner Levain Bakery and paired with everyone’s favorite fall flavors—pumpkin and warming spices to bring you the best cookie recipe I’ve made all year. Hands down. Lets jump in!

how to make copycat levain bakery pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

This is a pretty straightforward cookie recipe, with just a few caveats.

Here’s what you need:

  • Butter. Most creaming method recipes call for your butter to be room temperature but every Levain Bakery copycat recipe I’ve made through the years calls for cold butter so that’s what we’re using. Unsalted butter. Cold and cubed.

  • Brown Sugar and Granulated Sugar. Brown sugar has molasses added to it for a deep, caramelized flavor while a bit of granulated sugar helps aid in cookie spread.

  • Eggs and Yolks. For this recipe, I used one whole egg + an egg yolk for a little extra fat.

  • Flour. I use a blend of all purpose flour and cake flour for this recipe. Since cake flour has a lower protein content, it forms a bit less gluten giving us a softer crumb while the all purpose flour provides enough protein to build structure. Also, Jacques Torres chocolate chip cookie recipe does this flour blending and the technique has stuck with me for years. (Also a very good chocolate chip cookie recipe.)

  • Pumpkin. Of course, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies need pumpkin! Make sure you grab canned pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling, which has other ingredients added.

  • Spices. Lots of warming spices make this cookie extra cozy for fall. There’s cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and all spice. If you don’t have these spices, you could omit all of them and replace with 2 3/4 tsp of pumpkin pie spice.

  • Leavening Agents. This recipe uses both baking powder and baking soda. Powder helps with the rise, while baking soda works to balance the pumpkin’s slight acidity.

  • Chocolate. I like using lots of roughly chopped dark chocolate for all of my cookie recipes. This gives me little flecks of chocolate throughout the cookie, along with a few big puddles.

  • Nuts. The classic Levain Bakery cookie uses walnuts, which I could have sworn I had on hand when I started testing this recipe. Turns out, I didn’t so I used a blend of pecans and hazelnuts which felt much more like fall to me. Make sure to toast your nuts for added depth of flavor and then let them cool before adding to the dough.

a few tips for making these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

  1. These cookies MUST chill for 24 hours. I know, it’s annoying, but this recipe especially needs the chilling time or I promise, you will end up with giant cookie puddles. You can read a little more about what happens when you chill cookie dough here. It will be worth it, I promise!

  2. Levain Bakery cookies weigh a hefty 6 oz each, so that’s what we’re working with here. You’re going to end up with 8 enormous cookies that can be broken into pieces or snacked on throughout the day. If you want smaller cookies, adjust the baking time accordingly, and remember that they will still be delicious, but not very Levain Bakery-esque.

  3. Scoop, weigh, chill. That’s my recommended process for making these cookies. Scoop and weigh the dough while it’s still soft and place your portions on a parchment lined sheet tray. Cover the tray with plastic wrap and chill overnight. Then, when you’re ready to bake, all you have to do is preheat the oven.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Yield 8 large cookies
Author Anna Ramiz
Prep time
20 Min
Cook time
20 Min
Inactive time
24 Hour
Total time
24 H & 40 M

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Thick and gooey, Levain Bakery- style chocolate chip cookies stuffed with toasted pecans, hazelnuts, pumpkin, and cozy fall spices.

Ingredients

  • 4 oz (113g) butter, cold and cubed
  • 3/4 cup (150 g) brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup (66 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1/2 cup (140 g) pumpkin puree
  • 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 3/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 200 g all purpose flour
  • 80 g (2/3 cup) cake flour
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 3/4 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp ground all spice
  • 375 g chopped chocolate
  • 1 1/2 cups toasted nuts (I used 1/2 pecans and 1/2 hazelnuts)

Instructions

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter, brown sugar, and granulate sugar.
  2. Cream on medium speed for 1-2 minutes, until soft and sandy and all of the butter has been incorporated.
  3. Lower the mixer speed and add the vanilla extract, egg, egg yolk, and pumpkin puree one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl often to ensure even mixing.
  4. In another large bowl, whisk together salt, baking powder, baking soda, flour, cake flour, and spices.
  5. Add the dry ingredients to the dough gradually mixing just until all of the flour streaks remain.
  6. Add the chopped chocolate and toasted nuts and mix once more, just until distributed. Fold the dough with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon to ensure that there are no pockets of unmixed ingredients.
  7. Divide the dough into 8 six-ounce portions and place them on a parchment lined sheet tray. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 24 hours.
  8. When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Space the cookies out on the tray (I did 4 cookies per tray) and bake for 17-20 minutes, until the tops of the cookies are dry and the edges are just beginning to brown. Let the cookies cool completely on the pan before serving.

Notes

I know it's a bit of a pain, but don't skip the chilling time on this recipe. If the dough isn't properly chilled, the cookies will spread!


If you don't want to make these Levain Bakery Style (aka, giant), you can scoop the dough into smaller portions. For smaller cookies, begin checking for doneness after 8 minutes.

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Did you make this recipe?
Tag @gatheredatmytable on instagram and hashtag it #gatheredatmytable

Chai Snickerdoodles

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Warm and cozy homemade chai spice blend and soft and chewy snickerdoodles are a match made in heaven. This simple recipe makes the perfect cookies with crispy edges and pillowy centers.

I’ve been a little quiet on the blog for the past few weeks, but not to worry—I’ve still been cranking out recipes and sharing them with you like a mad woman. In case you missed it, at the beginning of the month, I launched Pastry School 101—a weekly newsletter teaching you creative baking recipes and foundational pastry skills. Each month we will deep dive into technique or ingredient and I’ll break down the science behind the process, give step by step instructions, and lots of tips and tricks for pastry mastery. There will also be two bonus recipes each month that incorporate the featured monthly skill/ingredient and there are places within the publication for where readers can comment/ask questions/chat about each recipe or post. This month, we took a little at whipping eggs (both whites and yolks) made olive oil chocolate mousse, and classic tiramisu, and had a blast. If you aren’t already in our little community, I’d love for you to join us!

But now I’m back and I’ve got cookies for you!

This holiday season, my sister was looking for a winning recipe to bring to her annual Christmas Cookie Party. We were chatting about what kind of cookie she could make and the idea of a spiced chai cookie came to mind. I didn’t have time to test a whole new recipe and get it to her before the party, so I told her to make the chai spice blend from my dirty chai banana bread recipe and make my hawaij snickerdoodles subbing the chai spice in place of the hawaij. My sister reported back that they were winners.

We decided to make another batch together over our Christmas holiday they really were perfect. 100%. No notes. So now I’m sharing them with you.

homemade chai spice blend

Making a batch of chai spice blend is as simple as stirring together a few spices and keeping it in a jar in your spice cabinet. We’re incorporating ground black tea (from tea bags), a hefty amount of cinnamon, cardamom, and ginger, and lots of supporting characters like cloves and black pepper. This recipe will make more than you need for the cookies so make a batch of banana bread of keep it in pantry for stirring into coffee.

soft and chewy snickerdoodles

I had a reader once tell me that molasses is never used in snickerdoodle recipes, but I love it and I don’t care what anyone thinks. I love love love using molasses in my spiced snickerdoodle recipes for two main reasons:

  1. Molasses is made by boiling, reducing, and concentrating the juice extracted from sugar cane. We know that cooking sugar creates caramelization so when molasses is incorporated into recipes it not only adds sweetness, but a deep caramelized flavor perfect for pairing with warm spices.

  2. Molasses is a type of invert syrup, a scientific balance of fructose and glucose, that in baking, adds sweetness and liquid at the same time. Adding an invert syrup like molasses to a recipe will greatly increase moisture, creating a softer, chewier cookie and extending shelf life.

Otherwise, this recipe is very straight forward. Melted browned butter is mixed with sugars, followed by eggs, vanilla, and molasses, and then dry ingredients are folded in. The batter does need a short chill time (about 30 minutes) in order to hold its shape during baking, and then, like any good snickerdoodle, we roll it in sugar.

One last recipe tip: I’ve made this recipe using a stand mixer, a hand mixer, and just a wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. I’ve found that though it may take a little more elbow greaser, the wooden spoon/spatula mixing method yielded the thickest, softest cookie.

Chai Snickerdoodles
Yield 30-32 cookies
Author Anna Ramiz
Prep time
15 Min
Cook time
8 Min
Inactive time
30 Min
Total time
53 Min

Chai Snickerdoodles

( 0 reviews )
Warm and cozy homemade chai spice blend and soft and chewy snickerdoodles are a match made in heaven. This simple recipe makes the perfect cookies with crispy edges and pillowy centers.

Ingredients

for the chai spice blend
  • 3 bags ground black tea
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp ground all spice
  • 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
for the cookie dough
  • 2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp chai spice, above
  • 1/2 c up (113 g) unsalted butter
  • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup (56 g) brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup (43 g) coconut oil, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tbsp molasses
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
for the rolling sugar
  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp demerara sugar
  • 1 tsp chai spice, above

Instructions

  1. To make the chai spice blend: combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until smooth and well-combined. Transfer to an air tight container to store.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, and chai spice.
  3. Place butter in a small saucepan and set it over medium heat. Cook for 6-7 minutes, swirling occasionally until butter is nutty and fragrant with little brown flecks on the bottom. Transfer it to another large bowl and let cool slightly.
  4. Add the sugar and brown sugar to the bowl with the butter and whisk until wet and sandy. Stream in the coconut oil, followed by the egg, molasses, and vanilla. Whisk vigorously until the mixture is smooth and homogenous.
  5. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until all of the flour is mixed in and no dry streaks remain. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
  6. When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375° F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  7. Stir together sugar, demerara sugar, and chai spice in a small bowl.
  8. Using a two tsp sized cookie scoop, scoop dough into balls. Roll each ball in the chai sugar and place 1-2” apart on the baking sheet. Bake for 8-9 minutes, just until the edges are lightly golden and the tops of the cookies are dry. Let cool for 5 minutes on the pan before transferring to cooling rack to cool completely.

Notes

The chai spice blend will yield more than is needed for this recipe. Keep the rest in a sealed jar in your pantry and use it to make Dirty Chai Banana Bread or stir into coffee.

Similar Recipes

Dirty Chai Banana Bread

Citrus, Earl Grey, and Caramelized White Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Hawaij Snickerdoodles

Did you make this recipe?
Tag @gatheredatmytable on instagram and hashtag it #gatheredatmytable