Clean Eating: Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Banana, Oatmeal Cookies

Have a few ripe bananas sitting out?  Try this chocolate-peanut butter cookie recipe!

Clean Eating: Chocolate, Peanut-Butter, Banana, Oatmeal Cookies

3 large, very ripe bananas, peeled
1/2 cup creamy all-natural peanut butter
1 tbsp coconut oil, warmed but not melted ( I buy Nutiva Organic EVCO)
3 tbsp agave nectar or honey (I like Madhava's Organic Light Nectar)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats

2 tbsp ground flax (optional) (I like Bob's Red Mill Organic Flaxseed Meal)

1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.

In a large bowl, mash the bananas, then stir in peanut butter, coconut oil, agave, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth.

*Note:  If you use frozen bananas, their cold temperature will make the coconut oil congeal.  Make sure your naner-mix is room temp before adding the coconut oil!  (I learned this the hard way.)

In a separate bowl, stir together the oats, flax, cocoa powder, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Slowly stir the dry ingredients into the wet until they are fully combined.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and spoon out small spoonfuls of dough. 

This mixture made 36 small cookies.  

Bake for 12-13 minutes, and let cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least three minutes before moving to a cooling rack.  

Enjoy!

Clean Eating Oatmeal Bites

I've been trying to come up with a tasty yet easily portable breakfast that I can take with me when I go to the gym in the morning.

This is what I came up with:  Clean Eating Oatmeal Bites

Topped with Chocolate Chips and Blueberries

1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 ripe banana (mashed)
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup almond milk (or milk of your choice)
2 1/2 cups oats
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp chia seeds (I buy Organic Nutiva)

Toppings of your choice.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.

Mix wet ingredients together in a large bowl: egg, vanilla, applesauce, banana, honey, milk.
Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl: oats, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, chia seeds.
Slowly stir the dry ingredients into the wet.

Line muffin pan with paper liners (or with foil if you run out like I did).
Spoon mixture into the cups so that they are a 1/3 full.  Add a few toppings here, then cover completely with the mixture.  Add more toppings to the top of each muffin. 
This mixture made 12 full muffins.

Bake 25-30 minutes (until a toothpick comes out clean).

Oatmeal Bites: Gooey Chocolate Center