Banana Cookies

Hi all, I was supposed to post yesterday, but this week has been a little crazy. My Grandpa Thacker, who lives in Phoenix, passed away this week. He has been physically healthy until Monday morning. He just went unconscious and stopped eating/drinking and passed away on Wednesday. It is a blessing for him and his family because he has had dementia for many years and has lived in a care home for about 4 years due to the fact that my grandma, who is dying from cancer, cannot take care of him. We all thought she would pass first, but we think she has been holding on for him and probably will pass away in the coming months. My grandpa's funeral is next Friday. Kimball is staying home with the kids while me, my brother, and a couple cousins will drive down Thursday. I am actually very excited to see all of my siblings, cousins, parents, etc. Funerals for old people are more a happy celebration!

So....going along with the recipe kick we are all on, I thought I would share a yummy banana cookie recipe. We have a cookie recipe book from All Recipes that has 200 cookie recipes in it. I have loved it and use it often! We always have ripe bananas around our house because we like to eat bananas, but usually not fast enough before they get too ripe.

Banana Split Cookies

1/2 cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed bananas
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional
1/2 cup chocolate chips, optional

After mixing all together, cover and chill for 1 hour. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons onto lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or until no imprint remains when touched. The cookies turn out very soft and chewy!