Cookie Butter Banana Bread
I was older than I probably want to admit when I first learned that there even was such a thing as ‘cookie butter’. I loved peanut butter, and I was familiar with different types of nut butters such as almond and cashew. I even knew about Nutella, although it’s far from my favorite of the bunch. But for a really long time, cookie butter remained a mystery.
Fortunately, the mystery soon came to an end when I moved to place nearby a grocery store called Trader Joe’s. One day I happened to be browsing the aisles ( a very enjoyable and addictive pastime, as anyone who’s ever been to one will tell you) and saw a jar of something called ‘cookie butter’. I was immediately intrigued, and decided to buy a jar to see what it was all about.
As it turned out, what it was was all ‘about’ was deliciousness. Cookie butter is essentially smashed/crushed/pulverized Belgian spice cookies that are mixed with oil until they resemble a thick spread that’s very similar in texture to a nut butter.
Like nut butters, cookie butter is delicious enough to eat all by itself, however, like nut butters, it’s also a great ingredient to use as an ingredient in other baked goods. In fact, because it’s so similar in texture and consistency, it’s very easy to swap out nut butter in a lot of recipes for cookie butter–which is what we’re essentially doing here today.
Banana bread is one of what I like to think of an call ‘Blank Canvas’ recipes, meaning that while it’s perfectly fine on it’s own, it’s forgiving and simple enough to be able to experiment with and show some creativity in how you flavor and customize it. I’ve already done a decent amount of experimenting with banana bread here on the blog, as recently as last week, and with several other really tasty results. This is yet another I’m adding to that collection.
If I could describe what cookie butter brings to this loaf, it’s a ‘richness’ and caramel-y flavor that you just don’t get from banana bread all on its own. I also added a bit of butterscotch baking chips to the batter to add to the caramel-y flavor, but you can also go with semi-sweet chocolate chips if you prefer to cut through some of the sweetness.
Like most other banana bread recipes, this is very easy and quick to make, and the results are certainly worth it.
Enjoy!
Cookie Butter Banana Bread
Recipe Adapted from Simply Recipes
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 very ripe bananas
- 1/3 cup melted unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup milk, (whole, 2 percent, lactose-free or even a nut milk will work)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup crunchy speculoos cookie/biscoff butter spread
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup butterscotch, or semi-sweet chocolate chips (your choice)
Directions
Preheat the oven to to 350°F. Spray or grease a 4 1/2×8 1/2-inch loaf pan very well.
Mash the bananas in a mixing bowl using a fork. Whisk in the melted butter, milk, egg, and vanilla. Mix in the sugar.
In another mixing bowl, using the hand mixer (or a whisk), beat cookie butter until smooth. Beat this into the banana mixture. Scrape the bowl down and beat in the baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
Fold in the flour until completely combined, followed by the chocolate chips.
Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake on the center rack of the oven for 55 to 60 minutes, or until the bread is deeply golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove the bread from the oven and place on a rack to cool completely before turning out.
Sharing at Fiesta Friday #542, cohosted this week by Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook.
Oh, I love cookie butter banana bread! 😍 It’s like two comfort foods in one perfect loaf. Thanks a bunch for joining Fiesta Friday party!
Thank you Jhuls!!
Hi Jess.
Can the Cookie Butter Banana Bread be made without the butterscotch or chocolate chips?
Hi Donna–yes, the bread can absolutely be made without butterscotch or chocolate chips 🙂