Another Yummy Protein Cookie

I will admit, I've become a little obsessed with finding healthy ways to redo some of my favorite snacks.  So far most of what I've tried has been pretty good.  The longer I got without processed sugar, the less sugar I find myself using in baking.  It's to the point where just the natural sweetness of many of my ingredients is enough to satisfy my sweet tooth.  I've also tried to find ways to increase my protein intake, since that is definitely one area I need to contiue to work on.

Last night I was searching Pinterest and came across a couple different recipes.  Because I didn't have all the ingredients they asked for I did have to improvise a bit,but I am obsessed with the cookies I ended up with!  Even Tim and Mara enjoyed them, which for me is the true test of a new recipe.

Banana Peanut Butter Protein Cookies

Ingredients
2 ripe bananas mashed until creamy
1/3 cup natural peanut butter (I used Jif Natural Chunky)
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup protein powder (they recommended vanilla, I used unflavored and the cookies still were tasty)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups oats
1/4 cup chopped nuts (the original recipe called for peanuts, I used walnuts)
1/4 cup chocolate chips


It kinda reminded me of no bakes, just more banana-y



Directions
Preheat oven to 350.
Mixed mashed banana and peanut butter until creamy and well mixed.  Add applesauce, protein powder and vanilla.
Add in oats, nuts, and chocolate chips and mix well.
Let dough sit for 10 minutes.
Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a nonstick cookie sheet.  Bake for 25-30 minutes until cookies are golden brown.
Let sit for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
Makes 24 cookies.

Nutritional Information (per cookie)
76 calories
2 g fat
0 mg cholesterol
18 mg sodium (using the Natural low sodium peanut butter)
9 g carbohydrates
1 g fiber
4 g sugar
3 g protein