Call me Martha - Banana and walnut and chocolate chunk, oh my!

As a Borders Rewards Club member, I'm sent a few emails a week with in-store coupons attached. Over Memorial Day weekend I got one for 40% off so I decided to head over to Borders, which resulted in my purchase of the Martha Stewart "Cookies" book. I found it difficult to decide on which cookie I should try out first, but in the end, the banana-walnut chocolate chunk cookies prevailed. The decision was a wise one--this cookie takes on the taste and texture of a banana bread (with chocolate chips), but as a cookie, it's definitely way more fun to eat.

Suggestion: If you choose to make these cookies and you're pleased with the results, do what I did--buy a nice looking cereal bowl, fill it with cookies, wrap it up with cellophane and ribbon, and gift it to a friend/family member/lover <3

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

1 tsp coarse salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

3/4 unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (~1 large)

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

8 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup walnuts (~2oz), coarsely chopped, toasted

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together flours, salt, and baking soda in a small bowl; set aside. Put butter and sugars into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Add egg and vanilla; mix until combined. Mix in banana. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Stir in oats, chocolate chunks, and walnuts.

2. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until golden brown and just set, 12 to 13 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks; let cool completely. Cookies can be stored in airtight containers up to 2 days.

I think the next time I try these, I'm going to use a little more banana and a little less chocolate. I'm interested to see if they'd be just as good with more emphasis on the banana. Oh and if you try these out, let me know what you think.