Sourdough Banana Pudding Cookies

These nostalgic, melt-in-your-mouth Sourdough Banana Pudding Cookies are perfect for satisfying your banana puddin’ cravings without the fuss! They’re chewy and rich (unlike banana bread), are made from scratch (no pudding mix!), and offer a distinct banana flavor that is sure to keep you coming back for more! The sourdough discard works to add moisture and level out the sweetness, and crumbled vanilla wafers are sprinkled on top for a subtle crunch. Best of all, this easy one-bowl recipe comes together in just 30 minutes!

Essentials for the Perfect Sourdough Cookie

• Digital Kitchen Scale: In my kitchen, a digital scale is a non-negotiable! I’ve had this exact digital scale for years, and it has never failed me! Measuring by weight is the only foolproof way to ensure that you measure difficult ingredients accurately, especially flour or sourdough starter (both of which can make or break a sourdough cookie’s final texture if improperly measured).
• Stand Mixer: A quality stand mixer can be an amazing tool for making sourdough cookies. It can help to combine difficult ingredients or thick dough with ease!
• Large Cookie Scoop: Almost all of my sourdough cookie recipes are designed for making jumbo cookies. Using a large cookie scoop will help ensure that you get the perfect size cookie every time, to help them bake evenly!

Ingredients

• ¾ cup + 2 tbsp light brown sugar, packed (190g): Make sure you pack it tight! The right amount of sugar gives the cookies the perfect amount of spread while keeping them chewy.
• ½ cup granulated sugar (100g): Including white sugar will help balance the moisture from the brown sugar and bananas, ensuring the cookies spread just the right amount.
• ½ cup salted butter, softened (113g): The perfect softness of the butter is “dent soft”, meaning it will indent somewhat easily when the corner is pressed with your finger, but still offers some resistance and is not completely room temperature yet. Depending on the temperature of your home, the perfect softness can take anywhere from 30-60 minutes at room temperature. If you want to use unsalted butter, add 1/4 tsp. additional salt to the recipe.
• ½ cup sourdough starter, active or discard, stirred down (150g): The sourdough starter can be active or discard starter! Be sure to stir the starter down before measuring. Or for best accuracy, measure by weight.
• 2 large egg yolks (40g): Having room temperature yolks is ideal, but cold yolks are fine too!
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (5g): Pure vanilla extract is best! Imitation vanilla often contains unnecessary additives.
• ½ tsp salt (3g): I prefer to use sea salt, as iodized salt may add an unwanted flavor profile.
• 1⅓ cups all-purpose flour, scooped directly from bag (not spooned and leveled) (210g): It’s very difficult to accurately measure flour by volume. This is because it is all dependent on how you scoop it! For ease of measuring, I designed this volume measurement to simply be scooped directly out of the bag (not spooned and leveled). Pro Tip: For the best accuracy and best overall cookie texture, you should measure flour by weight.
• 1 tsp baking soda (6g): Ensure you are using baking soda, NOT baking powder. They are not interchangeable and will affect the spread and texture of the cookie.
• 1 (2.5 oz) bag freeze-dried banana slices (70g / roughly 2 ½ cups): We use freeze-dried bananas to help create a chewy cookie with a dense and soft pudding-like center, as opposed to the puffy bread-like results you get from fresh bananas in other banana bread cookie recipes.
• Vanilla wafers, optional: Optionally sprinkle the top of each cookie with lightly crumbled vanilla wafers before baking, to add a slight crunch and include more of that nostalgic banana pudding flavor!

How to Make Sourdough Banana Pudding Cookies

Preheat Oven & Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

Cream the Butter & Sugar: Start by beating the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and softened butter together. This works best with an electric mixer (either handheld or a stand mixer). You are looking for more than just a mix here, you want the texture to change. It should look creamy, uniform, and slightly aerated. If you see chunks of butter, keep mixing!

Add the Wet Ingredients: Add your sourdough starter, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat until it becomes smooth and slightly frothy. Tip: Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to ensure the starter is fully incorporated! You should not see any chunks floating around.

Incorporate the Dry Ingredients: Add your flour and sprinkle in the baking soda. Turn your mixer to low speed, and stir until just combined. Critical Step: Stop mixing when you still see a few tiny streaks of flour left. If you over-mix at this stage, you will accidentally over-develop the gluten and your cookies will be tough rather than soft and chewy.

Fold in the Bananas: Lightly crush the freeze-dried bananas in the bag (or roughly chop them). Switch to a spatula and gently fold the banana chunks into the dough until evenly distributed without accidentally overworking the dough.

Scoop & Bake: Use a large cookie scoop to place 6 generous portions of dough onto your parchment-lined baking sheet. Ensure even spacing between each to allow for spreading. Optionally press lightly crumbled vanilla wafers and/or additional freeze-dried banana slices onto each scoop of dough. Bake for 12–16 minutes. You’ll know they are done when the edges look slightly crisp, but the center looks mostly set but still moist. They will continue to set as they cool! This recipe makes about 14 cookies total.

Cool On Baking Sheet: Let the cookies sit on the hot baking sheet for 7 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. This is a crucial step for ensuring that the cookies set up completely. If you try to move them too soon, they will fall apart.

Storage: Once completely cool, you can store cookies in an airtight container or bag for up to 5 days at room temperature. Note that the cookies may dry out as the days go on. Pro Tip: To ensure they stay fresh the longest, place a slice of bread in the container with the cookies. The cookies will absorb moisture from the bread (the bread will become rock hard!), keeping your cookies soft for longer.

Substitutions & Variations

• Active Sourdough Starter: Active starter can be used! Just stir it down before measuring, or measure by weight for best accuracy.
• Dark Brown Sugar: You can substitute dark brown sugar for light brown sugar if necessary; it will just result in a slightly deeper molasses flavor.
• Unsalted Butter: If using unsalted butter, simply add an additional ¼ tsp salt to the dough.
• Different Fruit: If you’re looking for a cookie that uses other freeze-dried fruit, try my Sourdough Strawberry Cheesecake Cookie recipe.

Can I freeze sourdough cookie dough?

Absolutely! To freeze sourdough cookie dough, scoop and place in a gallon freezer ziplock bag, ensuring space is left between each ball to prevent sticking. Frozen sourdough cookie dough can be stored for up to 2-3 months.

Pro Tip: Double the recipe to intentionally freeze an extra batch! This provides you with a ready-to-bake dough for when that banana puddin’ craving hits. You can even bake just a few at a time for a quick, no-prep dessert.

Tips to Bake Sourdough Cookie Dough From Frozen:

• Add 2-4 minutes to the specified baking time
• Alternatively, allow dough to sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes to achieve a texture and baking time similar to fresh dough.

How to Make Long-Fermented Banana Pudding Sourdough Cookies

To long-ferment the dough for more flavor, gut health, and nutritional benefits, follow these simple directions:

1. Prepare: Follow the recipe directions to make the dough.
2. Ferment: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, or transfer to an airtight container. Refrigerate for 1-3 days. Note: After the first day, longer fermentation increases the health benefits, but it also intensifies the tangy flavor. Specifically for these Sourdough Banana Pudding Cookies, long-fermentation may also impact the banana’s color and structure.
3. Bake: The dough temperature will significantly affect the final texture of your cookies.

• For Chewier Cookies (preferred): About 1 hour before baking, remove the dough from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature. This will yield a texture result that is similar to freshly-made dough.
• For Cake-Like Cookies: If you’re in a pinch, you may bake the dough straight from the fridge. The cookies will not spread as much as freshly made dough, and will result in a thicker, more cakey consistency.
  

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