Baking Cookies and Math

Peanut Butter, Banana, Chocolate Chip Cookies

This afternoon, I baked these really yummy cookies with Michelle. I used the opportunity to reinforce some math concepts she has been learning – fractions and division. I had her measure the ½ cup of sugar with a ¼ cup measure. She noticed it was the wrong measuring cup, so I asked her how she was going to do it. Her first reaction was to say just ½ of ¼ cup measure. Once I pointed out that wouldn’t be ½ cup of sugar, she thought for a few seconds and came up with the right answer. To measure the 2 cups of flour, I gave her a ½ cup measure, and that time she got it right the first time. Another tricky problem was figuring out how to get 2 oz. of cream cheese from an 8 oz. block. We worked through it together. Real life math applications are easy to find around the house. I’ve used cooking and baking with all my children to reinforce math concepts. Maybe that’s why they are all emerging cooks!


I had been craving banana bread all week, and I had the perfect over-ripe bananas in the kitchen. The kids wanted cookies. So, I went looking and found a banana, peanut butter, chocolate-chip-cookie recipe at Cook’s Country online and tweaked it to match what I had on hand. I’m going to have to hide some, or they’ll be all gone by the time Don gets home from work… as Emily said, they are SCRUMPTIOUS!

Peanut Butter and Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons butter, softened
2 oz cream cheese, softened
½ light brown sugar
½ sugar
½ organic peanut butter, at room temperature
¼ cup mashed banana
1 egg, at room temperature
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips cookies

Turn oven on to 350 degrees. Put butter and sugars in mixer, then mix for 10 minutes till light and fluffy. Add egg and mix, add peanut butter and mix, then add banana and vanilla, and mix.

In a separate bowl, mix flour, salt, and baking soda. Blend into batter, then fold in chocolate chips. Drop teaspoonfuls of dough, one inch apart, onto cookie sheets covered with parchment paper. Bake for 12-14 minutes, till lightly browned.

These cookies are soft in the center and slightly crunch around the edges, yummm!

I'm joining in this week for Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum.