Peanut Butter-Filled Banana Cookies

These banana sandwich cookies bring together two of the greatest flavor pairings in one bite: banana and peanut butter, banana and walnuts. The cookie itself is a soft, buttery banana round studded with toasted walnut pieces. The filling is a whipped peanut butter and cream cheese frosting with a surprising pinch of nutmeg.

Beating the banana into the creamed butter and sugar for a full minute is what distributes the fruit evenly and creates a tender, cake-like crumb. Use ripe bananas with plenty of brown spots. Green or barely ripe bananas won’t mash smoothly and the flavor will be starchy instead of sweet.

Pressing each ball of dough with a sugar-dipped glass gives you flat, uniform circles that sandwich together neatly. The sugar coating adds a slight sparkle and crunch to the tops.

The filling is a balancing act of sweet, salty, and tangy. Powdered sugar provides sweetness, peanut butter brings salt and richness, cream cheese adds tang, and nutmeg contributes a warm, spiced note that ties it all together.

Kitchen Tips

• Toast the walnuts before chopping. A few minutes in a dry skillet intensifies their flavor dramatically.
• Make sure both the cookie butter and the filling butter are at room temperature. Cold butter won’t cream properly.
• Let the cookies cool completely before filling. Warm cookies melt the filling and make a mess.
• These freeze well as assembled sandwiches. Pull them 10 minutes before serving.

Variations

• Chocolate drizzle: Drizzle melted dark chocolate over the assembled sandwiches for a banana split vibe.
• Almond butter filling: Swap peanut butter for almond butter and add a pinch of cinnamon instead of nutmeg.