Banana Pudding Cookies—Support For Sandy, A Food Blogging Event to Help the Victims of Hurricane Sandy, #FBS4Sandy

 

Though I missed the official posting yesterday, for a food blogging event to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy, they are letting whoever wants to join in post anytime through the month of November.  After seeing and hearing all about the devastation caused to the East Coast from Hurricane Sandy, I didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to share in a very small way with those who have lost so much and who are still suffering.  While I know that we all think we couldn’t possibly do enough to really help someone, every little bits counts.  It all adds up. 

What is the next best thing to helping monetarily?  Comfort.  It brings people together, gives warmth and genuine love, and shows concern—especially when you’re talking about comfort food.  ;)  So just as a way to have all our Support for Sandy posts come together with some kind of unity, we all decided to post something we think of as comfort food.  And now you’re probably rolling your eyes that I have chosen cookies.  I do believe my cookies bring comfort to many, so I just couldn’t bring myself to make meatloaf or chicken noodle soup.  Though one of the hosts for this Support for Sandy group is Barbara at Creative Culinary and she has posted some mighty good-looking meatloaf!  You will also find on her post all the other comforting foods and recipes by all the other bloggers participating in the event at the end of her post.

  A couple months ago I saw a post Maria at Two Peas And Their Pod did for some Banana Pudding Cookies.  I have wanted to make them since then.  I bought some banana pudding mix a while ago and already had the Nilla Wafers.  I didn’t adapt Maria’s recipe much.  The biggest differences were that I used chopped Lindt White Chocolate when she used white chocolate chips.  I don’t really like white chocolate chips—they are just never as good as the real thing. ;)  The only other things I did were changing or adding to some of her directions for making the cookies.   Banana pudding, with vanilla cookies and whipped cream is definitely a comfort food—putting that comfort in to a cookie—even more comfort in my book.

Banana Pudding Cookies, adapted by Katrina, Baking and Boys! from Maria at Two Peas and Their Pod

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar (165 grams)

1/4 cup granulated sugar (50 grams)

1 (3.4 ounce) package banana cream instant pudding mix

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2  1/2 cups all purpose flour (300 grams)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped vanilla wafer cookies (like Nilla Wafers), plus more for the tops of the cookies

4.4 ounces Lindt white chocolate bar, chopped (save some of the tops of the cookies)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cream together in the bowl of a mixer the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Add the dry pudding mix, eggs and vanilla extract.  In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and mix just until combined.  Stir in the chopped chocolate and wafer cookies.

Put cookie dough on baking sheets using a cookie scoop or about walnut-sized mounds of dough about two inches apart.  Press each cookie dough ball down slightly with the palm of your hand.  Put extra  white chocolate and chopped wafer cookies on the tops.  Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes.  Remove the cookies from the oven and using the edge of a metal spatula, carefully push the cookies into round forms as some will have spread to a not-so-round shape.  (This is a trick I do with all cookies to get uniformly round cookies!)  Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

If you like and are comforted by banana pudding, these cookies are for you!  Comfort in a cookie!

Don’t forget the purpose of this post—let’s all unite together in Supporting the victims of Hurricane Sandy.  Click on the Support For Sandy image and it will take you right to the Red Cross website where you can donate—every dollar counts.  I can’t give much, but am happy to give a little.

Thanks to Barbara at Creative Culinary and Jenn from Jenn Cuisine for putting this together.

Other sources to see where you can help are also listed--

• American Red Cross is providing food, shelter, and other forms of support to hurricane victims. You can donate directly to the Red Cross or  you can also text the word “Redcross” to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
• The Salvation Army is also focused on providing food, shelter, and support to victims, and takes donations for storm relief.
• Feeding America is providing food, water and supplies to those who need it as part of their disaster relief program.

Check out all the chatter on Twitter for Support For Sandy with the hashtag #FBS4Sandy.  Thanks!