By Halloween week and I did something a little unusual: made a Halloween dinner. Megan thinks this is silly. I think any excuse to cook something is a valid excuse. I made beet-cured salmon — the beet gives it this vivid red-purple color that looks appropriately spooky — and a black bean soup that I dyed slightly darker with squid ink because I had some left over from a recipe experiment and honestly it worked great. Megan took pictures for her classroom. The kids apparently love seeing food that looks wrong but tastes fine. Teachers find teaching moments everywhere.
We went to a Halloween party at our friend Brianna's place Saturday night. I went as a brewmaster — basically just my work clothes plus a clipboard — and Megan went as a teacher, which she accomplished by putting on her teacher cardigan and carrying some papers to grade. We are the laziest costume people in our friend group and I have zero shame about this.
Came home from the party and made eggs at midnight, which is one of my go-to moves when I've had a few beers. Scrambled eggs with whatever's in the fridge. This time: leftover kielbasa, some cheddar, half an onion. The scrambled egg is the delivery mechanism for whatever ingredients are looking lonely. Best meal of the week, genuinely, eaten standing at the kitchen counter at midnight while still wearing the clipboards.
November coming fast. My birthday is the 22nd — I'll be twenty-seven. Megan already asked what I want to do and I said cook a big meal for everyone and watch football. She said that sounds like a normal Sunday and I said yes, that's what I want. She booked a restaurant anyway. I suspect we'll do both.
Wedding stuff: ordered invitations. They look elegant and did not cost as much as a car payment. We found the middle ground. Addressing them is going to take approximately one full weekend and the specific pen Megan has designated for invitation addressing is not allowed to run out under any circumstances. I've been warned.
The midnight eggs were genuinely the best thing I ate all week, and I’ve been thinking about why — I think it’s because they required nothing except showing up hungry and opening the fridge. That’s the kind of cooking I actually love. These breakfast cookies are the make-ahead version of that same instinct: you do the ten minutes of work on Sunday, and then future-you, the one who just got home from a Halloween party still wearing a clipboard, has something real to eat. They’re not scrambled eggs, but they’re in the same spirit.
Healthy Breakfast {or Snack} Cookies
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 14 min | Total Time: 25 min | Servings: 12 cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed
- 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/4 cup natural peanut butter or almond butter
- 2 tablespoons honey or pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips or raisins (or a mix)
Instructions
- Preheat. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mash the bananas. In a large mixing bowl, mash bananas thoroughly with a fork until mostly smooth — a few small lumps are fine.
- Add wet ingredients. Stir in the peanut butter, honey (or maple syrup), and vanilla extract until fully combined.
- Fold in dry ingredients. Add oats, cinnamon, and salt. Stir until a thick, sticky dough forms.
- Add mix-ins. Fold in chocolate chips or raisins.
- Scoop. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing about 1 1/2 inches apart. Gently press each one down slightly — they won’t spread much on their own.
- Bake. Bake 12—15 minutes, until the edges are set and the tops look dry and lightly golden.
- Cool. Let cookies rest on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. They firm up as they cool.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 108 | Protein: 3g | Fat: 4g | Carbs: 17g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 32mg