Soft, moist Banana Cookies are a family classic. Filled with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting, you’ll love the banana flavor in these whoopie pies! Or serve with frosting and nuts!
You’ll love these served as cookies with frosting and nuts, or assemble as a sweet whoopie pie. The choice is yours.
This banana cookie recipe was originally published in April 2011. The photos were updated in February 2022 and I improved the recipe notes in April 2025.
Aimee’s Recipe Notes
- Taste & Texture: Soft, moist banana cookies with a sweet cinnamon cream cheese filling.
- Prep Notes: Use ripe bananas for enhanced sweetness and flavor. These are the super BROWN bananas!
- Make Ahead: Prepare cookies and frosting separately; assemble just before serving for optimal freshness.
- Storage: Keep cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freeze banana cookies in airtight container for up to 3 months, with or without frosting. Use my tips on how to freeze cookie dough for later.
Whoopie Pies are a northeaster classic. They’re made by combining TWO soft cookies (or tender cakes) with a creamy filling!
Ingredients Needed
My family has a love hate relationship with bananas. I buy bunches, and they either eat them all immediately, or I have to whip up my favorite banana bread recipe. (or my favorite Banana Pudding Recipe).
- Bananas- the riper the better! More brown is best. Use our guide on how to ripen bananas in 20 minutes!
- Butter and Sour Cream- make the moistest cookies. My kids call these banana bread bites.
- Sugars- a combination of granulated sugar and brown sugar give the cookies a chewy texture.
How to Make Banana Cookies
- Combine wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with brown sugar and granulated sugar until creamy. Add the sour cream, mashed bananas, vanilla extract, and egg into the butter and sugar mixture.
PRO TIP: You can swap out the sour cream for greek yogurt!
- Add drying ingredients: Add flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt into the banana mixture and mix until fully blended.
- Bake: Using a medium cookie scoop, drop dough onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely on wire rack.
- Frost: For the frosting, beat cream cheese with butter until fluffy. Add in vanilla, milk, cinnamon, and powdered sugar. Beat until light and fluffy.
- Serve: To fill the banana whoopie pies, place half of the cookies upside down. Fill a piping bag with tip with the frosting. Pipe onto the cookies. Top with second cookie. Or spread frosting on top and sprinkle with nuts.
Tips for Banana Cookies
- Instead of whoopie pies, just pipe a dollop of frosting onto the tops of each cookie.
- You can also add in some chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans) to add a little texture and nutty flavor to these banana cookies.
- Of course you also can’t go wrong with adding chocolate chips. I think banana chocolate chip cookies sound incredible!
- Store banana cookies in airtight container in the refrigerator (if frosted or whoopie pies).
- Freeze banana cookies in airtight container for up to 3 months, with or without frosting. Use my tips on how to freeze cookie dough for later.
Easy Cookie Recipes
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Banana Cookies Recipe
Soft, chewy Banana Cookies are a family classic. Filled with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting, you’ll love the banana flavor in these whoopie pies!
Ingredients
For the cookie:
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 large ripe bananas smashed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 large egg
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the frosting:
- 4 ounce cream cheese softened
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons milk
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
For the cookies:
- Beat butter and sugars. Mix in the sour cream, bananas, vanilla and egg. Add the remaining ingredients.
- Use a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a small scoop, drop dough onto paper. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. Cool and frost if desired!
For the frosting:
- Beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add remaining ingredients and beat until smooth. Spread between two like-sized cookies or on top of each cookie. Add chopped walnuts if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Serving: 1whoopie pie, Calories: 419kcal, Carbohydrates: 67g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 54mg, Sodium: 266mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 48g
Did you make this recipe?Mention @shugarysweets or tag #shugarysweets!
More Cookie Recipes:
- These Butterscotch Toffee Cookies are buttery soft, and utterly delicious!
- Lover of the classics? These Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are some of my husbands favorites!
- Trick your kids into eating my vegetables with these Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cookies that are so delicious you won’t even know!
- Make some of these creamy, dreamy Peanut Butter Shortbread cookies that your kids will go crazy for!
- These Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies are thick, moist, and chewy! Exactly what you want for a cookie!
- Lover of PB? Try these Soft Peanut Butter Cookies or some even easier 3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies that turn out just as creamy as the originals!
- Try out some of these Lemon Gooey Cake Cookies that are packed full of that favorite zesty flavor!
- Love these cookies? Try my classic chocolate whoopie pie recipe. SO good. Or give these easy funfetti shortbread cookies a try for a sandwich cookie treat!
Snowy day decided to try the banana cookies. Delicious!! Soft and flavorful. Didn’t have cream cheese for icing used a cream cheese alternative recipe was okay, but will try again when I have cream cheese.
I made these over the weekend. I didn’t use cinnamon and used my favorite cream cheese frosting recipe but they were so yummy with and without icing and so simple.
My banana loving kids devoured them. I think that frosting is the best part!
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe! Will surely have this again! It’s really easy to make and it tasted so delicious! Highly recommended!
These are beyond delicious! The filling is to die for!
I have questions. How big are these? I need to cater lunch for twenty-five 7-17 year olds and was wonder if these pack well? Do they squish around or are they stable enough to wrap individually? Looking forward to trying them for myself.
Thank you very much for seeing good information.
What’s the consistency of the banana cookie recipe batter?
I followed the recipe as printed online my batter was sort of thick, sticky gooey! Is that how the consistency of batter should be?
Thank you for your help
Janice
It is a very thick batter.
Super yummy! I live at 3750 feet and was not sure if the recipe would work. I had 2 very ripe bananas and just under 1/4 cup sour cream…so i added milk to make up the sour cream. I also added chocolate chips, as I did not plan to frost them. I baked as directed at 350 for 11 minutes…switching top and bottom racks after half of the time…and let sit on the cookie sheets a few minutes before removing to cooling racks. I will make these again. Thank you.
Once I frost these cookies, do they need to be refrigerated or can I leave them covered on a countertop?