Chunky Monkey Bars

Chunky Monkey Bars

Do you ever buy bananas, intending to eat them, only to slowly watch then turn brown from neglect? This happens quite frequently in my house. One would think that I would stop buying bananas; yet this isn’t in my DNA.  Chunky Monkey Bars are.

Last week my four bananas were pathetically begging for attention. They were well beyond the ‘edible on their own’ point, so I knew my family was in store for a new dessert.

I am willing to eat bananas on their own but prefer them combined with other flavors when baking. Chocolate is always a winner, as are walnuts; so these two were no-brainers. I also thought it would nice to add in oats, so they, too, were thrown into the mix.

I was in a bit of a rush at the time. Instead of bringing butter up to room temperature, I melted it in the microwave. From there it became a ‘one bowl’ experiment. Well, actually, two bowls because I did whisk the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.

I transferred the batter to the parchment lined baking dish and said a prayer to the baking Gods that this experiment would turn out semi-decently. Someone must have heard me, because they are delicious.

My oldest son, Joshua, was over for dinner that night and he pointed out that the experimental meal that I prepared was not my best work. Thankfully, the banana experiment came to my rescue, because Joshua ate three bars before taking seven more to eat later.

It was Joshua who named them Chunky Monkey. They are not quite like the ice cream that we know and love, but I was thrilled to have Joshua’s feedback and therefore the name stuck. Additionally, there are chunks in the dessert, so the name does have some validity, even if it is just a tiny bit. The bottom line is if it makes my baby boy happy, that’s good enough for me.