Life lesson 47: How to impress a teenager

I have a visitor this weekend. A very important visitor.  A very important 16 year old visitor. Do you know how to impress a smarter-than-average, totally “with it”, 16 year old visitor?  Nope, me neither.  So where do I always turn when in doubt? The kitchen.  Ahhh. That relief feels good.

The plan: cookies to hook her attention tonight, gingerbread with banana and chocolate to put her in a good mood tomorrow morning, and a tour of the local chocolate factory to keep her cruising on through the afternoon.  I think I might be on to something here.  

Seems hopeful, right?

Chocolate Banana Gingerbread
1/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup molasses
2 medium bananas, mashed
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup chocolate chips
2 tablespoons raw turbinado sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine flour, salt, baking soda and spices in a bowl.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar together. Add egg and vanilla, and mix until pale yellow and smooth, about 3 minutes. Stir in molasses and mashed bananas. Add half of dry ingredients, just mixing until combined, then add buttermilk. Add remaining dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Spray a loaf pan with non-stick spray and pour batter in. Top with raw turbinado sugar. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 16 cookies
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
½ cup rolled oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. On medium speed, cream together the butter, peanut butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat to combine. On low speed, gradually add the flour until just combined. Stir in the oats, and then the chocolate chips.
4. Use a large cookie scoop (3 tablespoons) and drop dough onto prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden. Cool completely on the baking sheet and then store in an airtight container at room temperature.