What To Do With Ripe Bananas

I love bananas, and eat one most days, but I would be lying if I didn't say I find them a bit frustrating.  They bruise easily, become ripe when you don't want them to, have to be eaten quickly after being peeled, and in my personal opinion, ruin any decent fruit salad.  Now, this list does not stop me from purchasing said bananas very green and attempting to eat as many as possible before the deadline, but it always ends with at least one banana lurking in the fruit bowl gathering flies and forcing my culinary creativity.

For me the banana "deadline" is the appearance of those brown spots.  At that point in time they are too sweet to eat alone and have a mealy texture that grosses me out.  But luckily, as they leave the handy snack zone, they reach their potential in another... baking.  Of course the problem with this is that eating the banana now requires more effort.  Yes, the results are still delicious, but there is more to it than just peeling and eating.

After many months struggling with a banana surplus either attracting attention on the counter or in my freezer I finally decided to share what I find to be the most useful (and delicious) banana recipes.  Below is a list, I guess you would say in order of use preference, but mostly just in order of how much work, and how ripe, the banana needs to be.

So, keep reading, and below you will find general suggestions but also SIX NEW Cook to Eat recipes!

#1  Eat it alone, mix it with yogurt, in a smoothie, or cover it in almond butter and have a glass of milk on the side.  My personal favorite is the last one because it is dessert-like and very filling.

#2  Freeze them whole for later baking needs or pre-slice and have as a frozen snack.  You can also still use the sliced frozen banana for all the #1 items, just let it thaw a little first.

#3 Slice them, dip them in unsweetened chocolate, and then freeze them.  Oh, that got your attention did it?  Good.  Here's the simple recipe below.  Creation credits go to my mom, even though I WAS getting around to trying it myself.  I swear!

Dark Chocolate Bananas

• 5 full cubes of Baker's Unsweetened Chocolate
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 very ripe bananas, sliced into pieces
• Two saucepans, one fits inside the other

Pre-slice the bananas into bite-sized pieces.  Also lay out a piece of wax paper on a cookie sheet.  It needs to be able to fit in your freezer.

 Fill the bigger saucepan half with water.  Place the other one inside the first, but tilt it so that some of the heat can escape.  If you have the fancy pot that has an insert for just this purpose, definitely use it!






Turn stove to low heat, placing the chocolate and coconut oil inside the smaller pan.  If you want to add honey or a sweetener, now would be the time to do it.  Stir as they start to melt to prevent burning.






Once the chocolate is melted, use two forks to dip each banana in, flip it, then place it on the wax paper.  This requires patience, which I do not have, so mine came out much messier than my mom's.






After all the bananas have been dipped and laid out on the pan place them in the freezer for a few hours, until the banana is frozen through.  You can then transfer them to a ziploc bag and store them in the freezer for your easy snacking convenience!

#4 Make muffins, muffin bread, banana bread, or another breakfast item with the #1 or #2 bananas.
There are three new recipes fitting into this category. The first recipe is my equivalent of oatmeal or Farina for breakfast.  You could absolutely add a scoop of protein powder to this to make it a bit more well-rounded. The next two recipes are being shared after much testing and fighting in the kitchen.  I hope you get a chance to try both banana bread recipes. The "fast" recipe has more eggs and is less filling, the "best" recipe takes longer, has less eggs, and fills you up for a good amount of time.

Primal Porridge
(feeds two)

• 1 cup cooked and mashed squash or pumpkin
• 2 tsp almond butter
• 2 tsp full-fat coconut milk or regular milk
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 banana

Topping, split between two bowls

• 1 tbsp chia
• big handful of walnuts
• 1 tsp honey (drizzle on top)
• 2 tbsp cream or coconut milk (drizzled as well)
• fresh berries (optional)

Place all  non-topping ingredients in a food processor and pulse until desired consistency.  I like mine smooth, but some people like it a little chunkier.  Split mixture between two bowls and microwave each one for 1-2 minutes, again, desired heat.  If you don't like microwaves then heat it in a saucepan.





Sprinkle with toppings and eat... we like to leave all of them on top and pretend it's cereal.  You can mix it all together too if you want!

 

The "Best" Banana Bread
(food processor needed)

• 3 medium very ripe bananas
• 1 cup raw chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup flax seed meal
• 1 cup almond meal
• 2 eggs, whisked
• 1 tablespoon raw honey (optional)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and pull out your food processor.  Add walnuts to the food processor and grind down.  Once you get a fine meal, peel bananas and add to food processor along with honey if using.  Let combine for a minute or so until you have a soupy paste.

In a large bowl whisk eggs, then add food processor mixture along with almond and flax meal, baking soda and powder, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt. Mix well.

Add batter to a greased loaf pan.  Place in oven and bake for 30-50 minutes, until bread is cooked through and the top of your loaf is a medium brown color.

Easy Banana Bread

•  2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup coconut milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup ripe bananas, mashed (2 large or 3 medium bananas)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place all ingredients in the bowl and mix until smooth. Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake for 55-65 minutes until tester inserted in the middle comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Cool for 10 minutes and then invert bread onto a cooling rack.

**modified from deliciouslyorganic.net**



#5  Make a dessert.  Here's one of my summer favorites.  I will add a link to new recipes as I get around to sharing :)

Almond Butter Banana Ice Cream

• 2 frozen bananas
• 1/4 cup cream cheese
• 2 tbsp almond butter

Blend, preferably in a food processor, and eat soon after.  I recommend topping with the homemade whipped cream recipe below or coconut flakes.  It does not freeze very well.  Oh, and there's no picture because it doesn't photograph that well, but I swear it tastes great!

Homemade Whipped Cream

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Pulse in a food processor or with a hand mixer until it firms up slightly.  Keep checking on it, if you blend too much it will turn to butter!  Store extra in a tupperware in the fridge.








Whew, that's it for today.  Plenty of recipes to keep you busy for a while... and, as always, enjoy!

**unless otherwise stated, these have all been R&E originals**