What do you do with a bunch of bananas?
I read over on The Nibble site that coming up on August 27th is "Banana Lover's Day". Most days, I'm found eating a banana between breakfast & lunch...seems to quiet the belly 'til noon. Love bananas in just about everything! Nut bread, pudding, mmm...banana cream pie, on cold cereal, sliced in peanut butter quesadillas. Never eaten dried banana chips, tho' So...what's your banana speciality? Are you picky about the outside appearance of the peel? I like them best when they are all yellow & mildly freckled with brown spots. I've heard myths about using banana peels to "remove warts"...I knew they were packed with nutrients but super powers? Let's talk bananas.
Add a comment:
Previewing your comment:
HTML Hints
Some HTML is OK: <a href="URL">link</a>, <strong>strong</strong>, <em>em</em>
Comment Guidelines
Post whatever you want, just keep it seriously about eats, seriously. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. Learn more at our Comment Policy page.
If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment.
Start Talking!
Need a question answered? Have advice to share? Start a Talk topic now!
Sign up to get your questions answered and share advice.
20 Comments:
I wait until they are nearly dead and the fruit flies begin to circle their remains...then I made banana bread and muffins.
In honor of banana day, though, I'll dip them in dark chocolate and freeze them.
Yes, we have no bananas, we have no bananas today.
Nonny at 8:54PM on 08/24/08
umm...well, if you've got vegan friends, you can use them to replace eggs.
try making choc. chip cookies using bananas for eggs, Smart Balance(or something similar) for butter, and 1/2 and 1/2 whole wheat flour.
shockingly delicious, and banana-y to boot!
rasellers0 at 9:03PM on 08/24/08
I work as a exec chef in a sorority. My girls LOVE banana's until they see one lil tiny spot on them and that's it, they will not touch them. SOOOOOOO what's a chef to do? Freeze them till its time to make banana bread, muffins, cookies ect (by the way I have an excellent banana cookie recipe if anyones interested). But the thing that "rocks the girls world" (aside from the cookies) is weekend brunch. I make a normal batch of pancake batter and smooch the bananas right into the batter and proceed to grill them up like anyother pancake. Another thing I do for weekday mornings before school is make strawberry/banana smoothies for them as well.
pjracz10 at 9:18PM on 08/24/08
This is an old Girl Scout recipe. Grab a banana (works best with slightly under-ripe bananas). Cut a wedge vertically through the peel and a wedge of the fruit. Scrape out the fruit but keep the peel intact. Load up the wedge with mini-marshmallows and chocolate chips. Cover with the peel, then wrap in foil. Toss into a bed of hot coals or put on the grid of a gas grill. Rotate periodically and remove after 4 or 5 minutes. Make sure you have a plate handy and peel off the skin. Munch down on banana-choco heaven!
Josdean at 10:07PM on 08/24/08
I don't eat bananas at all - both the texture and the smell bother me. That said, I do love banana nut bread - both to bake and to eat (with a dollop of sour cream). I first made it for my FIL, then tasted a tiny piece myself and found it was absolutely lovely.
brooke29 at 10:21PM on 08/24/08
macerate the whole bananas in a little dark rum & honey .... then
put them into buttered phyllo dough (2 or 3 sheets will do)... shave a little dark chocolate BEFORE you wrap them up keeping the shape of the banana if possible with a little crumple on the ends ...brush with butter &
after they're wrapped brush with just a little of the rum & honey and bake at 375 until nicely browned.... you can serve with a little whipped cream or ice cream (coconut or vanilla)...
nice do ahead dessert, bake them during or right after dinner.... they only
take about 15-20 minutes..... :^)
pooch at 10:23PM on 08/24/08
banana cake. i could eat it every day.
cybercita at 11:46PM on 08/24/08
One a day, for flavor and potassium, and when they get too brown I break them into chunks in a yogurt tub in the freezer labeled "nanners". When I decide to make protein shakes I dump a handful of the frozen nanner-cubes into the blender. Yum.
Nursie at 12:13AM on 08/25/08
Bananas Foster! It even works with slightly overripe bananas, which for me, are always the best for adding into recipes because the sugar is really intense at that stage. Anyway, a quick and easy and delish bananas foster is simply this: slice bananas long ways, saute in a non-stick skillet with butter, brown sugar, dash of cinnamon, dash of nutmeg and then a dash of dark rum -- burn off the alcohol and let get all caramelly-gooey-delish and serve over vanilla bean ice cream! YUMMMMMMMMMMM
juliebugsmama at 10:29AM on 08/25/08
Old-fashioned, Nilla wafer style, banana pudding....
Yum!
TaraTot at 10:58AM on 08/25/08
LOVE making banana bread - mine has peanut butter instead of regular butter. Or I make a single-layer banana snack cake with caramel frosting.
I also have been known to make the occasional morning smoothie with frozen bananas, Greens powder (makes it look like nuclear waste, but it still tastes great!), vanilla protein powder, soy milk and a drop of peanut or almond butter. Love bananas in cold or hot cereal. And I like 'em any way except green. When they get spotty I just freeze them for baking or smoothies.
CookiePie at 1:51PM on 08/25/08
I love slices of banana in my cereal. So good! I also just saw this ">recipe for banana fritters that sounds delicious. Yum!
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 5:35PM on 08/25/08
Snack - banana bread - and as a sweetener in baked goods. I use bananas and cut back on some of the sugar. :D
therealchiffonade at 6:47PM on 08/25/08
I am just like your kids - I eat bananas as a fruit as long as they do not show black spots, when they do, I freeze them to make fruit smoothies. If you freeze when they're still pretty, they will remain white and your smoothies will be delicious... You can try these if you'd like:
Tropical Cream Supreme
Banana Strawberry Sherbet
Stealth Shake
Madelyn
KarmaFreeCooking
MadelynRodriguez at 7:42PM on 08/25/08
Thanks for all your shout-outs & recipe/uses for the banana. It has got to be one of the least expensive fruits & it comes packaged in its own to-go wrapper. Has anyone ever tasted those mini red ones...flavor similar?
JEP at 8:56PM on 08/25/08
Banana chips are great, especially when I'm in class. When I need the banana fix, I go for the chips instead of risking getting "banana juice" on my laptop. For a smoothie, put one or two bananas in a blender and add a packet of Carnation instant breakfast with one cup of milk...blend well and enjoy! You can't go wrong with bananas and chocolate syrup.
NativeRose at 10:06PM on 08/30/08
I like them unspotted and firm too - but can't bear to throw them away if they go past that point so make this fabulous banana and walnut cake - http://practicallydaily.blogspot.com/2006/08/banana-walnut-cake.html - but be warned - it makes a lot of washing up!
Bron
bron99 at 9:34AM on 09/02/08
I just take ripened bananas, peel them and line them up onto trays for my food dehydrator. Two days later sweet, long lasting tasty treats are mine. Get a good price on the bananas by buying them in bulk at Costco or other clubs, although one bunch I bought never ripened. This is a great way to save a large amount of bananas before they go bad. Beware the temptation to eat more than one...that's still the same carb and calorie count as a fresh banana. I store them in baggies. MUCH cheaper than the version sold at Whoe Foods. For a little humor refer to them as "ex-boyfriends".
ReneeIF at 8:04PM on 09/02/08
Date and banana cake, yummy.
zebun at 8:58PM on 09/02/08
has to be the old fashioned yet delicious banana pudding with nilla wafers.
listener at 10:48PM on 09/02/08