Bananas are a great and delicious fruit, but we all know that they are not so attractive when the peel becomes dark and the fruit itself is soft and overly sweet. But it is precisely these properties that make them perfect for a variety of treats and healthy, nutritious drinks!
This is one of those posts that does not contain a recipe in the true sense, but which should be useful to you. I will combine in this place various useful tips and ideas that you can come back to whenever you notice that you are again !!! they forgot the bananas in the fruit bowl and realized that there was no help for them since none of the housemates loved them in such a state.
Let me not exaggerate with the claim that you may start buying sliced bananas on purpose – it is enough to guarantee that you will not throw them away again!
Although overripe bananas are not a pleasure for most people, in just such a state, they are great for “cooking”. They are the perfect sweetener and binder in biscuits and various desserts – they are soft, sweet and have a more intense fruity taste than ordinary bananas. If you don’t have time to do something with them at a certain moment, freeze them and when you want ice cream, a sweet drink or some healthy cookie, you already have the main ingredient!
There are several recipes on the blog that you can come up with by clicking on the name itself below in the post. I will also mention some variations on the topic, as well as the function that bananas perform in the mentioned recipe (as a binder, sweetener, they allow the use of a smaller amount of fat …
What to do with frozen bananas?
In supermarkets you can occasionally come across overripe (“undesirable”) bananas that are sold at a lower price. If you have already gone home and you will not be pulling your bags for a long time, a handful or two of these divots can come in very handy. Turn a portion into pancakes for dinner or oatmeal bars for a snack during the week (I’ll talk about that below in the post), and put the rest in the freezer and prepare for the future.
The best way to freeze a banana, like other fruits, is to place the rings on a tray lined with plastic wrap and leave for half an hour to begin to freeze. Then put them in a bag, preferably one that opens easily and can be closed again. That way you can always take as much as you need and the rest is left to wait for its moment.
Bananas are the perfect base for smoothies, shakes and similar drinks – they serve as a sweetener and give density. I already wrote about it in a post on how to make a good smoothie – one that is nutritious, tasty, healthy. If you have bananas as a sweet base, add more berries, or any fruit or vegetable that can be eaten fresh, liquid and any additives – you will get a complete and filling meal. Of course, you can also use fresh fruit, but frozen bananas will allow you to get a drink like a shake, without adding ice that would later melt and dilute the drink.
If you also add some protein powder, such as hemp or some other that you use, you will get the perfect post-workout meal, which you can put in a jar and carry with you.
Another way is to make ice cream!
In fact, you can blend only frozen bananas with vanilla or some other spices and you will get an instant cold treat. I can’t tell you it’s something perfectly creamy, milky in taste like real ice cream, but it’s a pretty good substitute – overly banana for my taste, but ok. In the post about these “instant ice creams”, you will see three recipes that I love, two of which have bananas as a base. You can add a variety of berries, chocolate or just cocoa powder, nuts, even cold yogurt and make a treat to your liking.
Uncooked (raw) porridges are another good way to take advantage of fresh or frozen bananas. For now, you can see buckwheat porridge with berries and oatmeal and fruit porridge on the blog.
Namely, soak grains or flakes in water in the evening, rinse and mix in the morning with the addition of fruit, liquid, spices, nuts …
In addition to these ways, you can melt frozen bananas and use them for muffins, biscuit cakes.