Here at Chez Polka Dot, there is little that perplexes me more than figuring out the correct number of bananas to buy. Purchase too few, and the gang gobbles them up and growls for more. Too many, and they go overripe at an alarming rate. This week, I erred on the side of too many. You too? Okay. Then here’s what to do with overripe bananas:
Use them in a recipe. This is the most obvious route to take. Banana bread, bananas muffins, pancakes, all those bakedy goods that use bananas. Big Fish just sent me a recipe for banana bread that I’ll probably try today.
Give them to your dog. Back in the day when my beloved doggies were my “children,” Frosty Paws was the new sensation for dogs and their families everywhere. Frozen little cups of…well, probably chemicals, I don’t really remember. Anyhoo, they were pricey, so all kinds of imitation recipes popped up, and that’s what I used to make for the pups:
Dog Ice Cream
32 oz vanilla yogurt
1 mashed banana or one large jar of banana baby
2 T. peanut butter
2 T honey
Mash it all together, pour it into paper cups. Freeze. To serve to your happy hound, peel off the paper.
Smear them on your face. When we were little, we’d sing a little song on the bus: “I got a banana, a big fat banana. He’s my buddy; he’s my pal. I give him a smile, and in a while…I smash him in <insert name of boy here>’s face!” Ah, those were the days. But evil as banana-face-mashing sounded (and we didn’t really do it…sheesh!), there was only kindness in our hearts. That’s because a banana facial can be good for your skin:
Banana Mask (from Natural Beauty From the Garden, by Janice Cox)
1/2 mashed ripe banana
1 teaspoon sunflower oil (or any light oil)
Stir banana with a fork until creamy. Add oil and mix well. Spread on skin. Leave on 10-15 minutes. Rinse with warm water.
Mess with your family. Take a long needle. Starting at the top of the unpeeled banana, poke the needle in at a “corner” of the peel. Carefully wiggle it across the inside of the banana. Your goal is to slice the banana without making any noticeable marks on the skin. Remove the needle. Move down about an inch and a half, and repeat. When you’ve sliced the whole banana, let one of your kids peel it — it will be completely sliced inside. Laugh. Then toss the banana into the compost pile, unless you’ve used a clean needle or you’re not squeamish about Germs (dun-dun-dunnnn). In that case, freeze the slices and use them in a smoothie.
Explore science. Tell your kids you can peel a banana without using your hands. Get an empty bottle with an opening about the size of your banana (we used a salad dressing bottle). Peel your banana just a little — just get it started. Drop a piece of paper into the bottle, and light it with a long-necked lighter. Quickly stuff the unpeeled tip of your banana into the bottle’s mouth, leaving the peels hanging on the outside. Watch as the banana gets sucked into the bottle and peels itself! Ooh….ahhh…
