Hot Takes and Hot Plates: What to do with Bad Bananas

UP MAGAZINE
1 hour ago
3 min read

By Kaitlin McDowell

Edited by Taylor Morgan

Hot take: Buying bananas is hard, especially as a college girl eating for one.

You can only buy them in a bunch, which ranges from about five to seven. That means if you are not eating a banana every day, which is a great idea, honestly, bananas are so good for you, you will probably let them go bad.

But as they say, when life gives you mushy bananas, make banana bread! (That’s how the saying goes, right?)

When it comes to dessert and fruit combinations, banana-flavored treats are my all-time favorite, shoutout Magnolia Bakery’s banana pudding. Let’s just say I understand the “aPEEL” these fruits have on monkeys.

Some fun facts about bananas are that they are great sources of Potassium, Vitamin B6 and C and fiber (we are all eating more fiber this year, right?).

In the midst of the coldest months of the year, there can be a scarcity of things to do that don’t require leaving your house or spending lots of money. Banana bread, however, is extremely simple and inexpensive to make and will leave you with a delicious and healthier treat to enjoy from your couch.

I have tried many different banana bread recipes, gingerbread, cinnamon and also muffins, and have found that there are truly so many ways to bake with the yellow fruit, but the recipe below, which I will be sharing as the first installment of my cooking and baking series, has become my all-time favorite.

For the recipe, you will need eggs, any oil (I use coconut), flour, brown sugar, milk, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and five (or more) extra ripe bananas (the riper the better). The exact measurements can be found at the bottom of this page.

The first step is to set your oven to 350 F. Next, mix all of the ingredients together. I suggest mashing the bananas before mixing them in the bowl with the other ingredients if you want fewer large chunks of banana throughout the bread. I chose the lazier, and less clean-up route, and mixed my bananas with everything else.

Another fun thing about banana bread is its versatility. One can mix truly any toppings into the mix for some added flavors. I enjoy chocolate chips, raisins, sprinkles or strawberries, but the possibilities are endless.

Mixing the banana chunks and all of the flour truly rivals a pilates arm workout and will leave you wondering if this will ever turn into a smooth banana bread mix. After mixing and mixing accompanied by slight arm burning, I guarantee your batter will look like mine, which is featured below.

Once mixed and smelling sweet enough to eat, pour the batter into a baking dish and adorn it with more bananas if available or other toppings for added charm and pizazz.

In the Valentine’s Day spirit, I cut up some strawberries in the shape of hearts to put on top of the bread.

Bake for around 40 minutes or more. I recommend checking the bread around 20 minutes into baking to ensure it's not burning.

In order to check if the bread is baked and ready to eat, I recommend piercing the center with a fork. If the fork comes out clean with no batter, your bread is baked! Simply, let the bread cool for as long as desired and then dig into the delicious treat.

Having made this bread on your own will make it taste so much better. Next, encourage your roommates and friends to enjoy the bread and tell you how amazing it is; you deserve the praise.

Maybe buying bananas is hard, but honestly? That just means more banana bread.

I hope you try this banana bread made simple recipe and tag @UPMagazineMU on Instagram with your phone eats first photos!

Recipe:

5 ripe bananas
2 eggs
2/4 cup brown sugar
1 ¾ cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
¼ cup oil
¼ cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon