Well balanced and wholesome meals are important in my household. Most people can agree that they feel better when they eat better. However, sometimes a bit of effort is needed to make meals complete, or to get just a little more of a particular vitamin or mineral. I have heard from many people that it is expensive to prepare and eat non-processed high quality meals and I often argue or disagree with that statement.
Yesterday I picked up a bunch of bananas cheap... really cheap. They were less then $0.50/lb. I purchased about 10 large Bananas for under $2.00. The price is excellent, but how long will that many Bananas last? Probably not much longer than a few days before they become over-ripe. But there is a way to stretch the life longer and therefore stretch your dollar longer. The answer is to freeze them!
All I did was throw them outside onto our balcony and let the cold winter climate take care of the rest! Actually, I'm just kidding! Though bananas can be frozen whole and in their peels, they often turn brown and look unappealing. With the help of a blender, and ice cube tray, I managed to preserve this wonderful potassium right treat from nature a little longer.
Peel and chunk bananas into a blender or container.
Add a bit a vanilla extract and a tiny bit of water
Blend Blend Blend. ( I used my trusty hand blender)
Once the bananas have been puréed poor the mixture into a clean ice cube tray
Cover the tray with tinfoil (helps reduce browning) and freeze.
Once frozen, pop the banana chunks out of the tray and into a freezer bag of easy portion use.
This is the perfect way to save bananas (and money) for a quick healthy smoothie base, banana pancakes, banana bread, other banana baking or just on its own as a fresh frozen treat.
Bon Appetite!
